Bar Nohm: Where Ancient Binchotan Grill Meets Salt Lake City's Izakaya Culture

The smell hits you first—that clean, almost-sweet wood smoke that's nothing like regular barbecue. Walk into Bar Nohm on 900 South in Salt Lake City's Central 9th neighborhood, and you're breathing in something most Americans have never experienced: the aroma of binchotan charcoal burning at over 1,800 degrees. Chef David Chon custom-built one of the only authentic Japanese charcoal grills in Utah, and it's completely visible from nearly every seat in the house, glowing like a small constellation behind the chef's counter.

"Just visited Bar Nohm, chef David Chon was a top 20 regional finalist for a James Beard in 2024," one customer wrote on Wanderlog. "How is this place not getting more recognition? The food was absolutely delicious and the cost IMO is far below the price point for the quality."

This isn't your typical Japanese restaurant. Bar Nohm is Salt Lake City's first true izakaya—a concept that translates literally as "stay-drink-place" in Japanese culture. And that Phoenix-from-the-ashes comeback story? It makes the food taste even better.

The Chef Who Wouldn't Quit: David Chon's Journey From Seoul to Salt Lake's James Beard Semifinals

Chef David Chon grew up in South Korea, where the culture of after-work drinking and eating with friends isn't just common—it's essential to daily life. When he came to the States and traveled throughout Japan, he noticed something missing. "I thought that in the States that kind of culture was very, very much missing," Chon told the Salt Lake Tribune in 2023, "and I thought that I'd provide that kind of experience."

So in December 2019, Chon opened Nohm in the former Meditrina space at 165 West 900 South. The reviews were immediate and glowing—near-perfect Google scores, customers calling it the best Japanese food they'd had since legendary local spot Naked Fish. Then COVID-19 hit, just three months after opening. The pandemic, combined with two and a half years of brutal street construction on 900 South, forced Nohm to close.

But Chon didn't disappear. He moonlighted at kitchens around Salt Lake City, treating diners to his culinary flair wherever he could while planning his comeback. Next door, Sean Neves and Scott Gardner owned Water Witch, a cocktail bar that had earned its own James Beard recognition. They'd watch Chon work, taste his food at special collaboration events, and eventually approached him with a proposal: let's create something unprecedented in Utah's food scene.

In 2023, Bar Nohm was reborn. Chon became co-owner alongside Neves and Gardner, and together they transformed the space into something Salt Lake had genuinely never seen—an authentic Korean-Japanese izakaya with a portal door connecting directly to Water Witch's cocktail program. In 2024, Chef David Chon was named a James Beard semifinalist for Best Chef: Mountain, cementing what locals already knew: this comeback was the real deal.

"Bar Nohm is a second-generation version reborn in 2023 after closing due to the pandemic," Salt Lake Magazine wrote. "And nothing is as delightful as a comeback kid. Just call Chef David Chon Rocky Balboa. His food, after all, packs a punch."

The Binchotan Difference: Why This Japanese Charcoal Grill Changes Everything

Here's what you need to understand about binchotan charcoal: it's not just fancy briquettes. This is Japanese oak that's been fired in a kiln for ten days at extreme temperatures, then rapidly cooled with a mixture of earth, sand, and ash. The process, unchanged for over 400 years, creates charcoal so dense it rings like metal when you tap it. It burns at temperatures regular charcoal can't touch—clean, smokeless, and steady for hours.

"What sets Bar Nohm apart is the fully visible binchotan grill," explained food writer Lydia Martinez. "Binchotan charcoal burns hotter, cleaner and way better than your run-of-the-mill BBQ briquettes. It cooks with a borderline infrared light. A true novelty in Utah."

Chef Chon hand-designed Bar Nohm's binchotan grill himself, augmenting the traditional Japanese charcoal with wood sourced from Santaquin. The setup is relatively modest in size but produces "remarkably oversized heat," as Gastronomic SLC observed. Stand near it for more than thirty seconds and you'll understand why yakitori chefs in Tokyo spend years mastering their craft.

The technical magic happens because binchotan emits far-infrared rays that cook food from the inside out. A chicken skewer gets that crispy, caramelized exterior in seconds while staying impossibly juicy inside. The fat drips onto the charcoal, vaporizes instantly, and that smoke permeates back into the meat. The charcoal itself adds no flavor—it's completely odorless—which means you're tasting pure ingredient and pure technique.

"The consistent burning binchotan charcoal is garnished with local nuance from Santaquin-sourced wood, and the relatively modest-sized setup gives off remarkably oversized heat," one food critic noted. "Thirty seconds of admiring oohs and ahhs are about as much as I can muster."

This is culinary theater you can't fake with a gas grill. And in Utah, Bar Nohm is essentially the only place doing it authentically.

What Izakaya Culture Actually Means (And Why Bar Nohm Nails It)

Walk into any izakaya in Tokyo on a Thursday night and you'll see groups of coworkers, couples on dates, solo diners at the bar—all ordering small plates designed specifically to pair with drinks. It's not about getting full on one entrée. It's about sharing three, four, five dishes over the course of an evening, punctuated by sake, Japanese whisky, or creative cocktails.

Bar Nohm brings that exact energy to Central 9th. The space seats maybe 40 people if you count the bar, the communal table, the intimate wooden partitions that section the dining room, and the cozy booths. On a Friday night, it feels crowded—and that's intentional. Neves explained to the Salt Lake Tribune that izakaya spaces in Japan are purposefully tight, creating an atmosphere where you might stand the entire evening, "just sort of picking at something salty, drinking something sour with friends, talking about life."

The menu is structured around this philosophy. Small plates and skewers dominate the offerings, with a section called "anju"—a Korean term for food specifically designed to be consumed with alcohol. "Admittedly, this concept was new to me," admitted Salt Lake City Weekly's food critic, "but it's yet another reason to fall in love with Korean food culture, I suppose."

Chef Chon draws liberally from his Korean heritage while incorporating Japanese, Chinese, French, and American influences. "I centered the menu around Chinese, Japanese and Korean food," Chon said, "but I'm not limiting myself to Asian produce. I like to play with American and European dishes as well." The result is cross-cultural dining that avoids the "fusion" label—these aren't random mashups but thoughtful explorations of how different culinary traditions share common ground.

"As an Asian living in California, I've tried countless Asian bar/restaurant," wrote one customer on Wanderlog. "I'm happy to report this is my recent favorite! Food, cocktail, vibe and service are all probably the best I've had recently. We can't stop nodding and praising!"

The cocktail program, led by Water Witch's Clif Reagle and featuring talent like former Post Office Place beverage director Crystal Daniels (herself a James Beard finalist), matches Chon's culinary ambition. Think clarified cocktails, elaborate garnishes, and drinks designed to complement the food's intensity rather than compete with it.

The Food: What You'll Actually Order at Bar Nohm

Let's talk about what ends up on your table. Bar Nohm's menu changes daily based on what's fresh and what inspires Chon, but certain elements remain constant: you're ordering skewers, you're ordering something from the anju section, and you're probably ordering more than you planned because everything sounds too good to skip.

Start with the Skewers

Every single item coming off that binchotan grill deserves your attention. The chicken thigh and leek skewers ($5) arrive smoky and glistening, the meat caramelized on the edges but still yielding when you bite. One reviewer on SLUG Magazine called them "mouthwatering," noting the juicy, perfectly grilled texture that only binchotan can achieve.

The pork belly-wrapped enoki mushrooms ($6) are bacon-wrapped-anything taken to its logical extreme—tiny bundles of delicate mushrooms encased in pork that crisps beautifully over the charcoal. "I was a fan of the pork-wrapped enoki," wrote City Weekly, "which consist of tiny bundles of adorable enoki mushrooms wrapped in thin strips of pork and fired up on the grill. Fans of bacon-wrapped anything will want to add this to their list pronto."

Want to get adventurous? The chicken heart skewers ($4) and chicken skin skewers (which "puffs and crisps up as it cooks," according to one reviewer) push Americans outside their comfort zones in the best possible way. Chicken gizzards and chicken neck occasionally make appearances for those ready to embrace the full yakitori experience.

The Anju Section: Food Designed for Drinking

The gochujang butter chicken wings ($13) might be the dish that best captures Bar Nohm's approach. They're juicy and crispy, dressed with gochujang butter, sesame seeds, lemon zest, and cotija cheese, garnished with fresh green onion. Korean heat meets Mexican cheese meets Japanese technique—and somehow it all makes perfect sense.

The kimchi rice ($22) is Chon's spin on a cajun classic: kimchi, rice, shrimp, Chinese-style house-made sausage, and sesame. The rice gets slight caramelization from the heat, the kimchi provides acid and spice without overwhelming, and that house-made sausage—described by one critic as "caramel sweet hoi sin flavors"—steals the show. "I desperately resist the urge to ask for a to-go box of sausage," admitted Gastronomic SLC.

The duck wrap ($32) features confit duck with lettuce, daikon salad, confit garlic, and perilla. Pair it with the Takara Shirakabegura Tokubetsu Junmai sake, and according to SLUG Magazine, you get "a uniquely satisfying experience" where the medium-bodied sake with hints of dragonfruit and pineapple enhances the duck's heat and spice.

Raw and Chilled Preparations

While Chon doesn't want Bar Nohm labeled as a sushi spot, the raw fish program is exceptional. The bluefin sashimi ($23) comes in large, generous pieces served simply with wasabi and ginger. "The top-quality Bluefin Sashimi we had was six large pieces of gorgeous raw bluefin served simply with wasabi and ginger—a real highlight of our visit," noted Utah Stories.

Then there's the chilled fried fish—a dish that sounds like a contradiction until you taste it. Made with crispy fried mackerel, then chilled and served with tofu, zucchini, and a sweet-sour sauce, it challenges your assumptions about temperature and texture. "Think of how delicious fried chicken is cold out of the fridge at midnight as you order this dish," suggested Salt Lake Magazine's Lydia Martinez.

Don't Sleep On These

The sesame noodles come highly recommended across multiple reviews. The pork omelette surprises people. The karaage chicken (Japanese fried chicken) has customers coming back specifically for it. One Wanderlog reviewer summed it up perfectly: "Food we ordered: oden, sesame noodles, pork omelette, karaage, fried tofu, cucumber salad, and couple skewers. I would give all of them 5 stars except fried tofu (just because the sauce a bit too sour and sweet for me but the breading of the tofu is VERY good)."

For dessert, the shiso makgeolli granita ($12) with yuzu vanilla semifreddo on white chocolate crumbles offers a finale that's refreshing and complex—especially when paired with Shimizu-No-Mai "Pure Snow" Junmai Nigori sake.

Central 9th's Anchor Restaurant: Bar Nohm's Role in Salt Lake's Food Evolution

Central 9th has become Salt Lake City's answer to neighborhoods like Austin's East 6th Street or Portland's Division—a walkable strip where independent restaurants, bars, and shops create an ecosystem that feels genuinely urban. Bar Nohm sits at 165 West 900 South (also known as Harvey Milk Boulevard), in a building designed by Atlas Architects that has anchored the neighborhood's development since 2016.

The location matters. You can walk to Scion Cider Bar, Water Witch (obviously), Central 9th Market, and The Pearl within minutes. The Tracy Aviary and Liberty Park are less than a mile away. This is Salt Lake's "hippest block," according to the keyword research, and Bar Nohm has become its culinary centerpiece.

"Bar Nohm has fought pretty hard to make itself into the Central Ninth fixture it is today," wrote Salt Lake City Weekly, "and based on the current updates, I'd say the place is thriving."

The partnership with Water Witch creates something unique even beyond the food. That "portal" door connecting the two businesses—a large mahogany entrance in Bar Nohm's back hallway—allows customers to wander between spaces with drinks in hand. It's a small gesture that feels massive in Utah, where liquor laws have historically stifled exactly this kind of creative collaboration.

"While it might seem silly to big city folk," Salt Lake Magazine observed, "that little door between Bar Nohm and Water Witch is a sign of perseverance in the face of often stifling liquor laws. It's a symbol of a community that lifts each other up and celebrates collaboration. It's an indication our salty city is growing up."

The 21-and-over policy reinforces the izakaya concept—this is a place for adults to unwind, not a family restaurant. The dark academia aesthetic (tall wooden partitions, witchy artwork nodding to Water Witch, charred planks on the walls from the original Nohm) creates intimacy. Whether you're at the 25-foot bar, the communal table facing the windows, or tucked into one of the wooden booths, you feel like you've stumbled onto something special.

Planning Your Visit to Bar Nohm

Address: 165 W 900 South, Salt Lake City, UT 84101 (Central 9th neighborhood, corner of 900 South and Jefferson Street)

Hours:

• Monday: Closed
• Tuesday-Thursday: 5:00 PM - 11:00 PM
• Friday-Saturday: 5:00 PM - 12:00 AM
• Sunday: 5:00 PM - 11:00 PM

Reservations: Highly recommended, especially for weekend evenings. The space is small and fills up quickly. You can book through their website at barnohm.com or by calling (385) 465-4488.

What to Order: If this is your first visit, start with 3-4 skewers (whatever's fresh that day), the gochujang butter chicken wings, and one anju dish like the kimchi rice or duck wrap. Plan on $13-$32 per person per dish. Three to four dishes per person, shared family-style, hits the sweet spot. The Bar Nohm Boilermaker ($10)—a draft Sapporo with a shot of IWAI 45 whiskey—pairs beautifully with skewers. For sake lovers, ask your server for recommendations based on what you're eating; Bar Nohm is known for having "the best selection of sake in town," according to Water Witch's website.

Best Times to Visit: Customers note that parking on 900 South and surrounding streets is easiest before 6 PM. Weeknights tend to be less crowded than weekends, though the buzzing Friday-Saturday energy is part of the izakaya experience. If you want to watch the binchotan grill in action, request seating at the chef's counter or near the kitchen.

The Water Witch Connection: Don't miss the opportunity to explore both spaces. Start with cocktails at Water Witch, walk through the portal to Bar Nohm for dinner, then head back to Water Witch for nightcaps. It's a uniquely Salt Lake experience that showcases the best of both concepts.

Instagram: Follow @bar.nohm for daily menu updates, behind-the-scenes looks at the binchotan grill, and gorgeous food photography.

Parking: Street parking is available on 900 South, Jefferson Street, and nearby residential streets. The neighborhood is extremely walkable, so consider ridesharing or parking at Central 9th Market and walking over.

Why Bar Nohm Matters to Utah's Culinary Landscape

Salt Lake City's food scene has evolved dramatically over the past decade, moving from a place where bone marrow was considered "too adventurous" to a city where a James Beard-nominated chef can hand-design a binchotan charcoal grill and draw crowds for chicken heart skewers. Bar Nohm represents that evolution—not as a novelty, but as genuine culinary craftsmanship that happens to be rooted in Korean and Japanese traditions.

"The opening of Bar Nohm feels like yet another nudge of the needle for Salt Lake City," wrote Gastronomic SLC. "The menu is bolder and more ambitious than most. It's confidently assured. Remember when Copper Onion started plating bone marrow to a supposedly too-queasy Utah? Then they couldn't keep up and everyone copied? This is another of those moments—invigorating."

What makes Bar Nohm special isn't just the food or the binchotan grill or even the James Beard recognition. It's that Chef David Chon survived a pandemic that closed his restaurant three months after opening, kept cooking, found the right partners, and came back stronger. It's that Sean Neves and Scott Gardner saw potential in collaboration rather than competition. It's that Salt Lake diners showed up, tried chicken gizzards, and came back for more.

"Fine and elegant cuisine with well-plated, thoughtful, and delicious dishes," one customer summarized on Wanderlog. "The dishes are clearly meticulously crafted, with layers of complimentary flavors as you indulge. Seating by the kitchen was great, where you can watch every plate being freshly made. Don't miss this spot if you are in SLT. 10/10 stars all day long."

In a city still finding its culinary identity, Bar Nohm offers something authentically its own: a Korean-American chef using Japanese techniques and a custom-built binchotan grill to create an izakaya experience that could only exist in Salt Lake City's Central 9th neighborhood. That's not fusion—that's evolution.

And if you need one more reason to visit? That wood smoke smell when you walk through the door. Once you experience binchotan charcoal grilling, regular barbecue will never quite satisfy you the same way again.

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Bar Nohm is located at 165 W 900 South in Salt Lake City's Central 9th neighborhood. Reservations recommended. For the latest menu and updates, visit barnohm.com or follow @bar.nohm on Instagram.