By Vanessa Lantos Daly (Spicy Melon)
April 14, 2025 – I wasn’t expecting it when I visited. Truthfully, I didn’t know what to expect, but I was buzzing with interest at the promise of Southern soul food and Korean food fusion.
Normally, my expectations are neutral when chatting with chefs and business owners about their new ventures. But here, the food and energy did all the talking. The owners welcomed me with open arms and enthusiasm, their food bursting with flavor and approachable finesse. Taking a bite and listening to the story behind it made it all the more vibrant.
After a soft opening in the first week of March, West Broad Bandshell officially opened the week of St. Patrick’s Day. Located at 514 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd, it formerly housed King Oliver’s Creole Jazz Bar.
Happily, the venue keeps the homage to King Oliver, with the mural of King Oliver’s Creole Band welcoming you at the entrance. There’s also a plaque on the side of the building, dedicated to King Oliver and all that he did for jazz music during his time in Savannah. Some lovely renovations have been done, with cozy upscale furnishings, and a well-rounded space has been developed.
I sat with owners William LaFlower, who also owns Bandana Burger located at 4525 Habersham Street, and Michael Yoon in the dining room for a friendly chat.
Their enthusiasm is palpable. William animatedly shares a bit of the inspiration behind the name: “This street used to be called West Broad Street, so we want to give a nod to all that this street was before. Savannah is constantly changing, and we appreciate the rich history that this street has.”
William adds, “The reason why we have the word Bandshell in our name is because of the inspiration we take from 1920s bands and live performances, where everyone is included under the bandshell. We are welcoming of local live music acts in our venue. We care about the music history of Savannah and want to be a part of it. Our goal is to create a space where people want to come to eat, drink, and listen.”
A new local place that offers live music is always great news. When I asked about the frequency of live music offerings, William shared: “We will have live music a couple of times a week upon availability. As a new venue, we are ironing out the kinks. Something exciting will be Sundays, when we will have local singers and songwriters showcasing their talent, starting at 8pm. A curated open-mic night, planned a week in advance. These will be presented by Susanna Kennedy and EZ-J Collective.”
William speaks warmly of his co-owners, who include Tanika Hamilton and Romie Cummings: “They own a takeout and catering business in town called Tanika and the Chef. Their food is amazing. I met Michael when he came to interview Bandana Burger with a writer from Eater, about 14 months ago. Michael and I hit it off, and kept talking about this concept of taking Korean and Soul food, and bringing it together. We bonded with Tanika and Romie, and created a great friendship as business owners here in town, and they had the same idea because Michael is Korean, Tanika is half-Korean, and Romie is one of the best chefs in town with over 20 years of experience making all kinds of food, but he hangs his hat on his soul food.”
Romie is not only part-owner but also the chef at the restaurant, and I have to say — his food is incredibly flavorful. Not only that, but it’s also very interesting with the fusion of Korean flavors. It’s not the everyday Southern food that everybody seeks downtown. This is something else.
Encore Street Tteok
I sincerely came here to write about the live music offerings and to look at the new space — and ended up turning into a full-on fangirl for this food. I’m very surprised. You have to try it. Not only that, but it’s affordable considering the high quality, especially when compared to similar offerings downtown.
I tried the Encore Street Tteok, which are Korean rice cakes smothered in a spicy-sweet gochujang BBQ glaze, topped with scallions and toasted sesame seeds. Tteok means rice cakes in Korean. When I saw them, I said, “Wow, those glazed carrots look great.” My interviewees smiled at me and told me to try the rice cakes that are too addictive to only have one.
“These spicy rice cakes are inspired by Korean street food. You normally wouldn’t find these in a restaurant. I remember having these in the streets of Korea in a little cup, and you’d enjoy them with a toothpick.”
Having authentic, elevated street food on a menu is the kind of thing that gets me fired up.
For lunch, sandwiches go as high as $17 and are served with hand-cut fries, sweet potato fries, or onion rings. In an ever-inflating downtown restaurant scene where some places offer a sandwich with no sides for nearly $20, this is liquid gold.
One of their best sellers is the crispy panko-breaded pork cutlet topped with shredded cabbage Asian slaw, drizzled with house-made katsu sauce and gochujang aioli, served on a toasted brioche bun. It’s very tender and flavorful. The sweet potato fries are served with a sweet creamy sauce that tastes like icing. Michael jokingly adds, “With this sauce, you turn sweet potato fries into sweet potato pie.”
Katsu Express Sando
They have a short-but-sweet cocktail list with interesting ingredients like crème de mûre, a French blackberry liqueur similar to crème de cassis. I highly recommend the Deep Grass cocktail, which blends vodka, lime, elderflower, and white cranberry — vodka lovers, rejoice.
Deep Grass cocktail at West Band
“We make everything from scratch except the ketchup and the hot sauce, which we have plans to make our own in the future,” William shares proudly about the food.
You can click here to see the whole menu.
The most expensive item at dinner is a $30 signature 12 oz ribeye, which is unbeatable. Their most expensive item during lunch is under $20, like their creamy Southern grits and grilled shrimp with a delicious cream-based gochujang gravy topped with scallions and sesame seeds. The portions are generous, and the flavors are rich… ok, I’m gonna stop being such a fangirl for a minute to tell you a bit of the history, which is equally rich.
William’s energy is electric and proud off the bat, talking up all the great things about this new venture and his business partners, and Michael smiles quietly. Humble, and even a tad shy, but once encouraged by William, his take on everything regarding food and history is amazing.
“Korean food and Southern food have intersectionality. If you look back to the Korean War, Korean fried chicken was born out of Korean soldiers and American soldiers who shared these barracks, and they see these American soldiers frying chicken with flour and tasting it, so their cultures and flavors intertwined,” Michael shares.
One of their bestselling items is their slow-braised short ribs, which is slow-braised Korean “Galbi” Beef. “It is a short rib, but in Korea, they use the whole short rib with the whole bone. Koreans grill the tender parts of the short rib, and they braise the more firm parts of the meat closer to the bone for 3 hours to make it very tender. This preparation is rarely seen in restaurants because it is so labor-intensive, but we do it, and we introduce these amazing specialties to people.”
“Michael and Tanika asked their moms to prepare their family recipes, and we took the best out of both to make ours, so it is like two families coming together in a dish. These ladies have perfected their own recipes for over 70 years, and now we get to serve this recipe to our guests. It is an amazing feeling.” William shares.
Seared shrimp and grits with a Korean twist
I think they have succeeded in putting lots of love in their food and space, and they show a lot of passion in the end result. To all of you who haven’t tried it, I highly encourage it! With limited vegan options in Savannah for dining, William shared that many items on the menu can be made vegan, including the Katsu Express Sando, substituting pork with tofu.
For live music events, you can find updates on the West Broad Bandshell Instagram page, and they will soon be submitting their weekly events to The Savannahian Sound Board.
Soon to come will be their adjacent coffee shop, Orient Espresso. Stay tuned for their opening!
Love always,
Vanessa
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