Stop #4: Koreatown Plaza (928 S. Western): You have already traveled along a part of Wilshire sometimes considered Koreatown’s Main Street, thanks to the wealth of Korean-owned properties and businesses. Koreatown started as a business district that attracted an otherwise scattered southern California Korean population. By 1970, it had earned its official ethnic district designation with signage; by the start of this century, the neighborhood housed the largest population of Koreans outside of Korea. Of nearly 500,000 Koreans in California, L.A. County is home to more than 200,000 and the numbers have grown to 300,000 in the greater L.A. area. Home to about 350,000 total residents, an approximately five-square-mile (13 sq. km.) area of this district is one of the most densely populated neighborhoods in the U.S. beyond parts of Manhattan and Chicago. Latinos have been at least the plurality ethnic group here for many years.
Landscapes with Seoul. Korean signage and ubiquitous mini-malls dominate this dense district on Western. You will notice a lot of businesses cramped together with congested traffic and parking lots during busy times.
Today’s K-town businesses, restaurants, clubs, karaoke studios, shops, and signage combine to create dense, visually stimulating landscapes that attract tourists from around the world. Note the abundance of compact strip malls that challenge visitors to find limited parking. Here, we stop at a well-established mall (Koreatown Plaza) with a food court and grocery store that offers far more than endless variations of kimchi dishes. You will also find retail shops that cater to those ranging from the middle classes all the way to those with enough money to throw it away on $20,000 handbags. Note the formidable-looking façade on Western that feels hostile to approaching pedestrians, much less anyone trying to window shop. The message is clear here: you are expected to get here by car and enter the mall from the parking areas at the rear of the building. This is an example of the stereotypical L.A. car culture architecture from the 1900s that has been more recently cast aside for more pedestrian-friendly 21st Century urban landscapes that don’t require cars.
Archaic Car Culture Architecture. Koreatown Plaza’s facade reminds us of an older L.A. that became hostile to pedestrians. This encourages visitors, whether from the neighborhood or from surrounding regions, to arrive in cars and enter through the parking structure in the back.
East Meets West; Different, but the Same. Technology and Korean signage rule as you enter to visit shops that serve the community. Here, you can purchase almost anything, from affordable food at the Korean-style grocery store, to hand bags priced at more than $20,000 each.
Korean Pop Culture Invades L.A. Korean performers and other celebrities have made frequent visits to attract fans and customers to these shops that celebrate their music and culture.
Food Mall Melting Pot. In the depths of the mall, you will find – and smell – a wide variety of Korean-style fast foods.
Food as Culture. Your many shopping choices include traditional foods at their Korean grocery store. Such stores represent some of the best opportunities to learn about a culture.
Advertising as Culture. Visitors are bombarded with advertisements that expose what Koreans might be buying. Traditional and popular cultures are on display.
Smell as Culture. Choose your style of kimchi out of the package, guaranteed to aromate your home.
A Tradition of Noodles. Even your choice of noodles can immerse you in the Korean culture. Pick your style and flavor.
Recovering from the Pandemic. Beyond the Plaza, street life returns to Koreatown along Western during the spring of 2021. Surviving businesses compete to bring back old customers and recast themselves to attract new visitors among transformed markets and landscapes.
Diversity on Koreatown Streets. Someone made a decision to locate this sign, at a bus stop on Western in the heart of Koreatown, that shows retiring African American women. In this district that is dominated by Asian and Latino residents, does this signage acknowledge and celebrate the diversity of L.A., or was it a poorly placed ad?
Another Plaza Bites the Dust? Examples of the fierce competition between mini-malls and shopping plazas in Koreatown include this fenced-off abandoned building covered with graffiti right along Western Ave. It is possible that the Coronavirus pandemic slowed any efforts to revive this valuable piece of prime real estate. The photo was taken in May, 2021.
