New York-trained chef Sechul Yang, who logged time at Gramercy Tavern and Maialino, is now running his own show at Sono, a compact Korean-Italian trattoria at 176 First Avenue in the East Village. The menu leans hard into handmade pasta tangled with fermented sauces, pickles and Korean pantry staples, while the drinks list brings in house-made soju alongside a tight wine selection. Yang presents the cooking as a personal mashup, shaped by his upbringing near Seoul and refined in New York kitchens, and he has kept most main dishes under $50. The roughly 40-seat dining room fills the former Black Seed Bagels space.
Early menu details
As reported by Time Out, Sono’s menu "revolves around handmade pasta paired with fermented sauces, pickled vegetables and Korean ingredients." The outlet highlights plates like rigatoni folded with guanciale and fermented black beans, plus a bottarga pasta finished with Korean zucchini, pollock roe and nori.
Menu highlights and what to order
When the restaurant opened in mid-May, Eater pointed to a chitarra tossed with saffron and yellow-zucchini purée and topped with myeongran (pollock roe), an oxtail fettuccine that bridges cacio e pepe with Korean ox-bone soup, and a clam linguine that riffs on kal guksu. Eater also notes that the drinks program features infused soju served neat or in highballs and that Yang offers both à la carte pastas and a prix-fixe for two. Photos from the opening show a cozy, 40-seat room with checkered floors and clay pottery on display.
Chef and the backstory
Yang moved to the U.S. in 2010 to study at the Culinary Institute of America, then built a résumé that includes Gramercy Tavern, Maialino, Oiji Mi and DDOBAR, according to his website. He also received a $5,000 award through the SHIA Pitch Day program in late 2025, a small cash boost that helped push Sono from idea to reality.
Where to go
Sono’s site lists the address as 176 First Avenue and shows a 5/16/2026 launch date; reservations and the current menu are available on the restaurant’s website. Early coverage from The Infatuation spotlights the handmade noodles and house-made soju and offers a brief preview of the surrounding neighborhood. Walk-ins might snag a table, but with a compact dining room and quick media attention, booking online is the safer move.
Why it matters
The result is an approachable, highly personal hybrid: precise Italian technique folded with fermented Korean depth, with most mains staying under $50 and a prix-fixe starting around $150 for two, Eater reports. In a neighborhood already packed with restaurants, Sono adds another distinct voice to the East Village lineup, one that trades on both comfort and curiosity.
