Jilli

Jeong Hwang-hah—a former Airbnb UX designer who pivoted to hospitality—opened San Francisco's first makgeolli bar in June 2025, and the room has been fully booked most nights since. The curated selection spans U.S. and Korean producers, including Brooklyn's Hana Makgeolli and Southern California's Sang Makgeolli, in a space modelled on the Korean sool jib—a third place dedicated to gathering over traditional fermented rice wine. Jilli rides a market that has reached $105 million in the U.S. and projects to double by 2035. The timing is impeccable; the execution, patient.