Restaurant Credited With Bringing Korean Food to SoHo to Close, Report Says Updated May 16, 2011 12:34pm

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By Adam Nichols

DNAinfo News Editor

MANHATTAN — A restaurant credited with introducing Korean food to legions of SoHo diners will close this month after failing to agree a new lease, Eater reported.

Woo Lae Oak has been on Mercer Street for 12 years.

“We have had the great pleasure of introducing New Yorkers to “Creative Korean Cuisine,” read a letter to its patrons, according to Eater.

"Since opening in 1999, Woo Lae Oak has become the premier Korean restaurant in New York," the letter continued. "It has been the flagship for a group of restaurants developed by owner Young Sook Hoi, highly regarded as the pioneer in introducing Korean cuisine to westerners.”

Woo Lae Oak was credited with introducing Korean food, like this traditional Jap Chae dish, to westerners. (DNAinfo/Jill Colvin)

Its sister restaurant, West 50th Street’s Bann, will remain open, the letter said.

By Adam Nichols, DNAinfo.com

Follow Adam on Twitter @adam__nichols