Inside a new Korean café in San Luis Obispo are healthy drinks and desserts you won't find at most other restaurants on the Central Coast. Bing soo (Korean shaved ice), Korean flower teas, and taiyakis are all on the menu, but Touch By Angels Café is doing more than just adding new flavors to the area.
“Many Asian people have to drive far to get this menu,” said Young Won, owner of Touch By Angels Café in San Luis Obispo.
Located right between Yanagi Sushi and Pancho’s Mexican Food on Marsh Street sits Touch By Angels Café, a Korean-owned business. Customers say a few Korean barbeque options on the Central Coast are out there, but nothing like this.
“We don't really have a lot of Asian desserts around here, or even Asian cuisine, especially Korean desserts,” said Jeffrey San Juan of Orcutt. “The closest one is probably in L.A., like a legit bing soo, so we're really excited to have it here.”
“The new generation of people in Korea, they have all kind of fruits, mangoes, strawberry, honey, melon,” said Won of the bing soo she now offers at her café.
Young Won, born in Korea, is a Paso Robles resident of 30 years. For the past half-decade, she had the idea of opening a café to share her Korean culture, along with the new-school approach of fruity flavor, but the time and space weren’t right. That was the case until now.
“This spot is a really good location for everybody in this county because they don’t have to worry about parking,” Won said with a smile.
A single mom, Won runs a girls group home for special needs children in Paso Robles. One of the girls is her own daughter.
“They would love to work in service jobs instead of just being janitors cleaning,” Won said.
Won’s vision of the café spans far beyond food. Her business provides those with special needs the opportunity to work in a safe space, as her daughter can at her café.
“I believe that many parents that have special needs children have that dream,” Won said. “They can learn, get trained, so they can actually express themselves. Everybody has different potential. I really want to bring that out from each of my girls.”
Offering opportunities for those with disabilities, while simultaneously offering a diverse menu for those with the desire for delectable dessert.
“Restaurants, places of business, theater, music, culture, food, recreation, all those things can support and promote diversity and can promote, most importantly, people coming together from all walks of life to enjoy this community,” said Cornel Morton, the board president for Diversity Coalition San Luis Obispo County.
Touch By Angels’ grand opening will be January 25, exactly a month after their soft opening on Christmas Day.
