Nōksu, a Korean-influenced fine dining restaurant, opened its doors underground at the Herald Square subway station earlier this month.

The restaurant's entrance is low key by design. And the owners play up the mystery of the black door by sending diners an access code that changes every day.

"We wanted people to walk into an ambiance of tranquility," said Bobby Kwak, one of the owners of Nōksu.

Kwak and his business partner Joseph Ko fell in love with the 1,200 square foot space four years ago and wanted to take their time renovating it. Kwak said the space was occupied by a barbershop and newspaper stand for more than 30 years.

Transforming it into a restaurant wasn’t quick. There were a lot of workarounds that needed to be done. For instance, there’s no gas line in the space, so they serve a mostly cold menu. And because of the small space, Nōksu decided on counter seating for only 13 diners.

"We originally had some more seating, but we also wanted to have a really comfortable experience for each guest, right? Really VIP, and more of a comfortable atmosphere," said Ko.

Nōksu is located in the heart of the city’s Koreatown. It’s now one of more than 100 Korean businesses set up along 32nd Street, between Broadway and Madison.

"We want to give diners something that they wouldn't be able to get on the streets of Koreatown, 32nd street. We want them to come and find us," said Kwak.

The man behind the counter is chef Dae Kim. He spoke about his tasting menu, saying, "I want to create dishes [that are] a little more unique and [with] more intense detail or with a story behind it."

One-on-one time with the chef and servers is part of the experience at the long counter facing Nōksu’s open kitchen. So as diners enjoy each course, they get to watch as chef Dae and his team curate the next one.