[UPDATE] Korean Fried Chicken Eatery Mukja Has Closed in Midtown

Just a day after the abrupt closure of Taco Mac in Midtown, fellow Metropolis (933 Peachtree Street) tenant Mukja has also closed.  Mukja, which served Korean fried chicken, was Taco Mac's neighbor but located on the side of the residential building along Peachtree Place.   

Credit:  Steven Thackston

High school classmates Sean Chang and Peter Chung reunited during their college years and after graduating from Georgia State and Georgia Tech respectively, launched Mukja, which means "let's eat" in Korean. 

Chang, paralyzed from the waist down from a 2016 vehicle accident, was the culinary mind behind Mukja, while Chung, who had worked in front of house roles for several restaurants around town, managed operations.  Delayed several months due to the pandemic, the restaurant opened in October 2020.  

The Georgia Restaurant Association honored the duo as restaurateur "Rookie of the Year" in 2022 with Chung departing the business a few months later to explore opportunities outside of restaurants.  

Chang hinted at personal struggles on the Mukja Instagram page earlier this year and again earlier this week when he shared news of the restaurant's closure.  

"Thank you to everyone who believed in Mukja and supported us til the end. An absolute privilege to have served and learned everything about restaurants from ya’ll. I am at a complete loss for words and wished that this wasn’t the end but at the end of the day, health comes first above all else. I do have some good days, but majority of the month is a struggle and I’m tired of having to give 110% to even function normally. Being disabled is difficult enough, but having an injury with subsiding pain and problems makes it so much more difficult to continue.  I know this is insanely short notice and I apologize, but happy to know that I’ve done something for five years that many dream of doing.  Maybe Mukja makes a comeback, but for now I can’t even think about it if I’m putting one step in the grave.  I’ll be doing my best to work the last shifts to serve ya’ll one last time.  It’s truly been an honor." 

Chang posted a final thank you Wednesday after the restaurant's last service Tuesday night.  

Alongside the song "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)" by Green Day, Chang shared:

"Thank you to everyone that showed up. The love was crazy. The love IS crazy. How a small dream became something that was loved and cherished in many lives throughout the years. From old and new customers, truly I am forever grateful you allowed me to serve you. Thank you for letting me chase my dreams."

When Mukja opened in 2020 it replaced what had most recently been a ill-fated BurgerIM franchise.  Taco Mac debuted its restaurant at Metropolis in 2008 in a corner space originally home to Stool Pigeons Coop & Grill.  

Taco Mac has in recent years completely exited intown Atlanta with only locations near Cumberland and at The Prado in Sandy Springs still operating ITP.  

There is no indication that there are any immediate plans for either the Taco Mac or Mukja spaces which measure approximately 7,700 and 2,700 square feet, respectively. 

Did you ever dine at Mukja?  If Mukja does reopen elsewhere in the future, where would you like to see it open?  What would you like to see open in place of Taco Mac and Mukja?

Please share your thoughts below