Chef Jonah Kim is leaving D.C. for Miami. “I’m going to work on my tan,” he quips.

Whether Kim would remain in the region when he parted ways with Mike Isabella in August was up in the air, but now his decision is final. Kim was the opening chef and partner at Yona in Ballston and previously worked at Pabu in Baltimore. 

He has accepted a position working at Stephen Starr’s Miami outfit of Makoto, which specializes in sushi and modern Japanese cuisine not all that different from what Kim was cooking up at Yona. 

Yona (which is how Jonah is pronounced in Japan and Korea) remains open and is still in the hands of Mike Isabella Concepts. Both sides remain mum on the reason for the split.

While Kim worked in D.C. for a relatively short time, his presence was felt in the community. He was named Rising Star Chef of the Year at the 2016 RAMMY Awards and was a loyal participant of food-related charity events around D.C.