Jun Chong Taekwondo Dojo on Wilshire: Seven Days, Two Mats

Jun Chong Tae Kwon Do, at 6340B Wilshire Blvd in Los Angeles, is the taekwondo dojo that Mid-Wilshire families have walked past for decades without always realizing how much history sits behind the glass. The school says it has kept its tradition and reputation since 1973, and Grandmaster Jun Chong, a 9th-dan black belt in taekwondo and hapkido, still teaches alongside his son Yong. The studio is a 4,500-square-foot space with two classroom mats, and the school says it is open seven days a week.

Chong was born in South Korea and began learning taekwondo at the age of 8, according to the school's instructors page, going on to win national and international competitions. Outside the dojang he has also worked in film: the same page says he and Master Phillip Rhee have spent years producing action movies together, and Rhee, best known for the Best of the Best series, has taught here since the studio first opened on Wilshire Boulevard in 1975.

The school is affiliated with the World Taekwondo Federation in Korea and with the International Korea Hapkido Federation, and both arts appear on its curriculum. That pairing gives the place its personality. The taekwondo side covers the high kicks, punching combinations and sparring that most people picture, while hapkido adds joint locks, throws and wrist escapes that many Olympic-style programs skip entirely.

Most small dojangs have one floor and one class at a time, so beginners end up lined up behind brown belts who are drilling something far beyond them. With two separate mats, Jun Chong can split groups: little ones on one side, an adult kicking class on the other, or a hapkido group rolling through break falls while a taekwondo group works forms. Ask at the front desk which mat your class uses so you know where to bow in.

The floor space also explains the wide timetable. Beyond taekwondo and hapkido, the school lists kendo, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, iaido, escrima and yoga, and it hosts children's birthday parties. On a weekday evening you may watch bamboo shinai clatter on one mat while teenagers practice spinning hook kicks on the other. It feels busier than a single-style school, which suits people who like seeing what else they could try next season.

The children's program begins at three and a half, younger than many schools allow. At that age the work is balance, listening and controlled kicking at pads, not contact. School-age kids move into the full color-belt curriculum with forms, one-step sparring and board breaking. Adults train in their own sessions, so a forty-year-old beginner is not stuck in a room of second graders.

Tuition is not posted on the website, so the useful move is to sign up for the free class the kids' page advertises and talk through options afterwards. Bring water, short nails and a willingness to train barefoot; jewelry comes off before you step on the mat. The About page also asks students to train on a regular weekly basis and recommends working out at least three times a week unless injured or ill.

One rule sets this school apart. Black belt candidates are expected to log 75 hours of assistant teaching before their black belt test. In practice that means a teenager approaching first dan spends weeks holding pads, counting for little dragons and fixing a white belt's guard. Parents tend to love the rule because it turns a sport into a leadership habit, and the younger kids get extra attention from students only a few years older.

Testing itself follows the World Taekwondo pattern of forms, kicks, sparring and breaking, with Grandmaster Chong or Master Yong Chong on the judging side. Hapkido students test separately. If you are transferring from another school, bring proof of rank; the instructors will watch you train for a while before deciding where you fit in their system.

Bow when you enter and leave the mat, address the instructors as Grandmaster or Master, and do not walk across the floor while a group is mid-form. Parents watch from the side and keep conversations low; the studio is open-plan, so a loud phone call carries to both mats. Shoes stay off the training surface, and sparring gear should be labeled because many kids own identical red and blue sets.

Arrive ten minutes early for a first class. That gives an instructor time to size you for a dobok if needed, explain where to line up, and pair you with a patient partner. Latecomers wait at the edge until invited in with a bow, which is standard in traditional dojangs but surprises people coming from gym-style fitness classes.

The school sits in the stretch of Wilshire that locals still call the Miracle Mile. Walk about half a mile east and you reach the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, where Chris Burden's Urban Light lamp posts make an easy meeting spot after class. The Petersen Automotive Museum, with its red-and-steel ribbon facade, stands at the Fairfax corner along the way and is a reliable bribe for kids who trained hard.

For a quick post-class snack, the Original Farmers Market at Third and Fairfax is a short drive north and has enough stalls that a hungry family can split up. Wilshire bus lines stop close to the studio if you would rather leave the car at home; street parking on the side streets is metered and tight during the evening rush.

Address: Jun Chong Tae Kwon Do, 6340B Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90048. The school says it is open seven days a week, with classes from age three and a half up to adults; separate kids and adults schedules are posted on its website. Programs: taekwondo, hapkido, kendo, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, iaido, escrima and yoga, plus birthday parties. Facility: 4,500 square feet, two mats with full-length mirrors, locker rooms and parking lots next door.

Who it suits: families with very young kids, adults who want hapkido self-defense alongside kicking, and anyone who values lineage. Who might look elsewhere: competitors chasing a full-time Olympic sparring team, since this school leans traditional. Ask the Karpo APP for other taekwondo schools near your home if the Wilshire commute does not work.