West Side Taekwondo

Unbelievable patience! My 4 and 6 year old love coming here and Mr. Duller is our favorite! The entire club is amazing — they are flexible and truly make it feel like being part of a family. For any parent looking to get their kids involved, this is the place to be!

Awesome place! I have been going here for almost give years now and everybody there is very nice and supportive but they also push you to do your best. The instructors are amazing as all of them have experience with taekwondo from every different point of view including world class sparring and pomsae competitors. The community there is great and every body makes you feel right at home.

Great Taekwondo school! I watch Mr. Duller and Mr. Clark teach Pee Wee classes several times a week, and they are exceptional. Attentive, patient, and demanding — I wish they were my instructors when I was a kid.

I spent 3 years training at West Side while I lived in Manhattan. My master gave me a referral when I moved too far to train with him, and boy am I glad he did.
This school is healthy. You can see that from the large, enthusiastic classes that span all age groups. Everyone is put on a life long path. All of this is bolstered by world-​class instruction. Now a lot of people use that term, but I mean it in the literal sense. Teaching the classes are Olympic coaches and National Team members. All of them are approachable and happy to help everyone improve, no matter what their proficiency or aptitude.
I will always look on my time at West Side as some of my best TKD memories. If your interest is in TKD, look no further. Seriously.

Incredible place with exceptional people. Promotes a great sense of mental wellness and physical fitness. Excellent for kids and adults alike

Located in the Upper West Side of Manhattan, West Side Taekwondo is one of the best taekwondo schools in the world.
And it’s not just because of its powerhouse competition program. It’s because it’s one of the few places where «taekwondo» still means «taekwondo». It’s a place where people of all ages, size, and athletic ability can come to challenge themselves and achieve goals that they never thought they could achieve.
Very few taekwondo schools can maintain an excellent traditional taekwondo program alongside an elite competition program; in fact, it’s nearly impossible. However, West Side is able to seamlessly do both very well.
Growing up, I was heavily competitive in taekwondo, and West Side taekwondo was one of those famous, well-​known schools from New York City. It was the «place-​to-​be» and they had many great athletes and coaches.
Later in life, I was lucky enough to have a chance to train at West Side on many occasions. They’ve always accepted me with open arms even though I was not a «regular» (because I lived 4 hours away), and I met many great people in a short period of time.
It was during this time that I had a chance to experience the wonderful community that exists at West Side. The energy and the atmosphere inside and outside of class is unmatched. It doesn’t matter if you’re a 10-​year-​old kid, a 40-​year-​old beginner, or an Olympic athlete; you’re always treated with respect and dignity, and you will be motivated to become the best person that you can be at West Side taekwondo.

I’ve been at Westside taekwondo since 2007 after starting at another school. They have been very welcoming to those that come from other places and certainly don’t resent people who leave. I took some time off to go back to school in 2010 and they actually guided me through my taekwondo training after I left. This is one of the main reasons I decided to return Westside after finishing school and don’t consider any other school when I think about my taekwondo train and such a positive and family friendly environment.

I started training at West Side TKD in 2006, after earning my black belt at a school in another area. It’s a great school for anyone who loves tae kwon do. There are classes 7 days a week to fit your schedule. Each class has a focus, such as sparring, poomsae, or conditioning. As an adult black belt, you can really focus on the things you’re interested in. The masters are exceptionally dedicated to the sport, and have always had insightful, helpful feedback during training. In addition to the masters, I really like that we have a big group of black belts to learn from, as they compete at the highest international levels in both poomsae and sparring. Frequently, West Side will also host students and/​or masters from other schools for workouts in which we can get a little different perspective and broaden our horizons. The school has a high level of grassroots-​style enthusiasm — people stay after class for more training, watch video from competitions, or organize trips to tournaments. If you want to get back into TKD, or are curious about starting it, it’s a great place to check out.

I have no idea why Westside TKD could get a bad review. My son, now 15, has been taking classes at the school for years. It is a fantastic community and has helped him grow into a confident young man. The teachers are great, the students too.
We paid one fee to go through black belt. There are charges for tests and uniforms, and we have paid for great private lessons, but it has been the best value for after-​school programming that I could ever wish for. Students can go seven days a week if they’re so inclined.
What is even more impressive is that it attracts such accomplished people in their professional lives, outside of their abilities as martial artists, that they are great role models for children.
I can only assume that the person who wrote the nasty review is either:
a: starting their own dojang.
b: got fired.
c: failed a belt test one too many time.
d: has some other issue unrelated to what goes on at the dojang that would cause them to post such an absurd review.
We have been going to Westside TKF for almost a decade. I recommended it to countless parents. An amazing school!!!

I first started Taekwondo 4 years ago in college, and since I started going to Westside Taekwondo 2 years ago, I have never left the dojang without smiling from ear-​to-​ear. Every workout is novel, fun, and incredibly challenging, with a large variety of high-​energy classes including sparring, poomsae, or conditioning, so there are classes for everyone depending on their interests and motivations.
Westside is an incredible family where everyone supports each other and his/​her individual goals. They were nothing but welcoming since I joined, and I found a tight-​knit community that has helped me far beyond Taekwondo. Every master has tremendous experience and their insights have helped me rapidly improve my technique, fitness, and mental sharpness. They always take the time to answer anyone’s question and are always willing to spend time beyond class to teach students. I am honored to learn from and train with elite masters and athletes who dedicate so much time and effort to the sport and truly appreciate discipline, hard work, and camaraderie.
Whether you are looking for a new sport, some fitness, or continuing your training. I am sure you will find all you want and much more at Westside, so I highly recommend trying out a class.

West Side Taekwondo is the premier Taekwondo dojang in Manhattan, with world-​class instructors who are established and respected in the larger Taekwondo community, and who have accomplishments on the national and international scale.
Having done Taekwondo for 20+ years at dojangs across the country, the quality that drew me to West Side in the first place was the quality of instruction and the quality of the black belt. This is not just another black belt factory that just pushes students through belt after belt to take their money — it’s about creating quality students and maximizing each student’s potential.
Even before I joined, I could see that the West Side black belt was something special that candidates worked very hard to embody a high level of Taekwondo in order to attain. The result is a community that is respectful and traditional in its roots and Korean heritage, but also modern in its teachings and particpation in Taekwondo today.
Students at West Side also have the opportunity to learn from and train alongside some of the world’s top athletes, with past and present members and coaches of the United States and other international teams. Outside of the traditional classes, special training sessions and opportunities are available, such as visits from the Danish, Swedish, and Norwegian national teams in the past.
I started coming to West Side in 2001/​2002, and benefitted from personal training from the head masters. I met not only classmates, but friends who have supported me and pushed me to be the best that I can be. I also learned how to teach, and cultivated my love of coaching. As I get older and my Taekwondo training changes its focus or intensity, it has been rewarding to see those who I’ve taught now teaching others, and to know that I have a safe place to call home.
Whether it’s personal fitness and weight loss or Olympic dreams — West Side Taekwondo is a community that challenges you to be the best version of yourself you can be, and encourages and empowers you get there.

I’ve trained at West Side occasionally. While I lived and spent most of my time training in Boston, I’ve stopped in for Saturday competition workouts at West Side a few times. The Masters there are very polite and were welcoming to me as an outside student. The workouts were high energy and were challenging both aerobically and technically. One time I visited as part of a big cross-​club training event where they gathered some high level players from all over New York (as well as my club in Boston), which was great. There was some awesome talent there, but they also did a great job of not overwhelming the younger players as well. After everyone went out to eat and socialize.
I’ve had nothing but positive interactions with the coaches, instructors, and students at West Side. They do a good job of training some high level athletes as well as maintaining a good club program for people of all levels. I’ve seen them train good color belts and beginners as well as fostering athletes who have a great amount of experience. It’s been my experience that the people there genuinely care about each other and about Taekwondo.
I’m not a member of this club, and don’t have a vested interest in its success. I’ve just found the people there to be welcoming to me when I visit, and the level of instruction I’ve witnessed there has been on par with some of the best dojangs in the country.

West Side is my Taekwondo family. As an adult, it’s great to be able to train with other adults, who are also serious about martial arts. Classes are challenging and fun. Instructors really care about the students. And I’ve met people who are now friends for life. I not only go to West Side for world class Taekwondo instruction, but also to spend time with an extraordinary group of people.
If you’re looking to start your own Taekwondo family, I highly recommend trying out a class at West Side.

I was on the Taekwondo team in college and after I graduated, I missed the feeling I got from being a part of a close-​knit Taekwondo group. After years of training at other places (even in Korea), I finally got that feeling back when I started training at West Side.
The instructors are great. And some of them are world class athletes.
Want to perfect your poomsae (forms)? Get pointers from one of the current National Poomsae Team members, who train and teach at West Side. Want some sparring tips? There are nationally ranked fighters, Olympic-​level coaches, and current national team members (from Team Trinidad and Tobago), who teach classes and can give you pointers. Do you have a kid who wants to do martial arts? The instructors, who teach the children’s classes, are great with kids.
I have nothing but love for West Side. The class schedule is flexible. The community is great. And whether your ultimate goal is competing or not, West Side is definitely worth checking out.