Master Chef of Momofuku Noodle Bar – NYC

After months of work, this is the homage to the only chef I worship as much as Ken Oringer and Tom Colicchio (and maybe Michael Schlow)… David Chang. I even included the pretty pictures. Ok, fine. The blurry I-can’t-afford-an-iphone-yet pictures. But who needs pictures when the food speaks for itself?

The pork buns are a must. I don’t care if you don’t eat pork. Make an exception here. IMO, there is no god that won’t forgive you for eating something that was clearly inspired from above. A slice of melt-in-your-mouth pork belly ensconced within a fluffy, flawless bao shell, rich but perfectly balanced with cool cucumber, a sprinkle of scallion, and a dash of hoisin sauce. If you really don’t eat pork, the chicken buns are a reasonable (but not even close!) substitute, and for vegetarians I found the shitake buns surprisingly tasty…

I usually don’t order chicken at restaurants, but I’ve always had a soft spot for the smoked chicken wings. Sadly, they’re only on the menu in summer, but you can still get them on the late-night menu. The smoky flavor permeates all the way through and the marinated-at-least-overnight wings taste almost sweet. Props for not being drowned in sauce though if they were, I would probably drink the sauce it’s so good…

For the main dish, have the momofuku ramen. That is an order. Prepare for love at first sight with the incredible combination of pork belly, pork shoulder, and poached egg. Again, if you reallyreallyreally, hafta-kill-me-first don’t eat pork, the spicy chicken ramen is again a reasonable (but not even close!) alternative. If you’ve had the momofuku ramen countless time like I have and hunger for something new, the kimchee stew is a mouth-burning choice that I fully endorse. Sadly, it’s not on the menu currently, but something tells me they’ll bring it back…If you’re vegetarian (the kimchee stew is NOT vegetarian) and your pork-lover friends dragged you here, the ginger scallion noodles are a cool, refreshing dish. The ginger scallion noodles are also the ONLY dish I will allow you to add hot sauce to as it is savory but bland, and a little hot sauce kick actually enhances the dish.

An aside on the use of hot sauce at Momofuku (in anything other than the ginger scallion noodles): NO. The answer is always NO. Do not ask because I will say NO. And I might slap you in the process. Hot sauce is reserved for bad food, bland food, and flavorless food. Momofuku serves none of these things. So if you find that the little red plastic bottles of hot sauce speak to you, tune them out. No matter how loudly they speak, no matter how much you fall under their spell, NO.

If you still have room after all that, the apple pie cake truffles or whatever dessert truffles they have are great. I’ve also had the orange-coconut cake truffles, but it looks like the truffle flavors change with the seasons and/or the whims of the staff. As for the apple pie cake truffles, I expected warm gooey pie in the middle, but they’re actually more crisp than gooey with a great mix of cinnamon and crust. They’re lighter that I expected and are an excellent way to finish your meal if you’re on pork overload.

One truly laudable quality of Momofuku is that all their ingredients are locally produced. One of their boards, which names the daily specials, has a companion that divulges the origin of their top notch ingredients. Props for sustainability!

The only gripe I have here, which cost it that last half-star is that the food is a bit salty and it’s unpleasant to have an open kitchen. There is a home-like warm feeling that comes from watching the genius chefs at work, but half the time that warm feeling stems from the oil smoke you inhale, the smell of which tends to permeate your clothing and linger. I would usually dock more than half a star for these offenses, but the food flavoring is such genius that even saltiness remains beyond reproach.

Bottom line: Few places that work with so much pork and far fewer that can make it so well. Someday I’ll have saved enough to go to Ssam and Ko. For now, meet me at Momofuku. I’ll buy you a pork bun.