Momofuku Noodle Bar

I realise I'm in the decided minority, but I rather enjoy Chang's ramen at Momofuku Noodle Bar. The pork is better quality than most ramen joints, and I like the toppings (as a silly Westerner, toppings are something like 30 per cent of my ramen experience). I wish it were $5 cheaper. And that one didn't have to wait half an hour or more to sit on a bench.

To me, a meal of Chang's celebrated...+READ I realise I'm in the decided minority, but I rather enjoy Chang's ramen at Momofuku Noodle Bar. The pork is better quality than most ramen joints, and I like the toppings (as a silly Westerner, toppings are something like 30 per cent of my ramen experience). I wish it were $5 cheaper. And that one didn't have to wait half an hour or more to sit on a bench.

To me, a meal of Chang's celebrated pork buns, a bowl of ramen, and some pickles or tomato salad, is nearly an ideal casual dinner.-COLLAPSE / REPLY (by Winterpool, created January 1, 2012)

There's been a lot of hype about the d chang empire. I've eaten at noodle bar on a recent sat night. It was great! A refreshing reminder that the hype is sometimes right. It was really a great experience. The service was fast, attentive, and earnest. The atmosphere was hip, casual, fun. The food was impressive- great flavor combinations, indulgent, fresh, well sourced quality ingredients all...+READ There's been a lot of hype about the d chang empire. I've eaten at noodle bar on a recent sat night. It was great! A refreshing reminder that the hype is sometimes right. It was really a great experience. The service was fast, attentive, and earnest. The atmosphere was hip, casual, fun. The food was impressive- great flavor combinations, indulgent, fresh, well sourced quality ingredients all prepared perfectly: the ramen was not overcooked, in fact was the perfect consistency. The broths were really flavorful ( though a bit salty but not in any bad way) Yes 1 hour wait. No res. I thought the prices were fair. I will be back. The pork belly was some of the best I've had.-COLLAPSE / REPLY (2 Replies) (by brickscoli, created November 28, 2011)

Last week I finally had the Momofuku Ramen at Noodle Bar at lunch, and I loved it! Also had the spicy corn with bacon. Shared the tomato salad with my sister. She had the steamed buns with brisket, and the beet salad. I splurged and had my favorite pretzel cake truffles and the ricotta/lemon twist soft serve. All of the dishes were winners! REPLY (15 Replies) (by ellenost, created October 9, 2011)

I lucked out and found my favorite pretzel truffles at Noodle Bar when I took my sister to lunch this weekend. Noodle Bar also has a yummy lemon and ricotta soft serve. I'll keep my eye out for the apple pie cake truffles for you. REPLY (15 Replies) (by ellenost, created October 4, 2011)

OP, if you have no idea what to expect, let's put it simply: don't go for the ramen or the chicken (really), go for the pork buns and the foie gras. Here's my review of the place. For the full review, with pictures: http://restaurantbrat.com. Hope this helps.

For the most part, David Chang is a chef after my own heart – a foul-mouthed, headstrong cavalier who plants a firm kick in the nuts of...+READ OP, if you have no idea what to expect, let's put it simply: don't go for the ramen or the chicken (really), go for the pork buns and the foie gras. Here's my review of the place. For the full review, with pictures: http://restaurantbrat.com. Hope this helps.

For the most part, David Chang is a chef after my own heart – a foul-mouthed, headstrong cavalier who plants a firm kick in the nuts of the traditional culinary hierarchy and longstanding restaurateur norms. Just as I have extolled the virtues of the talented (and beautiful) Anne Hathaway to scores of eye-rolling non-believers from her admittedly cheesy Disney days all the way to her richly-deserved Oscar nomination, it’s always satisfying to follow the path of a chef from modest neighborhood staple to James Beard Award Winner. In Chang’s case, this rise to prominence was just a lot more sudden than anyone could have predicted. These days, he presides over a Manhattan empire that includes the original Momofuku Noodle Bar, Momofuku Ssäm Bar, Momofuku Milk Bar, Má Pêche, and the two-Michelin Starred Momofuku Ko. While I have eaten at all of his restaurants on several occasions, the last time I had dined at the Noodle Bar was in 2008. Since then, a ramen revolution of sorts has gripped New Yorkers, and with the sheer influx of new options, I simply felt no urge to revisit this once trailblazing flagship.

Naturally, that all changed when Momofuku Noodle Bar introduced their Fried Chicken Dinner. Now, anyone who knows me recognizes that I have a crippling weakness for fried chicken – to the extent that my yet-to-be-defined answer to the time-honored Death Row Meal question would almost certainly include a 10-Piece Bucket in the list of contenders. On the surface, Chang’s idea sounded like a home run. The last of his set dinner ideas (a whole slow-roasted pork butt at the Ssäm Bar) was Momofuk’in amazing, and had accordingly been the toast of town. This time, he would serve up two whole birds, one deep-fried Southern Style and the other triple-fried with a spicy glaze Korean Style. Accompanied by an arsenal of dips and condiments, this was surely to be a decadent, artery-clogging feast. Or so it sounded.

We were seated promptly at a large table on uncomfortable stools, with no backrests to hang our outerwear and no coat check service at the front of house. A bit of an inconvenience, given snowflakes the size of small dogs were bludgeoning the pavement outside and we were padded in all sorts of unwieldy winter apparel. I ended up with my coat on my lap for the entire duration of dinner and through the evening my scarf fell to the floor as often as Cristiano Ronaldo. Right off the bat, we downed a round of Lychee and Yuzu Soju Slushies. They were glacial, tart and tangy; juxtaposition in a plastic cup, these frosty cocktails were icy like the arctic yet tasted of the tropics. Pity they barely contained any alcohol. The chicken dinner would not have been sufficient to feed our ravenous group of nine, and so a selection of small plates was ordered to tame our appetites before the main event.

A starter plate of Foie Gras Terrine with chickpeas and a candied tangerine was salty and creamy, the intensely pungent flavor of the luscious pâté balanced nicely with sharp, citric acidity from the orange. We tore into the dish, and it was gone in a matter of minutes, so we did what we had to: we ordered another foie gras dish, this time a lovely roasted lobe with almonds, mushrooms and sweet pear. A light brown sear wrapped the delicate liver, and the fragrant combination of musky and bitter flavors resulted in an aromatic, sensual detonation in my mouth. It’s exceedingly hard to go wrong with foie gras.

It’s equally as hard to go wrong if you order Momofuku Noodle Bar’s trademark Pork Buns. These standard bearers of fatty goodness have been consistently terrific over the years, and on this day they were no different, each little masterpiece consisting a slab of mouthwateringly sinful pork belly sandwiched in a pillowy-soft steamed bun. Each piece of belly was about 80% unctuous, unadulterated, buttery fat, packed full of divine, porky flavor. Little slices of sour pickles and a sprig of fresh cilantro took the dish to the next level. Incredible. The next course, of char-broiled Yellowtail Collar, had a lot to live up to. And while it was a decent enough rendition, with a tasty caramelized crust and flaky, sweet flesh, it was not particularly outstanding. And the limp accompanying salad was a pointless afterthought on the plate.

A bowl of Momofuku Ramen arrived next, and was sorely disappointing. While the chewy, springy texture of the noodles stayed true to my memory, the broth was salty as the Dead Sea, and possessed a faint, off-putting urine undertone characteristic of stale bamboo. A wedge of overcooked pork floated lazily on the surface. Newer places like Ippudo and Minca have taken ramen to heights previously unimagined in this city – Momofuku, despite maybe even being the restaurant that kickstarted the entire NYC ramen craze, has been left behind in the dirt. A side of hearty roasted Brussels Sprouts went some way to ridding my palate of the ramen aftertaste, but even then, they paled in comparison to the brussels sprouts at other NY institutions like Alta. And while texturally, I rather liked the way crunchy bits of apple interacted with the sprouts, I felt the use of bonito flakes in the dish was unnecessary and created an odd flavor profile.

And with that, the chicken arrived. A manhole sized plate piled a foot high with a mountain of deep fried poultry parts, one half golden brown and the other fiery red. Along with the chicken arrived mu shu pancakes, a bowl of garden fresh vegetables and a variety of sauces – ample tools to construct the perfect greasy chicken wrap. I sat for a full minute and gazed at the mound of crispy, steamy sex, my mouth agape and my eyes wide with lust. Then, I reached in for a southern-style thigh and bit in. I was instantly brought back to Earth. Underwhelming would be the most apt description here. The buttermilk and Old Bay batter was tasty enough, but one of the most crucial components to successful fried chicken, the skin, was quite simply not crispy enough. The meat was fairly tender, and flavored well – this was, at the end of the day, still fried chicken, and I stripped it to the bone. I had a Korean style drumstick next, and my vision of an immaculate Bonchon heaven was dismantled completely when after my first two bites, I was horrified to discover that the flesh near the bone was bloody red and completely raw. I was stunned into silence, until I looked around the table and found a sea of equally horrified faces surrounding me. As it turns out, around five of the twelve or so pieces of fried chicken we had dug into thus far had been undercooked, still dripping at their cores with blood. And this wasn’t sashimi-grade Blue Foot poultry, either. Who knew what was going on here?

Our complaints were listened to compassionately by our server, who seemed totally unfazed by the situation, as though this were a common occurrence. She apologized and offered to bring out a few more pieces of chicken, which we politely declined, as by this point we were too full from half-cooked chicken anyway and probably too dizzy from salmonella to eat any more dubious drumsticks. The Pork Buns, worth $9, were comp’ed on the bill as a gesture, but nothing else was offered up except the aforementioned apology (out of courtesy more than anything). A meal which had until then been quite decent was instantly transformed into an awkward, strange situation about which nobody seemed to know what to do. We paid and left, more confused and disappointed than truly angry.

Some say David Chang is all hype. Others claim him to be the second coming of God. I love the man for what he stands for in the regimented world of food, but despite my admiration for his swashbuckling style, it will take a long time for me to forget this incident. Even barring the blood, the pieces of chicken that were cooked thoroughly were less tasty than Popeye’s, less crispy than Bonchon’s. Sorry Dave, but you have every right to do whatever the hell you want if whatever the hell you want tastes good. In this case, it just didn’t.-COLLAPSE / REPLY (10 Replies) (by restaurantbrat, created February 5, 2011)

you cannot possibly go to manhattan and not have the pork buns here. no flash, no fancy anything. the chefs wear t-shirts and jeans. the line forms before dinner service begins. there's a reason owner david chang is a shining star among the galaxy of chefs that grace the apple...i started salivating as i typed out the words "pork buns." try to get 4 (or is it 6?) people together so you can have...+READ you cannot possibly go to manhattan and not have the pork buns here. no flash, no fancy anything. the chefs wear t-shirts and jeans. the line forms before dinner service begins. there's a reason owner david chang is a shining star among the galaxy of chefs that grace the apple...i started salivating as i typed out the words "pork buns." try to get 4 (or is it 6?) people together so you can have the fried chicken. no, no, no: you haven't really had fried chicken yet. you only think you've had fried chicken. do an order of pork buns and the fried chicken dinner. you'll waddle out but you'll want to thank me. i promise. my next cheap-flight sighting i will return to NYC and head for momofuku before i do anything else. then i'll eat there again before i leave, and this time i'll have pork buns, a noodle bowl, and a vegetable of some sort. and if i get hit by a truck walking back to the apartment, it'll be OK.-COLLAPSE / REPLY (21 Replies) (by gumbosally, created July 15, 2010)