Steph "lives to eat" P.'s Profile

Ramen Hunt 2007 Stop #6: Momofuku in NYC

The Ramen Hunt goes national! For the background read my Ramen Halu review: http://www.yelp.com/bi...

If you follow the NYC food scene, then you know that people have been falling all over David Chang (Food & Wine's Best New Chef for 2006) http://www.foodandwine... and rabid over his first restaurant, Momofuku Noodle Bar, which is supposed to be Korean-Japanese fusion. I decided to drop in for a bowl of ramen and check out how it compares to the bowls I've had in the Bay Area.

When I walked in, I was struck by the slim setting and the sleek interior - the light wood-colored bar top and matching minimalist-chic stools. Sit down and you can watch the cooking in action. You can tell that this East Village noodle shop is not going to be your traditional bowl of ramen when you see the hip rocker staff and have AC/DC blaring in the background (this really annoyed the heck out of me).

Much of the hoopla at Momofuku is about their Berkshire pork belly, which is showcased in both the pork buns and in the signature Momofuku Ramen.  I ordered the pork buns ($9 for two), which resembled little sandwiches. Freshly steamed before painted with a hoisin sauce, the white bun was wonderfully pillowlike and filled with pickled cucumber, green onions, and the slices of stewed pork belly. I was only going to eat one, but hot damn, that pork was freakin' melt-in-your-mouth amazing! However, the whole bun package struck me as imbalanced - much too sweet. I think that the pickled cucumbers could have been a little bit more tart to provide more of a contrast with the hoisin sauce and the sweetness of the pork.

After my voracious attack on the pork buns, I was a little worried that I had killed my main purpose in going to Momofuku - the Momofuku Special Ramen. Turns out that it's probably good I got those buns b/c I was NOT into this ramen. Now even though I have had a heck of a lot of ramen in the last month or so, I am not pretending that I am some connossieur. I just know what I like. And this bowl,  I did not. The noodles' soft texture and straight appearance reminded me of soba. I guess that this is more typical of Korean noodles, and this is where the fusion comes in? Not into it. The translucent broth's porkiness was masked for me by an overwhelming saltiness, lacking depth and body. Fortunately, the wonderful wonderful pork that was in the pork buns was accompanied by some delicious marinated pork shoulder. When you are first presented with the bowl of ramen, you're struck by how the toppings overwhelm the surface. I loved the marinated bamboo shoots, but I thought that there were way too many peas in there. Also, I wasn't diggin' the egg on top...instead of a half of a soft-boiled egg found at more traditional ramen shops, Momofuku places a whole egg on top...it was somewhere in between the usual slightly jelly-like consistency of a soft-boiled egg and a fresh cracked egg in some hot pot. Meh.

Plenty of people love Momofuku's ramen, so maybe it turns out that I'm more of a ramen traditionalist (though I'm sure I know jack about what that really is!). Even though I was immediately on the phone with Arnold G. (fellow Bay Area resident who gave Momofuku 5 stars) to bitch about my disappointing ramen experience, it didn't offend me enough to discourage you....so feel free to judge for yourself. A friend who went several months ago said that the pork legs are a must try...but I decided to pass on a solo porcine gorging. Even a glutton has her limits. Sorry, David Chang...you just didn't do it for me this time.

Noodles: 2.5 stars

Broth: 3 stars

Pork/Meat: 4.5 stars

Ramen Accessories (peas, green onion, egg, nori, marinated bamboo shoots, fish cake): 4 stars

Non-Food Factors (price, service, wait, menu, etc): 3 stars....DUDE, $14 for a bowl of ramen. Then again, it's NYC.

OVERALL: 3 stars...come with friends and try the non-ramen stuff too. Those pork buns alone were 4 stars.