Momofuku Noodle Bar

We grabbed lunch at the Momofuku Noodle Bar. It's gotten some press as Chef David Chang was awarded Rising Star Chef of 2007 by the James Beard Foundation.
The food was a mix of various Asian cuisines- Korean (the native culture of the chef), Chinese, and Japanese. We started with Berkshire Pork Steam Buns. They were served with cucumber and hoisin sauce- pretty good, the pork was great and fatty but I think the buns could have been more fluffy and would be great piping hot.
We followed the buns with the Honeycomb Spicy Tripe. This was my favorite dish. The sauce was sweet and spicy, and reminded me some of Mexican menudo, but with a Thai influenced flavor.
We also got Fried Veal Sweetbreads. This was also very good- the sweetbreads were tempura-fried and light, and were accompanied by a nice soy-chili dipping sauce.
We then had the Momofuku Ramen which came with Berkshire pork combo and a nicely poached egg. The broth was very light and clear, but could have had a little more flavor in my opinion. I liked the noodles, but they were thinner than I like. I did like the poached egg and appreciated the use of the Berkshire pork.
Personally, the meal was alright. If it weren't so pricey and the wait was less, I would have probably felt that the place is a better place to drop by next time in NYC, but it was just an ok experience. For ramen, give me Minca Ramen Factory any day, and I think Fougoo's parents make far superior buns.


Momofuku Noodle Bar
163 1st Ave
NY, NY 10003
(212) 475-7899