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Momofuku Ko (Part 1)

BryanZ

By BryanZ
in New York: Dining

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spaetzle_maker

spaetzle_maker

Posted
Posted (edited)
Is Chang doing any of the cooking?

Will he be cooking always at Ko?

What's your favorite dish?

Peter Serpico is the executive chef at Ko.

Favorite dish? It's between the shaved foie and the egg with onions.

Edit: are people calling it shaved foie or grated foie?

Edited by spaetzle_maker (log)
ulterior epicure

ulterior epicure

Posted
Posted (edited)

I, for one, would like to know how the wine list is set up. I realize that they have a pairing for the set menu. But, will there be other selections in addition to the pairing option, for those (like me) who can (barely) handle/want only a glass of wine? Or would I be limited to choosing a wine from the pairing list?

Edited by ulterior epicure (log)

“Watermelon - it’s a good fruit. You eat, you drink, you wash your face.”

Italian tenor Enrico Caruso (1873-1921)

ulteriorepicure.com

My flickr account

ulteriorepicure@gmail.com

jimk

jimk

Posted
Posted
Does anybody know why they accept reservations for 1, 2 or 4 people but not for 3 people?

My guess is because they want to reserve the corner for a party of four (and figure dining in a row doesn't work for parties larger than two). But that's just a guess.

So there's only one 4-top per night to be had at a time?

Once made the mistake of going with Room 4 Dessert with 2 friends ... it was impossile to have a conversation.

Sneakeater

Sneakeater

Posted
Posted
I, for one, would like to know how the wine list is set up.  I realize that they have a pairing for the set menu.  But, will there be other selections in addition to the pairing option, for those (like me) who can (barely) handle/want only a glass of wine?  Or would I be limited to choosing a wine from the pairing list?

Why would you object to being limited to choosing a wine from the pairing list? (The same limitation applied to those getting pairings.)

I think the more interesting question is whether they'll sell you individual glasses of wine. As of now, the stated choice is between pairings and nothing. There are no per-glass or per-bottle prices stated anywhere.

ulterior epicure

ulterior epicure

Posted
Posted
I, for one, would like to know how the wine list is set up.  I realize that they have a pairing for the set menu.  But, will there be other selections in addition to the pairing option, for those (like me) who can (barely) handle/want only a glass of wine?  Or would I be limited to choosing a wine from the pairing list?

Why would you object to being limited to choosing a wine from the pairing list? (The same limitation applied to those getting pairings.)

I wouldn't. But, I was just curious. It seems to be a pretty streamlined setup, so it wouldn't surprise me if the wine list IS the pairing list.

I think the more interesting question is whether they'll sell you individual glasses of wine.  As of now, the stated choice is between pairings and nothing.  There are no per-glass or per-bottle prices stated anywhere.

Yes, I suppose this now becomes the more important question (for one-glass diners like me).

“Watermelon - it’s a good fruit. You eat, you drink, you wash your face.”

Italian tenor Enrico Caruso (1873-1921)

ulteriorepicure.com

My flickr account

ulteriorepicure@gmail.com

Sneakeater

Sneakeater

Posted
Posted
I wouldn't.  But, I was just curious.  It seems to be a pretty streamlined setup, so it wouldn't surprise me if the wine list IS the pairing list.

I think they're pretty explicit about that.

zarate

zarate

Posted
Posted
Probably never gonna convince one to join the other side, so let's talk about the food again at Ko...anyone been since the place has been truly open to the public?

Yes, I was there last night.

Is Chang doing any of the cooking?

Not that I could see. He was downstairs for the first few courses. He came back up and hung around the kitchen, handed a few courses to diners, but stayed out of the way for the most part. I did see him preparing a new dish and Peter and the others tasted it.

What's your favorite dish?

The shaved foie gras and poached egg with caviar were both amazing as advertised. However, my favorite might have been the fluke with spicy buttermilk and poppy seeds. The oysters with kim chi consomme was also a standout. The menu had no significant deviations from the picture account that was posted on page 1, although there were a few tweaks.

I think the more interesting question is whether they'll sell you individual glasses of wine. As of now, the stated choice is between pairings and nothing. There are no per-glass or per-bottle prices stated anywhere.

When you sit down you are handed a moleskine with a beverage list. Sake and wine by the bottle or glass, dessert wines, sparkling, pretty much everything. It is not as comprehensive as many other restaurants, but there is certainly a larger set than what is being used for pairings that evening. You can even get an espresso.

ulterior epicure

ulterior epicure

Posted
Posted
I think the more interesting question is whether they'll sell you individual glasses of wine. As of now, the stated choice is between pairings and nothing. There are no per-glass or per-bottle prices stated anywhere.

When you sit down you are handed a moleskine with a beverage list. Sake and wine by the bottle or glass, dessert wines, sparkling, pretty much everything. It is not as comprehensive as many other restaurants, but there is certainly a larger set than what is being used for pairings that evening. You can even get an espresso.

:biggrin:

“Watermelon - it’s a good fruit. You eat, you drink, you wash your face.”

Italian tenor Enrico Caruso (1873-1921)

ulteriorepicure.com

My flickr account

ulteriorepicure@gmail.com

Sneakeater

Sneakeater

Posted
Posted
When you sit down you are handed a moleskine with a beverage list. Sake and wine by the bottle or glass, dessert wines, sparkling, pretty much everything. It is not as comprehensive as many other restaurants, but there is certainly a larger set than what is being used for pairings that evening. You can even get an espresso.

Thanks!

zarate

zarate

Posted
Posted
When you sit down you are handed a moleskine with a beverage list. Sake and wine by the bottle or glass, dessert wines, sparkling, pretty much everything. It is not as comprehensive as many other restaurants, but there is certainly a larger set than what is being used for pairings that evening. You can even get an espresso.

I should add that I consulted the moleskine briefly before choosing the pairings, and did not look at it again after the meal. So it is possible that the wines by the glass in the moleskine are the same as those that were paired that evening. But there are certainly additional wines available by the bottle.

spaetzle_maker

spaetzle_maker

Posted
Posted (edited)
Once again, but this time in bold. How about we stop obsessing over this and give them the benefit of the doubt?

Or not, and try as we may, according to our own levels of curiosity, to get a reservation and experience his food, regardless.

I, for one, would like to know how the wine list is set up. I realize that they have a pairing for the set menu. But, will there be other selections in addition to the pairing option, for those (like me) who can (barely) handle/want only a glass of wine? Or would I be limited to choosing a wine from the pairing list?

UE, I'm generally a one glass diner as well. I experienced the pairing on two occassions. Each beverage in the pairing was very small - maybe 3 or 4 sips. The amount was enough so I could enjoy the pairing but not too overwhelming for me.

Edited by spaetzle_maker (log)
oakapple

oakapple

Posted
Posted
Secrured a 4 person reservation for next Thursday 3/20  this morning. Even got the confirmation email this time!  Looking forward to it.

I got farther today than I did yesterday. I actually got back the screen with some green checkmarks available, but didn't click fast enough to get one.

Marc Shepherd

http://nyjournal.squarespace.com/

jimk

jimk

Posted
Posted (edited)

A really outstanding dinner last night ... No dishes different from what others have described here so I won't give you the course-by-course.

A few minor changes and unreported tidbits though ...

The house-carbonated sherry was replaced with a house-carbonated banyuls which was just excellent.

LOVED the house-made english muffins with whipped pork far and fresh bay leaves.

Pretty comprehensive wine list - I counted about 20 reds, for example, some available by the glass and some by the bottle. In general, the wine list was dominated by half-bottles, which makes sense for the format. We did the pairing though.

Watching the guys cook was great, although we seemed to be the only ones chatting with them about what they were doing ... which they seemed to like. At one point one chef brought us a plate and asked us to tell him what it was - fun! Didn't tell him I'd already read about pretty much everything here.

Chang showed up for an hour or so but didn't do any cooking. Peter runs a tight ship though.

An interesting final note - there was, it seems, only one no-show party of two last night. Someone made a call to noodle bar and the staff there sent a party who had been waiting for a spot there down to Ko. They were seated next to us and were just thrilled by their luck. So thay answers the question of how to handle the no-show issue. Lots of attempted walk-ins, all gently turned away.

Finally, interesting to note that my wife and I (I'm in my late 30's and she's in her mid 40's) appeared to be the oldest people in the room all evening. No sign of friends, insiders or other industry types as far as I could tell.

Edited by jimk (log)
Dryden

Dryden

Posted
Posted (edited)

We were there Friday night for the last seating. Same story on Chang, and they were doing the banyuls instead of the sherry.

No tea available, by the way. They do also have a couple of non-alcoholic drinks in the beverage list.

And the hooks are still there under the counter for purses.

The changes on the dishes from the pictures on page 1:

The caviar was hackleback, and the onions were soubise, as noted by many. The scallops now have a mushroom paste to go with the nori. The foie has a pine nut brittle, as noted earlier.

The funniest moment came at the end of the night. My wife asked the wine steward if we could buy all of the chefs a round of beer, to which she replied, "They have too much beer as is, but I'll let them know."

Oh, and at $85 +$50 for the wine, this is a phenomenal deal.

Edited by Dryden (log)

I want pancakes! God, do you people understand every language except English? Yo quiero pancakes! Donnez moi pancakes! Click click bloody click pancakes!

Dryden

Dryden

Posted
Posted

Wanted to echo another point Nathan made earlier, which I don't think anyone has repeated - it is hot in Ko. Much, much warmer than even the warmest restaurant, since you are sitting less than 6 feet from the entire kitchen. No idea what this will feel like in June, but definitely important to not dress overly wrapped up.

The front door is interesting too (I hadn't popped by to look until we ate there) - it almost looks like a gate is down and the restaurant isn't there. We walked by twice until we looked more carefully...

I want pancakes! God, do you people understand every language except English? Yo quiero pancakes! Donnez moi pancakes! Click click bloody click pancakes!

spaetzle_maker

spaetzle_maker

Posted
Posted

Has anyone noticed the little mascot Ko has to the left of the door (on the inside of the restaurant, not the outside)? It's a little stuffed toy - a donut man. Very funny. The food is refined, but there's certainly still a sense of humor.

jimk

jimk

Posted
Posted
Wanted to echo another point Nathan made earlier, which I don't think anyone has repeated - it is hot in Ko.  Much, much warmer than even the warmest restaurant, since you are sitting less than 6 feet from the entire kitchen.  No idea what this will feel like in June, but definitely important to not dress overly wrapped up.

The front door is interesting too (I hadn't popped by to look until we ate there) - it almost looks like a gate is down and the restaurant isn't there.  We walked by twice until we looked more carefully...

Actually I think they've cranked up the AC to compensate. We were there last night and I found it comfortable but my wife actually found it uncomfortably chilly.

spaetzle_maker

spaetzle_maker

Posted
Posted
Wanted to echo another point Nathan made earlier, which I don't think anyone has repeated - it is hot in Ko.  Much, much warmer than even the warmest restaurant, since you are sitting less than 6 feet from the entire kitchen.  No idea what this will feel like in June, but definitely important to not dress overly wrapped up.

The front door is interesting too (I hadn't popped by to look until we ate there) - it almost looks like a gate is down and the restaurant isn't there.  We walked by twice until we looked more carefully...

Actually I think they've cranked up the AC to compensate. We were there last night and I found it comfortable but my wife actually found it uncomfortably chilly.

I was comfortable the first time I went, but felt a bit chilled the second time I went.

Dryden

Dryden

Posted
Posted (edited)
Has anyone noticed the little mascot Ko has to the left of the door (on the inside of the restaurant, not the outside)?  It's a little stuffed toy - a donut man.  Very funny.  The food is refined, but there's certainly still a sense of humor.

Yes. He's labeled with a name - he is "Lard Lad"... From the Simpsons Movie!

:biggrin:

http://www.kollectablekaos.com.au/images/S...ns-Lard-Lad.jpg

Edited by Dryden (log)

I want pancakes! God, do you people understand every language except English? Yo quiero pancakes! Donnez moi pancakes! Click click bloody click pancakes!

kathryn

kathryn

Posted
Posted

I suppose it depends how close to the different stations you are. When I went, we were seats 1/2 I think, right by the bathrooms, in front of Chef Serpico's station. We didn't feel any sort of uncomfortable warmth until someone was searing scallops towards the end of our meal.

I too loved the Simpson's donut guy by the door.

Nice to know how they're handling no-shows. I wonder if the person then gets a strike against them on their permanent Ko record.

"I'll put anything in my mouth twice." -- Ulterior Epicure
adamru

adamru

Posted
Posted

I started the night at Terroir before going to Ko, and I couldn't figure out why the door was kept open at the former until I sat down, it was much warmer in there.

The food and pairings were remarkable but I thought they started coming faster than I was ready for them, my wines started stacking up and I felt like I hit a wall by the time I got to the short ribs. I never felt like I was being rushed, it just seemed like dishes were being served when they were ready rather than when we were ready for them; the apple pies were in hand to be served while we were finishing the sorbet.

I'd love to repeat the experience as the menu evolves but with the menu open to evolve everyday and there being no menu online, I wonder if they'll take advantage of the database of e-mail addresses knowing who ate there when to inform them of drastic overhauls in the menu.

And I'd go back for the foie and the egg with hackleback anytime; the portions seemed plenty generous and the smaller dishes, for anyone who doesn't think it's worth the price, the richness in flavor more than makes up for portion size.

www.thelifevicarious.com
Sneakeater

Sneakeater

Posted
Posted

One big problem with the F&F was pacing. The courses came too fast. I didn't comment on that, and hoped they'd take care of it upon opening. Seems like they haven't yet.

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