Momofuku Ssäm Bar (2006–2007)

[donbert]

Johnder and I stopped by around 10pm this evening after grabbing a couple drinks at Death and Co. They are indeed serving the full menu now starting at 6pm till 2am all week. Also the three ssam previously only served at lunch are now on the dinner menu.

One of the things that never ceases to amaze me about Momofuku is that every time I go they have something new on the menu or have completely reworked existing dishes. Since last saturday night they had added 4 new dishes to the menu.

Day Boat Maine Diver Sea Scallops - in dashi with pineapple and scallion oil

This is the most recent incarnation of a dish I first tried with hhlodesign and Ling a few weeks ago.

Previously they were using bay scallops which were much sweeter. The sea scallops and pineapple in dashi are a perfect combination of sweet, savory and salty.

Maine Sea Urchin - over tapioca with whipped tofu

The tofu looks like silken tofu but it is infact whipped and has an unbelievably light/airy texture. John and I thought the tapioca might have been cooked in some broth but it was actually lychee juice.

Tello's Chawan Mushi - with black truffle and snails

This dish was simply decadent and the best chawan mushi I've ever had. I need to meet this Tello...

Veal Head Terrine

Not a new dish but the first time I've ordered it. Last time I made the mistake of explaning what head cheese was before ordering and was veto'ed. This is actually one of the three terrines in the Banh Mi and from now on I might have to pass on the Banh Mi to go straight for this.

(We also had the steamed buns but I didn't take a picture since I already have at least 6 photos of them from previous visits.)

[Ling]

The diver sea scallop dish looks so elegant. Everything looks great--I miss Momofuku Ssam!

[donbert]

...

Donbert, if you go tonight, eat a banh mi sandwich for me!

Didn't see your post till I got back from Momofuku, otherwise I would have had one. Johnder took one home to his wife, though it may not have survived the cab ride...

I have a feeling that I'll be back soon so I'll have for you next time.

[johnder]

I actually brought a banh mi sandwich home as well.

[Sneakeater]

I've been to pig pulls. I've been to hog roasts. I've been to multi-course whole-pig dinners.

But I have NEVER eaten as much pig at one sitting as I did last night.

[johnder]

The pork buns, banh mi, 2 stone pots, chawanmushi, cauliflower, 3 platters of ham, sea urchin and 30 oz rib eye didn't help matters much either.

[Sneakeater]

I was actually counting everything except the seafood stone pot, the chowanmushi, the cauliflower, the sea urchin, and the ribeye as "pig".

I'd almost count the rib eye as "honorary pig."

[donbert]

The pork buns, banh mi, 2 stone pots, chawanmushi, cauliflower, 3 platters of ham, sea urchin and 30 oz rib eye didn't help matters much either.

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Lets not forget 3 plates of pickles and all the beer/sake. For the record it was 6 orders of pork buns, 6 orders of banh mi, 2 chawanmushi and 2 sea urchin. Also an order of mochi ice cream at the end.

edit to add: if it wasn't clear all this was followed by the whole berkshire pork shoulder bo ssam...

Edited January 5, 2007 by donbert (log)

[spaetzle_maker]

And how many people were participating in this delicious food orgy?

[johnjohn]

How do things come out of the kitchen - all at once, when they are ready, little plates first followed by bigger plates, etc... Is it best to order a few things at a time and order more when you are ready?

[spaetzle_maker]

I order a few things and then order more later if I want. I like doing it this way - the menu changes a lot and if someone sitting next to me is eating something that looks good, I'd like to have some left over capacity so I can order it too, rather than feel jealous. This has not seemed to be a problem with either the kitchen or servers.

The menu is not arranged in strict courses, so the order in which your food is brought out to you isn't a traditional appetizer first, main course next. The items are grouped something like this (but it can vary, and it's not in this order or with these exact headings): hams, larger plates, smaller plates, locally grown vegetables, raw bar. They may ask you what order you want your food in, or if you have a preference you can voice it.

[donbert]

And how many people were participating in this delicious food orgy? 

There were 11 of us.

How do things come out of the kitchen - all at once, when they are ready, little plates first followed by bigger plates, etc...  Is it best to order a few things at a time and order more when you are ready?

Things come out one or two at a time. I usually just order everything up front. The staff does a great job pacing and ordering things logically. Smaller/lighter/seafood first followed by bigger/heavier/meat later. They also bring clean plates every couple of "courses" and the necessary utensils for each "course".

I think the the order of dishes last night were:

Seasonal Pickles

3 types of Ham

Steamed Buns

Sea Urchin and Cauliflower

Chawan Mushi

Banh Mi

Pork Short Rib and Seafood Clay pots

Ribeye

Bo Ssam

Mochi Ice Cream

[Nathan]

that meal was fricking nuts....

I don't know if I've ever eaten that much pork in a month before..

[Eatmywords]

Don/Jon,

You ordered perfectly. We got to try almost everything on the menu and it was all prepared at such a high level and by a super attentive/friendly staff.

For a casual, hang out place I don't know many restaurants devoting this kind of attn to ingredient qlty. -And at very reasonable prices. Many of the dishes could be served in higher ends at double the price.

The pork ass-shoulder and sea urchin w.tapioca balls/tofu were among my favorites but really there wasn't one dish that disappointed. So much of what Ssam is doing is unlike anything else in NY and for that alone they should be commended.

Super meal. Super people. Thank you all so much.

[Ling]

And how many people were participating in this delicious food orgy?  

There were 11 of us.

Oh ok. I thought it was split between you, John, and Sneakeater! DAYAM that would have been a lot of food!

[Sneakeater]

I think David Chang and his crew have just hit it. The increase in quality since Ssam late-night started is notable. It started out promising -- and now it's living up to its promise. (Of course, the bigger your group, the better it is.)

[Luckylies]

the young ham was seriously good, and the sea urchin dish is one of the best in the city...and of course, the company, unbeatable!

[weinoo]

We had a wonderful time as well...great ordering, Don & John! The wait and kitchen staffs paced that dinner perfectly.

And awesome company, all!!

Mmmmmmm...hard to pick a favorite, but the chawan mushi, bahn mi, sea urchin and bo ssam were just so damn good (yeah, and the rib eye rocked too). What a great, big delicious hunk of pork that was!!

[Sneakeater]

And how many people were participating in this delicious food orgy?  

There were 11 of us.

Oh ok. I thought it was split between you, John, and Sneakeater! DAYAM that would have been a lot of food!

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We coulda done that.

[BryanZ]

As others have said, a great meal. I'm not sure who ate the most, but I think everyone put forth a valiant effort. Not even counting the delicious food and drink, it was a great evening with fun, passionate, and incredibly interesting people.

So now with all the perfunctory touchy-feely stuff out of the way, let's talk about the deliciousness.

First of all, this not typically the style of dining I do in New York, but rather at school in North Carolina. Strangely, while my friends here have the means to eat out at creative, moderately priced, casual establishments like Ssam, they lack the motivation. It seems I've been missing out on this type of dining experience. As most people know, I spend most of my time in NYC "fine-dining" restaurants. Long story short, and I know I said I'd leave the touchy-feely stuff behind, but I need more eG friends so that I have the opportunity to engage in dining experiences like Ssam more frequently.

The above comments are applicable to the dinner menu at Ssam because I feel that i enjoyed the culinary side of the experience so much because I was able to try a wide variety of small items shared among my fellow diners, while also having the opportunity to pig out in the most literal sense. This is kind of like combining the best of both worlds but was only possible through assembling such a large group of adventurous eaters. I must also say that the staff Ssam was very accomodating to our large and rather lively party.

This is not to say, however, that Ssam is cheap when you sample as much food as we did. At the end of the night, with drinks, tax, tip, and gratuity, it ended up at $80 p/p, but I felt the quality of food and experience were certainly worth the price. One certainly could order much, much less food than we did and/or go without alcohol and stay below $50 p/p for a meal nearly as good. We felt the need to try (multiple orders of) the chawanmushi with black truffles and uni and the huge steak. Replacing these premium items with more of the pickles, hams, salads, and dozens and dozens and dozens of the banh mi and pork buns would be another alternative.

I really loved everything I ate last night and have little, if anything, negative to say. I liken this experience to Upstairs. In both instances you have chefs who certainly know what they're doing, offering modern and novel takes on classic dishes, and are obviously sourcing out great ingredients. For example, the steak was one of the more flavorful pieces of meat I've had in quite a while, and Ssam isn't a steakhouse. Granted, I don't go out for steak all the time, so I'm far from an expert, but I really enjoyed the simply prepared piece of meat. The truffles on the incredibly rich chawan mushi were also of better quality than those served at "fancier" restaurants. Donbert and I suggested that they're cooked in a water bath (in the same way I'm doing creme caramels) or perhaps a super low steam oven to get a super soft and smooth consistency. And the bouchot mussles in the seafood hot pot were plump and flavoful when Chef Chang could have easily sourced less notable specimens.

The buns were just delciousness personified. The banh mi, too. The sandwich really embodied the full gamut of textures and flavors from sweet to spicy, creamy to crunch. I seriosuly could've eaten several feet of this sandwich. The whipped tofu with tapioca was really, really cool texturally and directly applicable to my cooking (read: I'm stealing that idea if I can figure out how to execute it).

The pork shoulder was so moist, almostly strangely so, and tasty. It seemed as it had been cooked in some sort of miso glaze, as it had a slight fermented soybean taste to it, but the recently published recipe denies the presence of that type of seasoning. Strange. Nonetheless, it was delicious. The oysters were fine, but I'm not sure they added that much to the dish. Ripping the meltingly soft shoulder apart was an enriching experience for body and soul.

I know there were rumors that Chef Chang et al would be creating on-the-fly tasting menus for diners on some nights in the future. If so, I'll be among the first to go.

[Nathan]

Bryan, after reading that review -- which encapsulated our meal perfectly -- if someone thinks you shouldn't drink wine ever again, I'll kick his _____ myself.

[weinoo]

I think David Chang and his crew have just hit it.  The increase in quality since Ssam late-night started is notable.  It started out promising -- and now it's living up to its promise.  (Of course, the bigger your group, the better it is.)

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I believe Chang is not only a great chef, but quite a serious restaurateur as well. This place has evolved so beautifully - gotta enjoy it while it's still sort of in it's pre-zoo phase. And Momo just hums along as well.

[kathryn]

Looking at the menu online, I see that they have added a FOURTH ham. I'm not sure anything can challenge my love for the Benton's but it's worth a shot.

It's amazing how often they reformulate old dishes and add new ones. Here's the menu as of December 30th.

[Ling]

And how many people were participating in this delicious food orgy?  

There were 11 of us.

Oh ok. I thought it was split between you, John, and Sneakeater! DAYAM that would have been a lot of food!

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We coulda done that.

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I don't doubt that.

[Ling]

The pork shoulder was so moist, almostly strangely so, and tasty.  It seemed as it had been cooked in some sort of miso glaze, as it had a slight fermented soybean taste to it, but the recently published recipe denies the presence of that type of seasoning.  Strange. 

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Sometimes restaurants modify a recipe they publish to make it simpler for the home cook. I'm not saying this is the case here, but it's a possibility. We did use miso on our pork shoulder.