What exactly is “his” style?
Do you also work for Eater?
I certainly suspected from the obvious tag-teaming earlier, but thank you for making that clear.
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Holy crap is that what happened? I remember my friend was helping him out for that event but I didn’t follow up on how it went.
Mildly off-topic but can anyone who’s had the short ribs describe the marinade? I’d guess it was a gochujang, garlic, asian pear, sesame oil, corn syrup from the pictures but if anyone can take a stab I’d be interested in trying to do a version of this at home.
First Visit: Went within the first week of opening in hopes of snagging a solo seat at the bar. Not only were there not seats, but the wait to pounce on a seat was at least two people thick. Asked the front desk if I could make a reservation. Said that everything was booked up completely, but folk getting there right before opening has always resulted in getting seated.
Second Visit: Came at 5:15pm on a weeknight, again as a solo diner. Fairly good crowd waiting for the doors to open. Got seated at the chef’s counter. Service was friendly and attentive. Ordered the bing with the Benton’s country ham. The bing itself was good, but at the end of the day, it’s a soft flatbread. Nothing particularly innovative here. But that ham…just absolutely delicious. I ordered one of the crudos (I think it was snapper) and did not fair as well: mushy with chopped lettuce bits of some sort and this apple dashi liquid had a really off-putting taste. Server checked in and offered to replace the dish, which was super nice. Kitchen also comped one of the stuffed peppers (which i was told on the second visit that sometimes happens when folk sit at the counter, but not anywhere else?). I enjoyed this, but I wish the breading would have adhered better to the skin of the pepper, so I didn’t have to construct composed bites myself of the components. Unlike other poster’s report, I really enjoyed the ranch dipping sauce on the side and thought it complimented the pepper well. My replacement dish was a grilled fish collar (Hamchi? Can’t recall). Good, sure. But with an almost too sweet sauce generously dressing the fish. Cucumber salad underneath was good, but again - nothing particularly remarkable. The horchata kakigori was as under seasoned as a dessert could possibly be - the taste of coffee and horchata were so faint, that I mostly focused on eating the rather bland rice pudding on the bottom (and weeping for the loss of Centeno’s perfect rice pudding from Lazy Ox years ago). Despite having a so-so meal, I put it in my mind that I would like to go again, but with at least one person – to share some more dishes and let someone else’s mind drive the menu decisions.
Third Visit: Went with a friend last night and did the 5:15 arrival thing again. Only one other couple there (maybe not perceived to be the most romantic Valentine’s day destination? Hype mellowing out a bit already?) Had the pickles - yeah, they were good. Sure. Two bings: spicy lamb and eggplant. Both tasted good, but the lamb was not dissimilar to that which I had at Rodini Park a couple of week prior. Marinated mushrooms was kind of an awkward salad with a paucity of mushrooms. Crispy pork belly kind of got me a bit irritated - skin was more unyielding than crispy, the fat wasn’t rendered well, the pieces fell apart when consumed, and there was simultaneously an off-putting flavor while being somewhat under-seasoned. I was wishing I could teleport to Kobawoo House after the first bite. And probably the most overbearing, obsequious service I’ve experienced in a while… When asking for some guidance, the entire menu was explained in gory detail from top to bottom. Servers kept coming over and asking how dishes tasted before we even took a single bite.
I think I’m done with this place after giving it a couple of tries. Food was spotty at best. Service was wildly inconsistent between visits. And God strike me down, but I really wish we would have gotten a Momofuku’s greatest hits. I would have killed for a pork bun, some spicy rice cakes, or that apple/kimchi/bacon/labne thing instead of what I recieved.
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Thanks for taking two for the FTC squad!
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Anyone watching Chang’s food series, Ugly Delicious on Netflix? The whole thing, especially the BBQ episode feels like a primer for how this restaurant came about.
I Watched the “fried rice” episode, that was barely about fried rice. It was too long, felt dragged out. I didn’t know Chang was so close minded.
I watched the first episode, “Pizza”, and really enjoyed it. It was the first time I watched a food show and came away enjoying it without any significant reservations.
Yes, it was a bit weird and seemed kinda directionless at first, but the production was surprisingly clever, and tied things in effectively. The conversations felt really natural and it touched on some deeper topics that don’t usually see much attention (philosophical, economic), beyond the usual “oh, [food] is delicious!”. I particularly liked the bits on rent-seeking credentialism and nostalgia influencing taste.
I’ll have to watch some more to see if the trend continues, but I can at least recommend the first episode.
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I think the episodes are too long, but I’ve been enjoying them.
i’ve watched episodes 1 & 2 so far. i’m a david chang fan, so i’ll watch all eight episodes.i’ve found the show to be provocative, which i perceive to be one of the goals. i don’t agree with some of chang’s world view but i admit to reconsidering my views on street food after the taco episode.
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I’ve watched the first two so far, I like it, but I could watch that kind of stuff all day. I wonder if every episode will include an encounter with a major fast-food brand’s crap?
The original Kogi truck hit the road in 2008. Chang was certainly right that it seems longer.
I’ve been to Mitla Cafe, the place across the street from the original Taco Bell. Good, though if you have time for only one meal in that area, go to Sushi Miguel’s Style.
What I don’t like about the Doritos Locos Taco, it needs more Doritos flavor.
And what kills it is the quote-unquote “beef” that they use in it.
That throws off everything.
You know what would be better? If it was a bag of Doritos.
Yes! I feel like, by bringing, uh, Taco Bell in here, it’s like having three Lester Bangs talk about Led Zeppelin.
I agree that the episodes feel too long. Definitely could have used some more cuts in the editing room. The BBQ episode has Chang working with Adam Perry Lang to test out APL short ribs that he has at Majordomo.
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I tried getting reservations online and there doesn’t seem to be any openings. Is there a possibility of getting a walk in table for two on a Saturday around 9 or should I just keep waiting to see if a reservation spot opens up?
Enjoyed my dinner here the other night. Tried the fried butterball potatoes for the first time and damn they were outstanding, they must use crack or msg or something because i couldn’t stop eating them. The bing was hot and fresh, snap peas were delicious and the steak was funky and beefy. The only miss was the crab rice which was pretty bland.
santa barbara rock crab
chickpea hozon, uni, bing
raw sugar snaps, horseradish, lemon, shallot
fried butterball potatoes, salsa seca, peanuts
onion rings
45 day dry-aged holstein steak, tallow fries, bearnaise, Thai shallot
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Is the steak worth trying?