The short rib from dc’s ig
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bef5fIyDdQI/
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It’s an easy question on the surface and people have an answer in their
mind, but answers might have a lot of variance:
Where are you located? Is it better if a place is on the way? How much time
would it take to get that taco (lines, waits, etc.) What do you like in
your tacos? How much do all of these separate factors matter relative to
one another? How smashed are you (ie. how much does any of this matter?
)?
I know it sounds insane that there are this many questions, but these
questions are more likely to lead to a more satisfying suggested outcome
than the query “I have $2.50 and I want the best taco for my buck.” Don’t
really have a source for this but people ask me a lot about restaurant
recommendations and this is what has worked for me over the years.
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@esthete’s progeny
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Been there twice in two weeks. Food is as good as ever. Definitely NOT dead.
Not sure how that got into the conversation either.
it’s been my experience on this board that those seeking a truly informed opinion here tend to be more specific in how they phrase their questions. those hoping to educated so as to write an article or somesuch ask things like: “what is the best korean/chinese restaurant in town?” and most of us tend to ignore them, or string them along until we can discern their motives.
for the most part, the regulars here do clarify their requests sufficiently.
As someone who has paid for the $300 steak at Chi Spacca, eaten BBQ in Texas, and is a cheapass Asian I have to say I don’t see an issue paying $190 for smoked beef ribs.
I’m sure I paid a similar price/lb when I ordered smoked short ribs in Texas at the various places I’ve went.
I’ll also express my opinion that I see more value in a perfectly smoked short rib over a big steak. Steak is easy to cook if you got decent skills, hell even a home sous vide setup. I don’t think I will ever order steak at Chi Spacca again since theres so many other good dishes there to order for much less money but I can say I’m eager to go back to Majordomo with a large group and order those beef ribs.
From my oberservation it did look like a 4-5lb at the minimum piece of beef (not counting bone weight). I’m pretty sure I paid $40 for a 1lb short rib at Pecan Lodge a few years ago and that was with bone weight.
I’m not huge fan of Momofuku food based on what I had at Ssam Bar and Noodle Bar but I have to say Majordomo has caught me by surprise and I’m interested in what’s he doing. This food is way more interesting to me than going to the X-th iteration of an Italian restaurant (Felix, Rossoblu, Alimento etc) and way more interesting than rest of the hipster restaurants exploding all over the city. I’ve personally felt that despite our growing food scene in Los Angeles the food conversation has gotten stale in some parts. I see menus like Best GIrl or Journeyman and it feels boring/the same to me. From my point of view I do think David Chang is doing something interesting and new in LA and thats why I have no qualms supporting it. Personally I’m not in a hurry to pay another $30 for some plate of hand made pasta thats been done before but perceived value is a personal thing and I don’t expect everyone to be willing to drop $190 for beef ribs but I feel the value is proportionate to the amount of work that goes into it.
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My reading comprehension is admittedly not always great, but where was the original mention of $190 for smoked beef ribs? On the Majordomo menu, I only see braised short rib for $85.
Looks like post #37 by matthewkang by a quick ctrl F search
It’s a long thread!
My personal wariness and reaction came from past experiences with David Chang’s restaurants as a whole. My experiences have all been disappointing, not to mention also very expensive. So when he rolls into town with a pricey new restaurant and 190 smoked beef ribs on the menu its already suspicious. Coupled with Eater writers pumping the restaurant and vehemently defending it, when Eater had an “exclusive look” only doubled my suspicion.
However, after listening to both @euno and @matthewkang elaborate more about their feelings and their opinions, I’m at least open to giving it a try instead of a hard pass.
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Many excellent points.
i think it’s fair to say that we’re all enthusiasts at some level. enthusiasts can enjoy something and not be able to articulate why they do, and that can be a good thing. but often i reflect on something i once read about how two friends may agree to keep a cat, but if one likes furry animals while the other enjoys watching cruelty to birds, the friendship may not last for long.
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Well stated. Bravo.
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I’m just happy to see cocktails for less than fifteen bucks at a new restaurant for once. And I don’t think the food pricing looks out of whack for the type of restaurant this is, but maybe I’ve just been in Santa Monica too long 
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what’s the going rate for a cocktail in santa monica these days??
QPR issues aside I was impressed at Chang’s shout out to Thao Farms on his menu. Those guys get like 50% of my produce biz.
There is a horse tomorrow at Golden Gate race 1 called Majordomo. Even money ML favorite.
I was more thinking of the character from Strauss opera “Ariadne auf Naxos”
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