We were lucky to go attend a fun event hosted by Momofuku Noodle Bar at their East Village location. They had this interesting large photo print at the entrance, I wonder what the story behind that is… As soon as we walked in, we were welcomed with warm smiles and nice drinks.
The first drink I tried was Spicy Lychee Slushie (normal portion: $15). It was sooooo good! I already love anything lychee, and this slushy was amazing! I didn’t get much of the “spicy” part, but it was delicious! Then we also tried Spiked Yuzu Lemonade (normal portion: $14). It is not a slushy, but a really nice citrus-y drink with a nice yuzu flavor. Refreshing, not overly sweet, great drink!
Then, we tried Pina Punch, made with Sake, Soju, Pineapple, Kalamansi, and Coconut. It was like a Piña Colada with Asian twist. It was nice and sweet, but not overly sweet, with the great flavor of pineapple and coconut. Really tasty! They also had a bottle of Sake, made in Japan, labeled just for Momofuku! It is Akitabare Momofuku Nama Honjozo, Akita, Japan (normal portion: $14). The staff told us that this sake pairs really well with their sushi items. So, we got some of the sushi samples they were offering, and it indeed paired really well! It had a nice sweetness to it, went down smooth.
The first Hand Roll I tried was Extra Spicy Tuna (normal portion: $19), with Thai Bird Chili and Pickled Ginger. It was really spicy, a nice kick and a punch to it. The tuna was fresh and I really liked the spicy flavor. The sweetness of the Sake balanced out the spiciness too.
I also got to try their Spicy Scallop Hand Roll (normal portion: $21) and Striped Bass Hand Roll. The Spicy Scallop is made with Spicy Mayo and Tempura Crunch. I enjoyed the crunchy texture. The scallop was fresh, not as spicy as the tuna hand roll. Striped Bass Hand Roll was more of a classic kind, very fresh and tasty. I enjoyed all three samples very much, and my hubby’s favorite was the tuna.
Off their “Small” menu, we got to try Snap Peas with Mint salad, with some kind of creamy dressing. It was refreshing, a great little dish to cleans your palette. We also had Spicy Cucumber Salad (normal portion: $12) with Radish, Sichuan Peppercorn, Peanuts. This was spicy, almost like Kimchi with their flavoring. It sure wakes up your taste buds for all the tasty food they serve!
From their “Buns” menu, we got to try Seared Shrimp (normal portion: $15) and Pork Belly (normal portion: $15). The “normal portion” comes with 2 pieces. The Seared Shimp is made with Spicy Mayo, Pickled Red Onion and Iceberg. It was surprising item to me, as I have never seen anything like it. It was super plump, packed with flavor, and oh-so-delicious!!! I had to have more than one of these… I loved it!
And the classic, Pork Belly Bun, made with hoisin, scallion, and cucumber. We didn’t get cucumber on the sample dish, but that is ok. The pork belly was slicked thick, juicy with nice amount of fat that melt in your mouth. It was really good too! The bun was fluffy and light. Although the restaurant is called Momofuku Noodle Bar, but they do such awesome job on all the other dishes!
They also had these Korean Fried Chicken with Gochujang Glaze. This item, along a few other dishes we tried, are not on their current menu. I wonder if they are planning to add these to their East Village menu soon? Anyways, these wings were HOT! I mean, super spicy! The gochujang glaze don’t play. It was nice and crunchy on the outside, super juicy in the inside. If you like spicy food, these wings are for you!
We also had a demonstration of Suckling Pig. They brought out this beautifully cooked suckling pig, and prepared it right in front of us. What a skillful presentation it was… and the sample dish we received was awesome too. The suckling pig was served with Bib Lettuce, Pork, Skin, and Farfofa. The pig was tender and juicy, and the skin was nice and crispy. I used the lettuce to wrap up all the goodies, and it was amazing! The lettuce cut down on the fattiness of the pork, making it refreshing and satisfying.
And of course, we tried some of their noodle dishes. We had Ginger Scallion Noodles (normal portion: $15), made with pickled shiitake, cucumber, wakame. It is a vegan dish, served cold. The mushroom had nice flavor, and making this vegan dish “meaty” and tasty. The veggies made this to be a nice palette cleansing dish at all the rich dishes. Noodles were cooked just right, nice texture and mild, earthy flavor. It was a nice noodle dish. We tried another cold noodle dish, Chilled Spicy Noodles (normal portion: $19), with Sausage, Thai Basil, and Peanuts. This was really good too, with crumbles of sausage that was packed with flavor. I liked the peanuts in there, it went great with the meat. Thai Basil was added nice flavor to this dish. It was not too spicy, but a nick kick to it.
Then the dessert! We got the sample size of Vanilla Miso Soft Serve (regular portion: $9), topped with coco nibs, coffee, feuilletine. It was interesting flavor, sweet and savory at the same time. I actually really enjoyed it. The ice cream flavor that was not like anything I’ve ever had, very creative! The feuilletine, which is basically sweetened crêpes flakes, was a fun addition of texture.
That wraps up all the samples of food and drinks we had during this fantastic event. We were stuffed and happy! We enjoyed all the food and drinks that they served, and the staffs were friendly and courteous. Thank you to all the staffs for making this event so great! We would definitely go back to try more of their food again in the future!
Momofuku Noodle Bar @ East Village – 171 1st Ave., New York, NY 10003