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A sign of true ramen authenticity and goodness is the presence of Japanese FOBS or Japanese business men. These two species are nonexistent at Momofuku. I'm asian and am astounded by how (white) people keep raving about Momofuku. I live a couple blocks away from it, and continually see non-asians there, waiting patiently and then saying it's the best bowl of noodles they've had in their life. Um.....well sure, if you've only had noodles from the local takeout place and at fusion hotspots in the village, maybe once cautiously in chinatown, then suuuuure---momofuku is more authentic and/or better tasting than any of those. But if you're a true asian, you would not go to Momofuku other than out of curiousity based on all the hype (which explains the all the NYU/yuppie Asians waiting in line). Afterwards, they deem that it's not bad, but not stellar, and overpriced (no true asian would pay this much money for a bowl of soup). David Chang is smart. He KNOWS that white folks will shell out money for a humble noodle soup. He dresses it up with gourmet toppings and yes, the food is not bad. But the noodles are not stellar, the pork buns wayyyy too sweet (again, for the American palate!) And of course the population of white people will go b/c: A) it's not as "foreign" or puzzling as chinatown, B) service and patrons don't make you feel out of place (the secret of any asian restauranteur is to hire some good looking white people so the white people will feel a bit more comfortable C) it's recommended by New York Magazine and other mags intensely worshipped by the yuppie population. Check out the reviews plus Chowhound. All the people with real experience eating noodles in Japan and/or true asian background (not americanized asian) feel the same way as I do.

I dont know why there are so many haters out there for momofuku! My parents own a chinese/vietnamese restaurant and therefore I am very critical of asian food - this one is now in my top 5 favorite restaurants in NYC. The berkshire pork buns AMAZING and although everyone loves the momofuko ramen, I prefer the simplicity of the chicken ramen. The chicken is so tender and flavorful & ramen noodles cooked to perfection. It is absolutely worth your time and money .. and your stomach will be happy too!

Momofuku definitely has the best ramen in the city, much better than minca. and david chang's non-ramen dishes are even better than the ramen dishes. Real creativity with the cooking and an emphisis on local and seasonal. Prices are not bad at all either! It does get a little noisy and isn't good for groups, but this place rocks!

The service at Momofuku is amazing: I eat here a lot and the second I sit down, they have my drink ready for me. The wait staff is always ver y friendly. They have to deal with a large number of customers in a small space who are usually impatient to sit and eat and I think that the staff does a very nice job with it. They know the menu well and they offer a very accurate description of the different beers and sake. This is not the kind of place where you should expect someone to constantly fold your napkin and place it into your lap (yuck), but your water glass will always be full. As for the food: the baby octopus salad is delicious: the octopus is crisp on the outside and tender on the inside. This is my favorite place to have brussel sprouts and I agree with a previous post that the soft shell crab is totally fantastic. Over the past year or so, I've developed some very important feelings for the pork and shitake buns. Do try the kimchi stew, the oxtail soup, the chicken and egg dish and whatever kind of greens they are serving (bok-choy, baby tatsoi, mustard greens, etc...) The sweetbreads and tripe are really great too. Also try out Ssam Bar - the late night menu is just as good as Momofuku, but is influenced by some other top-notch chefs. The pre-10pm wraps are pretty nice too - perfect when you want some quality food but don't feel like making a big "sit down" deal of your meal.

That people are so negative! I went this past July and had the softshell crabs with ramps and sour cherries and it was absolutely fabulous, I raved about it for days. Granted the space is tiny and the service isn't the best but I thought that I was practically robbing the place to get such a terrific dish for $20! Now the Momofufku Ssam Bar is an entirely different story...

After living in Japan for 2 years my wife and I concur that this was the best bowl of ramen we've had since leaving Osaka. Granted, we went during a low business hour so didn't have to deal with the obviously subpar wait staff on a trying level. A little pricey and cramped, but we'll still be back- the food is A level.... though maybe just a touch too much salt for my taste in the ramen...

Undoubtedly overrated, but still worth a try. I had the momofuku ramen; the toppings, broth and pork were delicious, buttery soft and melting in my mouth. The lamest part was the actual noodles, which kind of kills it. The noodles are the whole point of the dish, but were instead limp and clumpy, there was actually a ball of rolled up noodles stuck together like a bal of yarn in the bottom of my bowl. The shrimp and grits appetizer was basically un-eatable, and looked like a bowl of baby vomit with shrimp thrown on top. Although it is worth a try, next time I am in the mood for slurping ramen I will return to a nearby spot on 10th Street, while although not "trendy" still beats the pants off of this noisy, hot, crowded, trendy, long line for no good reason place.