Ko, the menu

Ok, here you are folks, the menu. I should first mention that since no cameras were allowed, I had to wait until after the meal to write down everything I ate. Thus, Gil and I raced to a coffee shop to write down what we could remember, so use your imagination.

Oyster: jalapeno

Trio course [all separate, left to right, 1-2 bites a piece]:
Lobster bisque, basil
Poached Quail Egg, hollandaise, chiccharones
Dry Aged Beef Tartare

Quatro course [4 types of sushi grade fish on a square, partitioned plate, order starts top left and eaten clockwise]
Marinated Chives, crisp scales, (fish? can't remember type unfortunately)
Mackerel, red cabbage pickled, apple
Fluke, bean paste cherry bomb
Scallop with pablano

Vegetable Crudo [again, three separate sides, partitioned on a skinny rectangular plate, left to right]
Turnip braised, turnip green puree, fried mustard seeds?
Cauliflower roasted, fish sauce
Feral eggplant in dark miso

Egg Souffle: benton's bacon dashi

Bento Box:
Grilled sushi rice in bacon
Halibut consome
Shaved brussels sprout salad in mustard oil
Pork spare ribs, grilled mild green pepper (not sure on variety, spicier than a green bell, but less than a pablano, size of 2")

Wild Mushroom Salad:
Maitaki, chantrelles, king trumpets, mustard sauce

Matsutake Ravioli: chive butter sauce with fried buckwheat

Matsutake tea with french toast maple, brown butter

Lobster salad: lobster mushrooms, white fungus, tumeric.....sauce

Charcuterie: Chicken pate, burned onion sauce, duck proscuitto, head cheese, pickled mustard seeds

Elysian Farm Lamb [two parts]
Lamb in pistachio puree salsify, burnt onion powder
Lamb neck cassoule with poached pistachios

Goat Cheese Sorbet: shiso

Pineapple Sorbet: root beer (house made), dried pineapple, dehydrated pineapple skin, micro cilantro

White Miso Sorbet: black puffed rice, sushi rice, rice waffle cone

....and that's all, at least what I remember :)
After a feast, we walked around New York City awaiting our second most extravagant meal, which was to be eaten three hours later at Wd-50. More to come on Chef Wiley.

Happy Drooling

Ko, Momofuku

East Village
163 First Ave., New York, NY 10003
nr. 10th St.

On a whim I decided to fly to New York City for a foodie adventure. After I purchased the plane tickets, I told my friends I wanted to get a reservation at Ko, a restaurant I've been longing to eat at under Chef David Chang. If you've read previous blog posts, you may remember my plug for his pork steamed buns.

Anyway, I was told by several chefs how difficult it would be to obtain a reservation with Ko. I even heard rumors that his own parents have been turned down, but who's to say that's actually true. Thus, my chances were bleak. But then, the morning before our departure, I decided to try one last attempt for a lunch reservation (more expansive than dinner and only offered on weekends). To my amazement, an opening appeared! It took me several minutes with computer glitches, but I managed to get two open seats for lunch!!! I immediately telephoned Gil and told him the good news. At first, no one believed me, especially since it's known how unlikely it is to eat there. Some people have to slave away at the computer and continuously check. Bon Appetit ranks Ko as the 9th toughest restaurant reservations in the USA.* With 12 seats at Ko and reservations only in a week advance, it's no wonder why seats are booked and difficult to obtain.

When the day finally arrived, we walked into Ko with great anticipation of indulging in one of the most amazing meals. Chef Michael Carlson, the executive chef/owner of Schwa, was nice enough to put Gil and myself in touch with one of Ko's Chefs, Jonathan Ory. He was kind and made sure we enjoyed ourselves [the following day he took us to DBDG, Daniel Bouldud's restaurant], even giving us take home treats of nagori wrapped vegetables and rice with korean spices.

The meal was unlike anything I've ever experienced, Japanese/Korean/American with unexpected flavors of burnt onion on salsify and house made charcuteries. In my next post, I will write out the menu with little detail. No cameras allowed, sorry folks.

Until then, keep those saliva glands producing. The best [in detail] is yet to come.



*http://eater.com/archives/2011/07/29/are-these-the-eleven-toughest-reservations-in-the-us.php, website for listing of toughest restaurant reservations in the USA.