 |
(Photo: Horacio Salinas) |
-
- Momofuku
-
163 First Ave.; 212-475-7899
In these labor-intensive times of house-curing and house-smoking, house-pickling has hit its stride. Pickled ramps garnish haute martinis and Gibsons. At Telepan, the brunch burger comes with pickles made in-house. A Yale-educated pickler sells jars of artisanally brined beets and beans from his Greenmarket stand. But nowhere do pickles strike as compellingly seasonal and satisfying a chord as at Momofuku, the East Village Über�noodle bar, where the mixed pickle plate expands on the owner’s kimchee-conversant Korean heritage to encompass what he finds at the market�anything from traditional cabbage and several kinds of radish to Asian pear and cherries. Crunchy and refreshing, alternatingly sweet and spicy, the plate is a delectable palate cleanser and the perfect foil for the rich broths and fatty Berkshire pork that permeate so much of the menu.