It was a sisters’ day out.
My sisters and I were out and about in the city early this month. Went to Chelsea Market, walked the High Line and then watched 1980’s hit British band Spandau Ballet in concert at the Beacon Theatre.
Before hitting the High Line, we walked inside Chelsea Market figuring out where to eat a late lunch. The night before, I looked up the choices and pinned my hopes on Mŏkbar. According to their website, “mŏkbar is a ramen shop in Chelsea Market that combines traditional Korean soups with fresh Japanese ramen noodles for a unique noodle experience.” Korean-style ramen? It combined two things I adore, Korean food and Japanese ramen. How can it go wrong?
Happily, we DID end up at Mŏkbar. We got seated pretty quickly way in the back, far from the madding crowd. Did we feel isolated? Heck no! We actually enjoyed where we were.
Bacon-wrapped Kochi Sticks. Never heard of this before until our visit here. If I’m not mistaken, Kochi is Ddeokkochi, which is Korean spicy rice cakes, something I actually like. Now the term “cake” is used rather loosely here. It’s not sweet. It’s got a chewy texture. Then they wrapped it in bacon.
Ever had Japchae Dumplings? Me neither. The dumplings had glass noodle, pickled shiitake, garlic chive, tofu and garlic chive relish. I wonder how they placed and kept the noodle inside?
Ho’Cake was a fun find – a crispy bun with pork belly filling.
I ate an entire bowl of their Mokbar Classic with pork broth, braised pork and vegetables. Mmmmm!
I missed taking a photo of my sister’s bibimbap. She started eating while I was still taking pictures of our other food, you see.
Verdict: What can I say? We all enjoyed our food from Mŏkbar to the point that we finished all of the dishes that we ordered. Let’s be clear – Mŏkbar isn’t a Japanese ramen joint. It calls itself a “Korean ramen bar/restaurant”, which I take to mean as an attempt to mesh both influences as one. As much as my sisters and I are all familiar with Korean food, we encountered some pretty interesting takes on the food. Price-wise, it’s true that you can get cheaper Korean and/or Japanese food elsewhere, but given Mŏkbar’s location and locally-sourced fresh ingredients, the pricing makes sense. Will we return? Most definitely! You won’t go home hungry after a visit to Mŏkbar.
Address:
Mŏkbar at Chelsea Market
75 9th Avenue New York, NY 10011