Month: October 2018

Momofuku CCDC Revisited

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It has been over two years since we visited Momofuku CCDC and the restaurant has had some momentous changes since then, so it was time for a return visit. Back then the City Center hot spot had a menu full of David Chang’s greatest hits plus dessert from neighboring Milk Bar. We liked the food fine-enough, but certainly weren’t impressed with dessert. It was a place that we may have eventually gone back to, but a return visit certainly wasn’t imminent.

Since then, they have installed a new chef, Tae Strain, who has been given complete control over the menu. So long ramen and pork buns, hello bing bread. When we walked in, the noise in the bar & its surrounding dining area was so loud it was intimidating. Fortunately, the host took us down a short hallway to a more secluded dining area, slightly set off from the rest of the restaurant.

Momofuku CCDC in Washington DC

The new Momofuku CCDC is the rare restaurant that actually requires a rundown of the menu from the server, because of the recent menu changes. No matter what you order, you can’t miss out on the bing bread. These housemade, warm, pita-like rounds come with several choices of toppings. Marnay and I went with the sunflower hozon, a David Chang trademarked creation that tastes like hummus.

Bing bread with sunflower hozon at Momofuku CCDC in Washington DC

We also tried the spicy cucumbers which came with almond togarashi and some sort of green paste/puree—cheffy touches that completely transformed the vegetable. As leftovers the next day, they were even more flavorful yet did not lose their crunch.

The true showstopper of our meal was the bronzed whole roasted chicken which comes with a salad and rice. This isn’t just any rice through. This is chicken fat basmati rice, with chunks of pulled roasted chicken, vegetables, dried currants and 3 fried eggs on top. Absolutely decadent…and it was just a side!

The chicken is cut into pieces and served in a large platter, alongside roasted peppers, green olives and herbs. The olives were a bit of a surprise, but they provided a nice mildly salty contribution to the dish. The best part of the roasted chicken was the irresistible crispy wings. Even though the chicken was roasted, they were so crispy they tasted like they had been fried.

Bronzed whole roasted chicken with chicken fat basmati rice at Momofuku CCDC in Washington DC

The new menu has a lot of great sharable items, such as a whole duck and whole short rib. Based on our recent visit, we would definitely return, maybe even with a group. We did not get a chance to try the new, non-Milk Bar desserts, and that is reason enough to go back!

Best Bite
Paul: spicy cucumbers
Marnay: roasted chicken

Address
Momofuku CCDC: 1090 I St NW Washington DC, 20001
Closest Metro: Gallery Place-Chinatown or Metro Center

Southwestern Vacation Recap: Tucson

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Welcome to the second post from our Southwestern vacation recap. You can read our El Paso and New Mexico recap here.

Paul climbing Tumamoc Hill in Tucson, Arizona

We took Amtrak from El Paso to Tucson, about a seven hour trip. Although it was not overnight, we got a roomette so that we would have our own space for the journey. Most of the trip was through the Chihuahuan Desert landscape of New Mexico. Since we were traveling in the evening, we were able to eat dinner in the dining car. Of course, I had my traditional Amtrak signature steak.

The dining car on Amtrak from El Paso, Texas to Tucson, Arizona

Our Airbnb was near the University of Arizona and along the route of the Tucson street car. It was a very modest home, and from the front window we would sit and watch the streetcar go by. Our Airbnb hosts were local restaurateurs and we practically lived at the nearby Time Market, a gourmet market and restaurant that they owned. The market bakes its own bread daily and serves breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Paul walking into our Airbnb in Tucson, Arizona

Eating breakfast at Time Market in Tucson, Arizona

What we ate

Tucson is a large city and home to many different types of food, especially Sonoran cuisine: a mix from Mexico (specifically the state of Sonora), Arizona and Native Americans.

For local modern-American cuisine, we found nowhere better than Augustin Kitchen, in the mixed-used neighborhood of Mercado San Augustin. Highlights included the Mustard and Melon Salad with perfectly cooked Arizona sirloin and a sarsaparilla float for dessert with Isabella’s vanilla ice cream.

The Mustard and Melon Salad with perfectly cooked Arizona sirloin for lunch from Augstin Kitchen at Mercado San Augustin in Tucson, Arizona

We returned to Mercado San Augustin the following day to have one of their quintessential Sonoran desserts, the raspado at Sonoran Sno-Cones. Raspados are shaved ice made with real fruit and real juice and often come in sour flavors, such as chamoy lime. You can also add condensed milk and Mexican-chile candies. Marnay and got a mangoyada and I got a mango and chamoy raspado with chile candies. The chile candies were spicy, but still sweet like candy and had a chewy texture. We sat in the open-air courtyard of the mercado and enjoyed the live music and the Tucson night-sky.

Raspados from Sonoran Sno-Cones at Mercado San Augustin in Tucson, Arizona

South Tucson is where the best Mexican-restaurants can be found, and Los Tacos Apson did not disappoint. In fact, we had the best barbacoa tacos we have ever had! It’s hard to describe just how amazing the taste was of these tacos. They have a smoky flavor and simply melted in your mouth.

Barbacoa and rib tacos at Los Tacos Apson in Tucson, Arizona

Smoking the meat at Los Tacos Apson in Tucson, Arizona

On our last day in Tucson, we had Sonoran-style hot dogs! We went to El Guero Canelo, which unbeknownst to us had just won a James Beard Foundation American Classic Award. A Sonoran-style hot dog is a bacon-wrapped dog top with beans, onions, mustard, jalapenos and a little bit of mayo. All of this is inside a special bolillo bun, a soft Mexican roll that is the most important part of a Sonoran-style dog. It’s not a Sonoran hot dog without the bolillo bun.

Sonoran-style hot dogs from El Guero Canelo in Tucson, Arizona

What we did

We weren’t sure what to expect at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, however, it blew us away. It’s a museum in name only, as it is over 80% outdoors. It also seamlessly blends in with the landscape, since it’s completely surrounded by Tucson Mountain Park and Saguaro National Park.

Marnay walking at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum in Tucson, Arizona

Our Airbnb host recommended the hike up Tumamoc Hill, on the western edge of downtown Tucson. The trail is paved and it basically goes straight up, with some very steep switchbacks. It’s a nature preserve and it shows off the most distinctive feature of the Sonoran Desert landscape, Saguaro cacti. These monarchs of the desert can grow to over 40 feet tall and live for over 150 years. This is an intense hike, but it is remarkably popular with locals. Because it is so hot in the summer, people don’t start hiking until sunset. We opted to go a little earlier so that by the time we reached the top the sun would be setting.

View from the top of our hike at Tumamoc Hill in Tucson, Arizona

From the top, you can see almost all of Tucson, and if you are facing south you can see all the way to the Mexico border. I could tell because you can make out the route of Interstate 19 going from Tucson to Nogales. I think that we saw arguably the best sunset of the trip here. We loved Tumamoc Hill so much we did it twice!

Sunset at the top of our hike at Tumamoc Hill in Tucson, Arizona

This desert vacation was like nothing we had ever done. I highly recommend going to the desert, if only for the amazing sunsets. Perhaps one day we will be back!

Southwestern Vacation Recap: El Paso and New Mexico

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Eatnowrunlater is back from our summer vacation and we want to tell you all about it! This summer, we headed to El Paso, Texas and Tucson, Arizona, with a stop in Las Cruces, New Mexico along the way. We learned a lot about the food in these similar yet district regions, just as we learned a lot about the desert. This post will be a mix of the food we ate and the scenery we experienced.

Paul and Marnay at Franklin Mountain State Park in El Paso, Texas

El Paso is in Texas, the furthest west you can possibly go and still be in the state. However, it’s in a different time zone than the rest of Texas and it’s 800 miles from Houston and 600 miles from Austin. It’s also sandwiched between Juarez, Mexico and New Mexico. Because of its location on the Mexican border, El Paso has developed its own “border cuisine.” It’s similar to Tex-Mex cuisine, but in its most authentic form.

Mural at the border of Juarez, Mexico and El Paso, Texas

What we ate

At all of the restaurants we went to, the format for the meal is the same. When you sit down, you are greeted with tortilla chips and homemade salsa. They aren’t messing around with the salsa – this is spicy stuff. Once you order your meal, you are invariably asked “corn or flour tortillas?” Breakfast, lunch, or dinner. It doesn’t matter what you order, every meal has the chance of being hand-held.

The most “Tex-Mex” style restaurant we went to was L&J Café, “The Old Place by the Graveyard.” L&J was very crowded, especially considering we arrived at around 4:30pm, immediately after we landed in El Paso. It had a family-friendly atmosphere that chains like Chili’s and Applebee’s can only dream of emulating. The salsa at L&J was top notch. I had a great burrito (very common in El Paso) and Marnay had steak fajitas. To be honest, the chips and salsa were so good we filled up on them first.

Dinner at L and J Cafe in El Paso, Texas

La Rosita Cafe is on the Interstate 10 access road and looks a little run down, but inside the staff couldn’t be more warm and inviting. It’s the real deal, too – the menu is written on a white board and is entirely in Spanish. Another commonality among the restaurants in this region is that your plate consists of your main entrée, rice, and then beans with a little bit of mild cheese on top. In a basket on the side are your tortillas. Here, I ordered the lomo (pork loin) in a pipian, a cousin to mole. Meanwhile, Marnay got Chile Verde, beef in a green chile sauce.

Lunch at La Rosita Cafe in El Paso, Texas

We learned about H&H Car Wash from Eater’s Bill Addison, when he named it his favorite restaurant in Texas. It was opened in 1958 as a car wash with a small lunch counter attached and it does not look like it has changed much since then. This was our favorite meal in El Paso. Marnay had the best eggs of her life, along with beans with cheese and rice, while I had a ruddy Chile Colorado, which is basically beef in a red chile sauce.

Breakfast at H and H Car Wash in El Paso, Texas

H and H Car Wash in El Paso, Texas

What we did

Franklin Mountain State Park, which preserves the Chihuahuan Desert landscape of the Franklin Mountains in El Paso, is the largest urban park in the country. Ranger Peak, over a mile above sea level, can be reached by the Wyler Aerial Tramway. The four minute park ranger guided ride gives incomparable views of Texas, New Mexico and Mexico.

Wyler Aerial Tramway at Franklin Mountain State Park in El Paso, Texas

The following day, we returned to the mountain and went on a sunset hike with Don, a local guide. Don took us up the western side of the mountain, where we had views of New Mexico and downtown El Paso. He taught us a lot about the different plants that live in the desert, such as Sotol, Barrel cacti and Ocotillo.

Hiking with Don at Franklin Mountain State Park in El Paso, Texas

We thought we were the only ones in the park that night, but it turns out there was one other hiker, and we caught him just as he was about to paraglide off the mountain! It was amazing to watch him run and jump off the mountain and then immediately go hundreds of feet in the air. On our way down, we saw one of the most magical sunsets we have ever seen. We stopped to hang out in the parking lot to take it all in, as bats whizzed by us in the night sky.

Paraglider at Franklin Mountain State Park in El Paso, Texas

Las Cruces

Early one afternoon, we headed to New Mexico and the incredible White Sands National Monument. About halfway between White Sands and El Paso is the small city of Las Cruces. If you know anything about food in New Mexico, you know that it is famous for its tremendous variety of chiles. In fact, the state has a beautiful new license plate that reads “Chile Capital of the World.”

Los Mariachis is another family-friendly establishment that showcased the best of New Mexico cuisine. It was Sunday brunch when we went, so I ordered the “Huevos Mariachi” – huevos rancheros with a red potent red chile sauce. Marnay stayed traditional and went with Chile Verde. The chips and salsa at Los Mariachis were HOT HOT HOT. To get the full New Mexico experience, we also ordered a side of green chile sauce.

Lunch at Los Mariachis in Las Cruces, New Mexico

White Sands National Monument

White Sands National Monument in New Mexico is the largest gypsum sand dune in the world. It truly is like nothing you have ever seen. The dunes of pure white sand seem to go on forever and it really looks like something from another planet. It’s located in the Tularosa Basin, between the Sierra Blancas and the Organ Mountains.

Paul and Marnay at White Sands National Monument in New Mexico

White Sands National Monument in New Mexico

In the evening, we did a sunset hike led by husband and wife park rangers. There are a surprising amount of plants that live in the dunes, and we learned that there is water about 30 feet under the sand. These plants have to touch the water to be able to survive – if they don’t, they will die. The most amazing part of the hike was getting to see TWO sunsets, because of the reflection of the mountains.

Sunset at White Sands National Monument in New Mexico

We loved El Paso and New Mexico but it was time to continue our journey. Click here for our Tucson recap.