Momofuku Las Vegas
The lone remaining West Coast Momofuku still celebrates the brand's greatest hits and innovations
There was a point when David Chang’s Momofuku restaurant group seemed unstoppable. Between flagship low-end, midrange, and tasting menu restaurants in New York, LA, and Washington DC, international outposts in Canada and Australia, and a budding chain of Fuku fried chicken shops, Momofuku seemed to be doing everything right to build an empire – then almost everything changed. Its well-regarded culinary magazine Lucky Peach folded, many of its best restaurants shut down, and Fuku went from “coming soon everywhere” to stadium pop-ups and a single dedicated shop in NYC. As a brand, Momofuku is apparently now more focused on selling packaged foods than operating restaurants. For fans who loved everything Chang and team produced at their peak, today’s reality was all but unthinkable.
The Las Vegas location of Momofuku is an oasis – the closest thing remaining to what the chain offered 10 or 20 years ago. Early in the morning, people still line up to order cookies and what used to be called Crack Pie from an adjacent Milk Bar, the dessert bakery that spun off from Momofuku. Lines form again for the limited number of seats available at Momofuku’s lunch and dinner services. If the dining rooms are too packed, you can opt for a dedicated takeaway spot nearby called Momofuku Bāng Bar, which serves U-shaped flatbread wraps or rice bowls filled with Korean-style spicy pork, spicy eggplant, or teriyaki chicken.
At lunch, Momofuku serves a limited, constantly shifting menu of small plates akin to ones offered at Ssäm Bar years ago, with more options available during dinner. In addition to classics – pickles, peppers, cauliflower, ribs, and chicken – you can still order the famous pork buns, which despite the passage of time and plenty of copycatting elsewhere, somehow taste better here than anywhere else we’ve had them. Similarly, Chang-style variants on rice cakes, ramen, and Korean bo ssäm meat wraps remain available in Las Vegas.
The Vegas location has fixed some issues with its menu timing – Fuku’s famous fried chicken sandwich is finally, belatedly available for lunch, along with bigger meat and seafood plates – but the flavors of healthier, veggie-heavy items are equally compelling. Momofuku is the sort of place where cucumber with togarashi and almonds can be a highlight, just like any other random, deliberately under-described menu item. As we learned at Momofuku locations years ago, if it’s on the menu, it’s there for a reason, so give anything a try if it gets your attention.
Stats
Price: $$-$$$
Service: Table
Open Since: 2017
Addresses
3708 Las Vegas Blvd. S
Boulevard Tower, Level 2
Las Vegas, NV 89109
702.698.2663
Instagram: @momofukulasvegas