JeJu Noodle Bar, New York

JeJu Noodle Bar, New York
Type of food: Korean Noodle
Addr: 679 Greenwich St, New York, NY 10014, United States
Phone number (646) 666-0947
URL: http://jejunoodlebar.com/

Many hard-to-please and knowledgeable Korean gastronomes seem to have been pleasantly surprised by JJNB.
It serves Korean noodle soup  , primarily (the famous instant noodles that the Koreans are familiar with, since their tender childhood, but here it is  of the  ”freshly made” type that they get specially made for them and that they  do elevate into refined dishes of their own inspiration) . Their Head Chef/owner, Chef Douglas Kim,   told the medias that he never made noodle soup before. Instead, he has enjoyed an enviable career at celebrated restaurants such as Per Se, Bouley, Nobu and Zuma before stepping out to helm his own Noodle restaurant. The Chef said to the medias that he , I quote —”’  gains  inspiration from Korean dishes but that he is doing his own interpretations of them ” – . He could not have been more explicit.

I ordered some of their most popular dishes:

–So Ramyun , made of veal broth (that is blanched, then boiled throughout an entire day ) , garnished with “Soo Yuk” brisket (brined for several days before it is cooked), scallion, pickled garlic and garlic oil.   Koreans do have a cuisine that is  rich and complex in its nuances. As an example, take their soups . Studying their soups is like discovering an exciting library of information on its own. Therefore, it is interesting to see a Chef who focuses on one specific aspect of  this  complex cuisine (if you think that  Korean cuisine is simple, then it is obvious that you are limiting your assessment of this cuisine to the meat that you went  grilling at a Kbbq and  have not cooked it yourself). With this ramyun, most South Koreans will  feel in   familiar territory with a flavor profile that will remind them of a more concentrated and refined  version of their beloved seolleongtang, an  ox bone soup  very popular in South Korea. Here, the veal replacing the ox, obviously. This Chef seems to insist on a  flavour profile that is as genuine as it gets 11,046 km away from the motherland. As genuine as it is possible to be, of course, as anyone who is truly knowledgeable about food would know that water, soil, the geographical area are just a fraction of the factors that can’t make the same dish tasting …..the same in two countries that are that distant geographically. 8/10

 

–Toro Ssam Bap featured super fresh tasting Toro (fatty part of the tuna, found in the belly portion of the fish) , scrambled egg, tobiko rice, that you wrap in toasted seaweed roll, the seaweed replacing, here, the traditional leafy vegetables that Korean would use to wrap (Ssam) a piece of meat  or other filling. Combining rice and proteins rarely fails to be enjoyable and this was no exception, but what did interest me here was the different techniques involved and how successful they were (the perfect texture of the scambled eggs, the judicious seasoning, the precise cooking of the rice, etc). A distracted eye and palate would look at a dish like this and would hastily suggest that “”bah..it is just rice and raw fish”, but there was way more than that.  This came  with pickled daikon that revealed some serious pickling technique. The rice was deliciously seasoned to perfectly match  the tuna, and the scrambled eggs. I did also order some extra sea urchin that were of top quality and was another logical add-on to the dish. This was  well thought and tasted great. 8/10

 

–Wagyu ramyun came with raw A4 grade miyazaki wagyu (which is 100% purebred Japanese Wagyu) that is sliced thinly, brisket, kikurage mushrooms,  enoki, chives, Baek-Kimchi (white kimchi), chared scallion oil, sesame oil and sesame. As you would have guessed it, from  its collection of ingredients, this was rich in flavor. Impressive genuine taste coming from the white kimchi element. I have been a passionate fan of Korean flavors for over 2 decades, by now, and it makes me upset  when Koreans try to please western palates by altering the genuine flavor profile of such jewel of International  cooking like the Kimchi. I was therefore impressed to see that this Chef  is  keeping the core flavors of South Korean cuisine alive. The white kimchi bringing necessary acidity, the earthy dimension coming from the mushrooms, the sesame’s toasty aroma  as well as the rich meat flavor were all nicely balanced. A contemporary and luxurious take on the Korean Ramyun  that refused to leave the core Korean flavours at bay. 8/10

–Mul Hwe  –  Basically,  Hwe is  sashimi (fresh raw fish or meat sliced thinly)  —here, using 4 different types of seasonal raw fishes –  that the Koreans serve with side dishes such as pickles, tempura, etc. Here, in the kitchen, they did assemble all of those elements into one ‘salad’ if you will, made it lighter than the traditional version and elevated it with  a splash of citrus, combining ingredients such as perilla, fresno chili, red onion. 8/10

 

–Gochujang Bokum – served with marinated ragu Beef, Iceberg lettuce, Nori, Pickled mustard and rice – I am a huge fan of the Gochujang, one of the core ingredients of Korean cooking. It is red chile paste made of fermented soybeans, glutinous rice, salt, and sometimes sweeteners.  The kitchen using it to make their beef ragu in this instance. 8/10

Prices are steep but the quality is  good and the portion sizes of the soups are sufficient.

Bottom line: The Chef/owner  is obviously proud of the genuine flavours of his motherland and I appreciate that. His kitchen brigade  was also successful at  using  plenty  of ingredients that always  felt complementary (something that even the most ambitious tables do not always achieve well).   The Noodles are freshly made (the instant noodle texture is preserved) , cooked to proper soft and chewy consistency, the flavours enjoyable and delicately balanced, the creativity is there and it is true that they are doing things their own way –as an example, the kimchi is traditionally fermented, but here, they do brine it instead —  but never at the expense of the traditional Korean flavours where and when need be. Overall rating (Category: Korean Noodle in NYC), 8/10 for the food, 8/10 for the service. To top it off, you have the pretty Hudson river nearby. What’s not to like?

 

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