Momofuku Seiōbo

7.8 Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  8      Service  8      Value  7     

Sort of gave up trying to book for a table after trying four times, and waiting for the hope to die down so can make it here. In the meantime, we opted to go to their walk in bar which is open on sat lunch from 12pm. No one must yet know about this place (the bar I mean), as we were the only two at their 5 seater bar! Its a very short menu, of about 5 items and absolutely no description or prices next to the single word item i.e "wings" etc. For the both of us, we just decided to get one of everything.

The vibe is cool and modern, so I would definitely get a seat at the chefs bar as thats where all the action happens when I eventually come here for the degustation. Service is great, very friendly and casual, music is fun and a bit of rock.

Pickles was interesting, just an assortment of vegetables pickled, a generous portion but probably a bit much for the two of us. The egg was similar to what you'd get with a ramen, really great texture. Wings were super tasty, pork bun was everything I'd hope for, soft steamed buns w an unctuous piece of pork belly, rice cakes, however, was amazing.

The texture so crunchy on the outside yet chewy at the same time, and to finish off we had the crab roll which was so damn good, generous crab mixed with a mayo sort of sauce in between a hybrid brioche hotdog bun, which was amazing I could eat it on its own. Dense and yet crunchy.

Now theres no doubt abt it, I'm going to have to try again at that booking system.

May 12, 2012 

9.5 Highly Recommended

Food  10      Ambience  10      Service  10      Value  8     

Its unique in this part of the world, bar kitchen experience. The service is absolutely fantastic! Food is delicious with the added privilege of seeing how your food are plated served by chef who has worked for the likes of Noma and other michellin started restaurant. Its a great restaurant experience (specially when you're assigned sit is by the kitchen bar chair).

My minor suggestion is for the chefs to be less of a serious face. The restaurant concept is similar to waku ghin in singapore and 41 degrees in barcelona both restaurants have chefs serving their dishes to diners in a friendly atmosphere.

Definitely worth a detour and highly recommended.

May 01, 2012 

9 Highly Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  9      Service  9      Value  9     

An excellent tasting menu from start to finish assisted by interesting wine, beer and sake pairings, knowledgeable and attentive staff, a modern dining room and youthful soundtrack.

Read more on my blog

Mar 24, 2012 

7.5 Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  6      Service  7      Value  8     

I came here for my birthday last nite with a few friends, and had a good time. There were about 14/15 courses, most were very unique and good. I was wondering how good can a pork bun get, but it lived up to expectations. The marron dish was also very nice. The sauce on the kingfish sashimi, however, was a bit wierd, as was eating a slow cooked pork dish with your fingers after dessert.

The ambience is soso, setup like new age NY style bar dining, wooden tables and very loud music. Tried the wine pairings with the food, mostly sake and white wines, so it wasn't that great for me as I definitely prefer reds over the whites.

The service was good depending on who you got, there were a couple of staff that were quite friendly, and a couple of others that were quite stiff, and a bit grumpy looking. It wasn't bad service, nothing rude, and fairly attentive with filling up water etc, but nothing to personable to add that extra touch to the experience which you might expect to get at other top notch restaurants in the Aussie culture.

Again, a lot of NY vibes there. At 175pp, 95 for wine pairings, and 55 for juice pairings, it's not cheap. But as some of the other users mentioned, it's worth a try for the experience. But it won't be one of my favorite restaurants in Sydney. Especially when booking a table is a someone stressful exercise. On that note, what was a bit surprising is that 2 of the tables were left vacant the entire night. Leaves you to wonder if they have been reserved for the high rollers at the casino.

Feb 11, 2012 

8.5 Highly Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  9      Service  9      Value  7     

Near perfect experience. The food and entertainment is second to none. Expect to pay handsomely for the experience but you will not be disappointed!

Feb 08, 2012 

8.8 Highly Recommended

Food  10      Ambience  8      Service  9      Value  8     

For 14 courses, $175 is reasonable at a fine dining restaurant. You will definitely need to be dragged out at the end there is so much food!

From start to finish, it is a truly great experience. Watching the chefs prepare the meals in the open kitchen is great. The service is attentive. There is a good range of sake to try. There were a number of stand out dishes including the pork bun (obviously), king fish with warrigal greens, marron with white asparagus, spanner and swimmer crab, hand torn pasta and the petit fours.

The online booking system is a pain but it is worth the wait. I will definitely be back.

Jan 30, 2012 

8.8 Highly Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  9      Service  9      Value  8     

I think the thing with Seiobo is that it's not for everyone. The music, the booking system, the bar seating. Your grandma probably isn't going to like it. But if listening to Mobb Deep and eating pork with her hands sounds good, then Momofuku Seiobo is her fine-diner.

It's definitely my new favourite fine-dining restaurant in Sydney. More detail on the blog.

Read more on my blog

Jan 05, 2012 

7.5 Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  6      Service  7      Value  9     

Great degustation with a few magical stand outs (radish and beef, fishy broth, 'petit fours' and of course the pork bun) but much of it is standard fancy restaurant fare. Service seemed a little anxious given that it's been running for at least a month, but I should note that the chefs give you the dishes personally, not sure how that's meant to work out. Overall, the price is pretty awesome for what you get.

Make sure you get a counter seat, stipulate this when you book or confirm. The entire point of this is to sit next to the kitchen!

Dec 28, 2011 

7.5 Recommended

Food  7      Ambience  8      Service  9      Value  6     

Hm, what can I say? So much hype around David Chang & Momufuku. Did it deliver? ...not really... For what you pay the wow factor isn't there. One or two dishes stand out (the crab and the hand-torn pasta) but others like the wagyu beef with burnt watermelon oil was just that, oily. As expected the music was loud and hip but even so, it was a struggle to hear what the chefs were describing.

It was a fun night out, great to have checked out arguably the coolest new resto in town but we all agreed that we wouldn't be back unless the price dropped or they offered a la carte.

Nov 22, 2011 

7.8 Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  9      Service  6      Value  8     

There has been a lot of hype about this place and we went with high expectations. Big mistake. I am not saying it is not good, but it was not 10/10 for us. All the dishes were good and refreshing except one, which neither of us could go beyond one mouthful. The music was so loud, we couldn't hear the chefs presenting the dishes and constantly asking for them to repeat everything. We were a party of 2, but the chefs insisted on serving and presenting dishes to us and another party at the same time, which sort of marred the experience. All in all, it was worth the visit, but fine dining-it was not.

Nov 16, 2011