The roughly ten-course tasting hot spot Momofuku Shōtō ran its final show with its closing of both Shōtō and sister restaurant Daishō, to evolve into a concept that will take up the entire third floor.

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In 2004, Momofuku was born. Founded by David Chang, it is a culinary brand that started with the opening of Momofuku Noodle Bar. It has now grown to include restaurants across the U.S., Australia, and Toronto with its first Canadian project Noodle Bar, Daishō, and Shōto in 2012. The towering three-story glass cube rests in the heart of downtown Toronto (190 University Ave).

On February 25, 2018 — Both Shōtō and sister Daishō will be going through renovations and renew as a one, much bigger restaurant spanning the entire layout later this spring. Shōtō will always be remembered as on the few restaurants in Toronto that stuck through with the mentality of having a seasonal tasting menu with local Ontario ingredients.

First joining the team in 2010, and then relocated over from NYC Momofuku Ssäm Bar, Jed Smith moved to Toronto to be one of Daishō’s opening Sous Chefs. He transitioned over to Shōtō at the end of 2015 and by August 2016, he was appointed Chef de Cuisine. Needless to say hes been with the company since the beginning. Here is what Jed has served us on his last month of dinner service with his four-man team.

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The beginning of the night commenced with a trio of amuse-bouche’s, starting off with a pickled mussel served in a warm broth with pea shoots, green chilies and sliced fennel:

Second, the “Coronation Chicken Ball”. Smoked chicken, crusted with a pancake mix, and then cooked in a takoyaki pan for the shape. Finished with a dollop of cilantro mayo and scallion curls (and a bowtie penguin in the middle):

Final amuse-bouche — Lamb sausage roll accompanied with a sweet miso mustard:

And that is just amuse-bouche… pleasantful way to start and spark our appetite.

First course begins with diver scallops with seaweed, roasted maitake mushrooms and kohlrabi, brown butter sauce and shined with a maple vinaigrette:

Second: Light pickled and charred Spanish mackerel, served in a jalapeño broth, with compressed green apple balls and dressed with ginger and Meyer lemon:

Third: Duck tortellini with rutabaga purée and endive leaves, dressed with charred chili and herbed vinegar dressing:

Fourth: British Colombian octopus, with sunchoke done four different ways — sunchoke tare glaze, processed sunchoke, sunchoke purée, sunchoke juice broth and topped with toasted sunflower seeds:

Fifth: Dungeness crab and rice both cooked in a broth consisting of turmeric, ginger and cardamom:

Sixth: Beef short rib “a la plancha”, topped with braised and pickled cabbage and rests over a cabbage puree:

Seventh: Welsh rarebit over a five-year-old cheddar, comte, truffle and Worcestershire sauce:

Eighth: One of my favourite desserts of all-time — Sticky toffee pudding coated with caramelized white chocolate, drizzled with rum caramel, crisp banana meringue, and topped with a glorious scoop of caramelized banana ice cream (enjoy this video presentation of it):

 

 

Ninth and final course: Peanut and maple bonbons with cubed leche flan. A nod to his wife’s auntie’s recipe, explained Jed:

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Overall, our dining experience at Momofuku Shōtō was a memorable one and blew my taste buds away. We certainly cannot wait to see what they have in plan with the new project. They’re keeping it hush-hush, but that’s what makes it all the more exciting.

 

Thank you all for stopping by! Want more like this? Have a spot that we should visit? Recipe ideas? Write us a comment and let us know.

Until the next flight, stay soigne.