David Chang facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
David Chang

Chang in 2010
Born	(1977-08-05) August 5, 1977 (age 48) Arlington County, Virginia, U.S.
Cooking style	New American Asian
Education	Georgetown Prep Trinity College, Hartford French Culinary Institute
Spouse	Grace Seo Chang ​ (m. 2017)​
Current restaurant(s) Noodle Bar Bāng Bar Momofuku Majordōmo Fuku
Previous restaurant(s) Momofuku Ko
Award(s) won James Beard Foundation Award

David Chang (born August 5, 1977) is a famous American chef, restaurant owner, writer, and TV star. He started the well-known Momofuku group of restaurants. In 2009, his restaurant Momofuku Ko earned two Michelin stars, which are like top awards for restaurants. It kept these stars until it closed in 2023. David Chang also helped start a food magazine called Lucky Peach in 2011, which was published until 2017.

He is also known for hosting TV shows about food and cooking. Some of his popular shows include Ugly Delicious (2018), Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner (2019), The Next Thing You Eat (2021), and Dinner Time Live with David Chang (2024–present).

David Chang's Early Life and School

David Chang was born in Arlington, Virginia. His parents, Woo Chung Hi "Sherri" and Chang Jin Pil (Joseph P. Chang), moved from Korea in the 1960s. David grew up in Vienna, Virginia, with his two older brothers and one sister.

When he was a kid, David was a very good golfer. He played in many junior golf tournaments. He went to Georgetown Preparatory School and then to Trinity College. There, he studied religious studies. After college, David tried different jobs. He taught English in Japan, worked as a busser, and had finance jobs in New York City.

David Chang's Culinary Journey

David Chang started his cooking training in 2000. He went to the French Culinary Institute (FCI) in New York City. While studying, he also worked part-time at Mercer Kitchen in Manhattan. He also answered phones at Tom Colicchio's Craft restaurant.

Chang worked at Craft for two years. Then, he moved to Japan to work at a small soba noodle shop. After that, he worked at a restaurant in Tokyo's Park Hyatt Hotel. When he came back to the U.S., Chang worked at Café Boulud. But he soon felt unhappy with the fancy fine dining world.

Opening Momofuku Noodle Bar

In 2004, David Chang opened his very first restaurant. It was called Momofuku Noodle Bar and was in the East Village in New York. David's website says "momofuku" means "lucky peach." The restaurant's name also honors Momofuku Ando, who invented instant noodles.

Pork ramen dish from Momofuku Noodle Bar

Expanding the Momofuku Group

In August 2006, Chang opened his second restaurant, Momofuku Ssäm Bar. It was just a few blocks away from the first one. In March 2008, he opened Momofuku Ko. This was a small restaurant with only 12 seats. You had to book a table online ten days in advance.

Later in 2008, Chang made Momofuku Ssäm Bar bigger. He added a new space with his colleague Christina Tosi. She was in charge of Momofuku's desserts. They named the new part Momofuku Milk Bar. It served soft-serve ice cream, cookies, pies, cakes, and other treats. Many of these were inspired by foods Christina Tosi loved as a child.

Momofuku pork buns, a popular dish from the restaurant group

In May 2009, Momofuku Milk Bar's popular items like Crack Pie, Cereal Milk, and Compost Cookies were being trademarked. In October 2009, Chang and food writer Peter Meehan released the Momofuku cookbook. It had detailed recipes from Chang's restaurants. In May 2010, Chang opened Má Pêche in midtown Manhattan.

Momofuku Goes Global

In November 2010, Chang announced he would open his first restaurant outside the U.S. It was in Sydney, Australia. Momofuku Seiōbo opened in October 2011 at The Star City Casino. Chang said he loved Australia and its food scene. The restaurant quickly won top awards in Australia.

In March 2011, Chang shared plans to bring Momofuku to Toronto, Canada. It opened in late 2012. The Toronto location was a three-story glass building. It had three restaurants: Noodle Bar, Daishō, and Shōtō, plus a bar called Nikai. Daishō and Shōtō closed in late 2017. A new Momofuku restaurant, Kojin, opened in that space in 2018.

New Restaurant Concepts

Chang launched Fuku in June 2015. This was a chain of fast-food restaurants. They specialized in fried chicken sandwiches. In 2016, Chang started his first digital-only restaurant. It offered food only for delivery in Midtown East. Orders were placed through an app called Ando.

Also in 2016, Chang worked with a Silicon Valley company called Impossible Foods. He prepared food that was later added to the menu of his restaurant, Momofuku Nishi. In July 2017, Chang announced his first West Coast restaurant in Los Angeles. This restaurant, Majordomo, opened in January 2018.

In June 2018, Má Pêche closed after eight years. On December 30, 2019, Chang opened Majordomo Meat & Fish in Las Vegas. In March 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Momofuku group temporarily closed its restaurants. Later, they decided to close some permanently, like Momofuku Nishi and Momofuku CCDC. Momofuku Seiōbo in Sydney also closed in 2021. Majordomo and Moon Palace in Las Vegas closed in June 2022. Momofuku Ssäm Bar closed in September 2023, and Momofuku Ko closed in November 2023.

David Chang's Media Career

David Chang is also well-known for his work in television and writing.

Television Shows

David Chang has appeared in many TV shows. In 2010, he was on the HBO show Treme. He also appeared as a guest judge on Top Chef: All Stars and MasterChef Australia.

From 2012, Chang hosted the first season of the PBS food series The Mind of a Chef. This show was produced by Anthony Bourdain. In 2016, he was a guest star in the IFC series Documentary Now!.

In 2018, Chang created, produced, and starred in a Netflix series called Ugly Delicious. He also appeared in The Chef Show, a Netflix series made by his friends Roy Choi and Jon Favreau. In 2019, he produced another Netflix show, "Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner", with celebrity guests.

He hosted the documentary series The Next Thing You Eat. On November 29, 2020, David Chang became the first celebrity to win $1,000,000 on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. He won the money for his charity, Southern Smoke Foundation. In 2024, David Chang started hosting a new live Netflix show called "Dinner Time Live with David Chang.".

Writing and Magazines

In summer 2011, Chang launched the first issue of his Lucky Peach food magazine. It was a quarterly magazine created with Peter Meehan. The first issue was about Ramen. Famous food writers like Anthony Bourdain contributed to it. The magazine was very popular and some issues became New York Times bestsellers. Lucky Peach stopped publishing after 25 issues in 2017.

Selected TV Appearances

David Chang's Restaurants

David Chang's Momofuku group has opened many restaurants over the years. Some are still open, while others have closed.

Current Restaurants

• Bāng Bar (New York, NY)
• Bāng Bar – located in Cosmopolitan (Las Vegas, NV)
• Fuku – Allegiant Stadium (Las Vegas, NV)
• Fuku – Barclay's Center (Brooklyn, NY)
• Fuku – Citi Field (Queens, NY)
• Fuku – Chase Stadium (Ft. Lauderdale, FL)
• Fuku – Crypto.com Arena (Los Angeles, CA)
• Fuku – Hard Rock Stadium (Miami Gardens, FL)
• Fuku – Hudson Yards (New York, NY)
• Fuku – Madison Square Garden (New York, NY)
• Fuku – Northwest Stadium (Landover, MD)
• Fuku – Oracle Park (San Francisco, California)
• Fuku – Oriole Park (Baltimore, MD)
• Fuku – PPG Paints Arena (Pittsburgh, PA)
• Fuku – EverBank Stadium (Jacksonville, FL)
• Fuku – T-Mobile Arena (Las Vegas, NV)
• Fuku – Yankee Stadium (New York, NY)
• Kabawa – East Village (New York, NY)
• Bar Kabawa – East Village (New York, NY)
• Majordōmo (Los Angeles, CA)
• Momofuku Noodle Bar – East Village (New York, NY)
• Momofuku Noodle Bar – Uptown (New York, NY)
• Momofuku Las Vegas – located in Cosmopolitan (Las Vegas, NV)

Previous Restaurants

• Fuku – East Village (New York, NY)
• Fuku+ – Midtown; located in Chambers Hotel (New York, NY)
• Fuku – Financial District (New York, NY)
• Fuku – Battery Park City (New York, NY)
• Fuku – Chancery Market (Wilmington, DE)
• Kāwi (New York, NY)
• Má Pêche – located in Chambers Hotel (New York, NY)
• Momofuku CCDC (Washington, DC)
• Momofuku Ko (New York, NY)
• Momofuku Nishi (New York, NY)
• Momofuku Bar Wayo (New York, NY)
• Momofuku Ssäm Bar (New York, NY)
• Momofuku Noodle Bar (Toronto, Canada)
• Shōtō (Toronto, Canada)
• Daisho (Toronto, Canada)
• Nikai (Toronto, Canada)
• Kōjin (Toronto, Canada)
• Moon Palace – located in The Venetian Las Vegas (Las Vegas, NV)
• Majordōmo Meat & Fish – located in The Venetian Las Vegas (Las Vegas, NV)
• Momofuku Seiōbo – located in The Star (Sydney, Australia)

Future Restaurants

• Peach Palace – JFK Airport (Queens, NY)
• Super Peach – Century City (Los Angeles, CA)

Awards and Recognition

David Chang has won many important awards for his cooking and restaurants.

James Beard Foundation Awards

• 2007: Rising Star Chef of the Year
• 2008: Best Chef New York City for Momofuku Ssäm Bar
• 2009: Best New Restaurant for Momofuku Ko
• 2013: Outstanding Chef
• 2014: Who's Who in Food and Beverage in America

Other Awards

• 2010: Named one of Time magazine's 100 Most Influential People

See also

In Spanish: David Chang para niños