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" Specialty: New American cuisine with Asian influence While at Trinity College, David Chang majored in religion and philosophy, so it should come as no surprise that he approaches each new restaurant, dish, and challenge with almost a religious zeal.  As the culinary world knows, this Virginia native soon realized that religious studies weren&amp;#039;t for him, and began to attend the French Culinary Institute in New York City. During his time there, he gained experience at Mercer Kitchen, as well as Craft later on. Unsatisfied with the traditional Manhattan kitchens, Chang moved to Japan in 2003, to gain firsthand knowledge of the traditional cuisine: kaseki, izakaya, and ramen. Returning to New York a year later, Chang opened Momofuku Noodle Bar in the East Village. The name might mean &amp;quot;lucky peach&amp;quot; in Japanese, but is also Chang&amp;#039;s sly wink and show of devotion to ramen: Momofuku is the name of the man who invented packaged ramen. Combining his fine-dining experience with his newfound knowledge of Japanese street food, Chang aimed to elevate noodles beyond New York lunch specials to something resembling haute cuisine. After a rocky start, the restaurant flourished, prompting Chang to open Momofuku Ssam Bar in 2006. From the Korean word for &amp;quot;anything wrapped,&amp;quot; ssams could be considered Asian-style burritos.  Coinciding with the Ssam Bar&amp;#039;s opening, Food &amp;amp;amp; Wine named Chang Best New Chef in 2006, and he was also nominated for the James Beard Foundation&amp;#039;s Rising Chef of the Year award. In 2007, Chang was named Bon Appetit&amp;#039;s Chef of the Year. In 2008, what started out as David Chang&amp;#039;s American take on the traditional Japanese noodle bar grew into a three restaurant empire, thanks to the opening of Momofuku Ko. An exclusive 12-seat restaurant serving 10 courses a night, Ko breaks boundaries between the chef and diner. There are no waitstaff, and chefs prepare meals right in front of customers, explaining preparation and ingredients. The space is a collaborative kitchen, drawing on chefs from across the Momofuku locations and allowing for more artistic culinary expression. Despite its unusual nature, the restaurant earned three stars from the New York Times. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.delish.com/restaurants/best-chefs/a1098/celebrity-chef-david-chang/>