A good friend of mine celebrated his 35th birthday last night by hosting an epic dinner at Momofuku Ssam, one of David Chang‘s restaurants in New York City.

I had never been to this restaurant before, but had heard exceptional things about the pork that flowed freely from the kitchen. I can tell you that they did not dissapoint.

We started off with a few different plates of thinly sliced ham and crusty bread, accompanied by a sauce that I mistakenly took for mustard. A closer inspection revealed it was mayonnaise cut with Sriracha and Red Eye gravy (coffee, pan drippings). Really interesting and quite tasty. The ham was bolstered by a few orders of lardo which is cured strips of pig fat. It’s a fairly subtle dish and a little unnerving. It’s not something I’d order every day, but I found it quite satisfying. Next was crispy lamb belly. I am a huge devotee of lamb and can honestly say that I have never tasted anything quite so “lamby”. Baaaaa humbug. But on to the main attractions.

Ssam means “anything wrapped” and one of the stand out items on the menu is a pork bun, essentially a flour pancake filled with braised pork belly, topped with a few dabs of Sriracha.

I can’t say I have tasted anything so good this entire year. I can see myself visiting this restaurant time and time again, slipping in for a few pork buns and a glass of wine. It’s pure magic.

But on to the main event. My friend had called the restaurant exactly one month before to get a reservation required for Bo Ssam. They have a 5:00, 6:30 and 11:00 seating every day for this special meal. But what is Bo Ssam? It’s a 6 lb pork butt that has been cooked for 10 hours. You shred the pork at the table, place it in a lettuce leaf, top with a fresh shucked oyster and your choice of accompaniments like rice and kimchi.

Although I had already eaten a great deal of swine, I managed to scarf down six of these delicious little packages. I found it equal to the pork bun in flavor, but it was a lot of fun to sit around a table and eat a communal dish.

I hard heard about Momofuku Ssam from a number of friends, but somehow it slipped off my radar. Don’t let this happen to you. If you like pork, get yourself over there and enjoy the fruits of their labor. You won’t regret it.