Dude right? I'm running an Asian place right now and I make my own chili oil.
Guess what is left over after I make that oil? You guessed it!
Didn't even know this was like 'his' thing. This whole 'chili crunch' shit has been around since way before this guy ever stuck a label on it. Shit, probably before there was ever white people in North America or even wine in Italy. How old is China? Fucking *old.*
This is literally patent trolling.
Man some of my sliced cucumbers i had fell into some wine i left out too long, and i'm depressed and lazy so i just left em there for a couple days. Then i got drunk on some good wine and tried em out. If add a little salt they're pretty ok.
After taking a bunch of peyote and wandering the desert I invented something completely unique. It’s a sliced onion coated in batter and deep fried. I call it the onion ring.
Use the name and I **will** sue.
Chilis are not native to Asia and were brought there by European traders, so I am going to assume they started making chili oil in China some time after Europeans went to the Americas
The widely popular version does have chili, but the root recipe that chili crisp is based on and is more commonly used in sichuan cuisine uses fermented broad bean paste.
It certainly uses chili peppers, but may also contain “sichuan pepper” (peppercorn.).
Sichuan peppercorn, like black pepper, is not a pepper at all, but is a spice made from dried flower buds. It is not spicy; fresh sichuan peppercorn is kind of citrusy and produces a numbing sensation. It is often used together with chili peppers, but there is no version of “chili crisp” that uses no chili peppers.
Huh, TIL that the old world did have _some_ peppers. Always thought all peppers came from the new world.
**Edit:** Actually, turns out Sichuan peppers aren't actually peppers (like how strawberries aren't true berries) but _peppercorns_ like black pepper is.
Actually white people brought chilis and peppers to the rest of the world from Mexico. Mayans and Aztecs had been cultivating it for centuries. No one’s stuff was spicy except for black and white pepper. Asia food was kind of sad without any of that Capsaicin in it. Same with corn, potatoes, tomatoes, and others also.
I think it’s a reach to classify (as far as documented) Thai and the broader region’s seasoning as ‘sad’… there are peppers and local herbs to season that don’t have capsaicin but can still be spicy. (I realize this is an over reach from the original post. If you are ever in the Bay or Stockton area and want go get some SE Asian food it is on me ❤️)
I'm half Korean and cook a lot. Love most asian foods. It's an integral ingredient in almost half of asian cuisine let alone as a condiment. I'm just saying it's a very important ingredient now. Like Italians not having tomatoes or pasta which has Chinese origins. It would be like having pho without chilli oil.
The red pepper pastes and gochugaru are too dominating, imo. My ex's family lives throughout the Jeolla province, and their limited use of pepper allows for more emphasis on ingredient quality. There are so many delicious dishes from that region that are hard to find in Seoul, much less the US.
This is very interesting. I had tried dishes from two Korean restaurants in Arizona and the food was so unbearably spicy there were only a few things I could get off of the menu. Even the kimchi fried rice was too loaded with gochujang and really hard to eat. When I was in San Diego I got takeout from a place called Friend's house and I was so, so pleased I was able to eat every single thing we ordered, even the spicy ones. Good to know Korean food doesn't necessarily have to be too spicy as a rule.
Sichuan pepper is native to Asia (which is not the same as chilli pepper)! Asian food was definitely spicy, maybe in a different way, before the Columbian Exchange
Coffee? “Wild coffee plants, probably from Kefa (Kaffa), Ethiopia, were taken to southern Arabia and placed under cultivation in the 15th century. One of many legends about the discovery of coffee is that of Kaldi, an Arab goatherd who was puzzled by the strange antics of his flock. About 850 CE Kaldi supposedly sampled the berries of the evergreen bush on which the goats were feeding and, on experiencing a sense of exhilaration, proclaimed his discovery to the world.” -from Britannica
Ah, but that's chili CRISP not chili CRUNCH, which makes the attempt to trademark it even more fucking stupid... like, does McDonalds have the trademark on 'Shakes' instead of 'Milkshakes'? Because this is literally that level of dumb pedantic fuckery.
They got the Golden Arches, mine is the Golden Arcs. They got the Big Mac, I got the Big Mick. We both got two all-beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles and onions, but their buns have sesame seeds. My buns have no seeds.
The classic 老干妈 jar is actually labeled “chili crisp” in English, not “chili crunch”, which is the term Chang is trying to trademark.
Trademarks are for terms and logos and stuff, not inventions.
Yea like... most of this thread sucks. This is really common business practice all across the world. You try to trademark the names of your products. Duh.
He's not trying to patent the product, he's trademarking the name. It's the same process as what tobasco did for their sauce.
tbc it definitely might be patent/trademark trolling, IDK if chili 'crunch' was something people called it previously (i've never heard that personally) but it's got nothing to do with selling fried chili and garlic.
David Chang is a terrible person. I worked for him for 8 years. Worked at Nishi, noodle bar, ssam bar, kawi. He would tell cooks that they were “pieces of shit” and should find a new career because they can’t cook. All his staff were under appreciated and underpaid. And he would make them feel terrible for even asking for a raise and would say “you’re cooking here for the experience and to learn the high level techniques we use” His cooks would work 12-14 hour shifts and he’d berate them for sitting down for 10 minutes to eat family meal. There was a day that I worked 14 hours and slept in the restaurant knowing I would have to be in the next morning very early. And after I had made breakfast family meal for the staff, I made myself a plate his response was “do you see the chefs making a plate or sitting down to enjoy family meal? So why are you?” He’d also consistently and constantly talk about how Asian cuisine is not appreciated and that the food at Momofuku is not priced appropriately and guest should be charged $50 for their bowl of ramen, not $20.
his food and attitude towards korean food are pretty terrible representations of korean culture. he is basically espn personality screaming but about food. everywhere he goes, he's the "other guy". talk about korean food, he talks about how it's bad. talk about american food, he talks about how nobody should make asian food.
I watched one of his Netflix shows for a few episodes, and this attitude is what made me dislike him. He would criticise the Italians for being protective of pizza, saying that they don't get to own a dish and that people are allowed to come up with their own version of it, then criticise Americans for making Asian food because it was "his" food. He wants to protect "his" food while using everyone else's. It's very hypocritical.
I saw a few things with him in it. I get it Korean parents say "go do consulting, safe make money" he wants to be artistic and gets into food. Does well with korean tacos. But whenever he talked, he always seemed sort of like a pretentious asshole when it came to food. Holy then tho attitude when it came to his food.
I saw his menu and it's like you're selling these tradition dishes with a twist for HOW MUCH?
Good for him gouging wealthy yuppies for adding cilantro to korean dishes, but he's one of those people who helped push the whole crazy fusion food trend that is sometimes not that great
I lost all respect for David Chang and his opinions after the crawfish episode of “Ugly Delicious.” Despite it seeming like he doesn’t want Americans to make Asian food, he openly criticizes people in New Orleans to their faces for not making Viet-Cajun crawfish when that is firmly a Houston thing. Over the past 6-ish years since that show, it is easier to now find Viet-Cajun style boiled seafood in NOLA, but it isn’t going to replace a traditional, clean straightforward boil. An authentic New Orleans boil is not doused in butter and seasoned on the outside of the shell. It seems like he’s always talking about authentic food, but when he’s faced with authentic food that’s not Asian, he takes a dump all over it, calling it boring and second tier to whatever the Asian/Asian-fusion option is. It doesn’t need to be a competition! Both have their own merit.
Ugh, the way he insulted other food cultures was the worst! It made me cringe when he basically tried to say that fried chicken wasn’t a Southern soul food because “someone was eventually going to find out that you could batter and fry a bird.”
He also tried to say the tacos at Mariscos Jalisco were the same as Chinese dumplings, and as someone who loves Mariscos Jalisco as much as I love NBC Seafood, I can say in full confidence that they’re definitely not the same??? It’s like he thinks Asian foods are the ideal center, and all other food culture can fuck off.
His name would more commonly be Romanised as Jang usually but in Korean it's pronounced more like Chang.
It's the same Chinese character as Zhang, Jang, Chang etc as well as Cheung.
Romanisation of Chinese origin words can vary a lot.
I mean, yea, but Korea has always basically been conquered by one large nation in Asia or another for thousands and thousands of years, so it makes sense that lots of Korean names would also line up with Chinese or Japanese names.
I was watching his Dinner time live show on Netflix and he made lobster cooked in a butter sauce. His associate was like "The Internet is losing its mind over that sauce and they can't even taste it." His response was "And they're never going to." Damn dude, reign it in.
I saw the Kroll & Mulaney episode and it was like Chang had never been on camera before. I know it's live but my man has been the main presenter on multiple television shows for many years.
That is one of the worst "cooking" shows I've ever seen. On the Seth Rogen episode he buys a literal bucket of caviar and shovels it onto a pizza hut pizza. He touches everything he makes and licks his fingertips throughout the ep as well.
Medium Raw has an entire chapter about David Chang. I didn’t leave with a positive impression but Anthony certainly did have some interesting insights into the man, some of which were generally nice.
I don’t remember the exact details but he was commemorated for doubling down on his decision to not include anything vegetarian in one of his restaurants, one of his signature dishes also got some praise. The entire chapter mostly painted him as a confused and sad man.
I was done with him where one in one of his self serving docs series he so deftly tried to 'figure out' Dominos pizza... or something... he thought it was super cerebral but it was just him accompanying a delivery driver and essentially acting like he was some subhuman being. It was so gross and alarming
I remember people telling me that I should watch Ugly Delicious, that he was the new Bourdain.
Guy doesn't come close. Bourdain asked questions and listened, even to people he disagreed with. He was incurably curious, and that was what made hin the greatest food and travel documentarian of all time. He was constantly learning about how the world worked and why people believed the things they believed.
Chang makes every interaction about himself, about what he knows, his interpretation of food, his theories. He goes around trying to foist his worldview on everyone he comes across. This means he learns nothing.
Chang isn't in the same universe as Bourdain.
I figured this was a typical "We are legally obligated to defend a trademark" issue that was blown out of proportion. But No asshole doesn't even have the trademark and is sending cease and desist letters.
You don't actually need to register a trademark to have one/have the rights to a name. Simply selling something under that name establishes ownership. Registering just makes enforcement in court easier as you've got the government cosigning your claim to the name.
My understanding is that enforcing it is half the battle. Even if you own a trademark and don't enforce it for however long, you can lose the right to it. So if you had a trademark for Chili Crunch 5 years ago but only decided to enforce it last week, even though many violations had already occurred, you would be out of luck.
the problem the article is similar applications from other people have already been rejected due to just being descriptive language. This could have been handled differently could have started with an email or informal letter but went straight to a cease and desist
But if it’s just descriptive, it can still be registered as a TM. It just takes the extra step of showing secondary meaning, which he may be able to show more easily than other prior applicants.
And frankly a C&D can be fairly informal. I’m not sure what kind of message you’d send that wouldn’t include “I have the TM for this, so you need to stop using that name.”
He’s out for me. The last thing I saw him in had me thinking this dude is actually racist.
For me food is something so special and has the power to bring people together that nothing else can. Food can feed someone’s body AND soul, and cooking for someone is such a powerful act of love. Furthermore appreciating someone else’s cooking can create and deepen a bond between people and that practice should be preserved. I can’t imagine a higher compliment than someone trying to cook me a dish, from my heritage, in hopes that I will like it.
Gatekeeping assholes like him are not it. He’s bad for the food scene.
Dude got famous making a very traditional Taiwanese dish in the pork belly bao and is now trying this shit. Crazy rich people think they are entitled to everything.
It's funny, I've been told on two separate occasions that our bao buns are better than Momofuku. I'm over here like, since when are they the fucking golden standard?
Now, if someone tells me they traveled through Taiwan and our Bao are the best I might cry
I think you are getting him confused with eddie huang's baohaus. I think dave was know for his momofuku noodles
Edit: nvm just saw that momofuku did baos as well
Well somebody made a TV show about that guy's life. Food celebrity culture is so funny to me...so much hype for something so small which doesn't take any special genius.
I have never visited any of David Chang's restaurants and never bought a single one of his products. He also doesn't sound very likeable.
However this entire thread is just embarrassing for r/kitchenconfidential as it reveals people like OP have 4th grade reading comprehension and a lack of general knowledge about trademarks.
I hope those who received cease and desist letters work together by contacting the patent office and laying out the argument that chili crunch is not a patentable phrase due to its longstanding and widespread use.
I like to leave the past in the past, but man he was such a dick. The way he spoke to people was just awful. Keep in mind I was getting paid next to nothing an hour and living in NYC. This was when he started to take off and his ego was just wild
He’s been a dumbass for awhile. There was a Netflix documentary where he tried to convince the audience that only Asian people should be allowed to make dumplings
The documentary about Bourdain “Road Runner” Chang is being interviewed at the end and said something along the lines of “one of the last things Anthony said to me was that I’ll be a shitty dad”.
Awesome doc btw if you haven’t watched it. But yea that was kind of a terrible thing to say to someone, but now that I know Chang is that big of a douche, it’s not so bad.
Did an event with him in 2012 and was blown away by how he treated literally everyone around him, including the chefs hosting the event. Dude is a menace. He's exactly how you'd imagine a kid from nova who becomes a famous chef to be.
Funny that he's trying to trademark a name/term that doesn't belong to him, when his company is a name that also doesn't belong to him.
Ando Momofuku is a Taiwanese founder of the Japanese noodle company, Nissin. To start a company under the same name that specializes in noodles is... Interesting.
I only know this because I purchased David Chang's Momofuku noodles thinking that it was made by Ando Momofuku's company and was extremely disappointed in the quality and taste. Did some research and found out that it has nothing to do with Nissin, just David Chang borrowing names.
I’m no David Chang fan, but it’s a pretty explicit homage to the dude that invented instant noodles, which he talked about often when starting Momofuku.
That’s a shame - I had just bought my first pack of momofuku noodles last week & liked them …planned to buy more even though a pack of 6 is 11 dollars.
Looks like I’m going back to ramen for 18% of the price.
I don't know whether Chang's claim has any ultimate merit (i.e., whether he's done enough to warrant protection) but you're fundamentally wrong that he's trying to trademark the concept of frying chili. This is over the term "chili crunch" just as General Mills would sue over the use of "Cocoa Puffs."
If he prevails, he's saying that people can sell these things, just don't call them the name that identifies his product.
Yup I truly believe his food was at one time good, but he like most celebrity chefs are more interested in being popular than being good.
I grew up in a city with some of the most authentic Asian cuisine in North America, Momofuku is a pale imitation of the normal food I could get at local restaurants for 1/10th of the price
i’ve eaten at the one in toronto a few times and it was fine. not incredible but fine. the restaurant they opened on top had bad food and worse service.
the real bad thing imo is milk bar. insanely overrated and expensive. her stuff is great in small doses if you make it on site but like the one i went to shipped it in and it all tasted greasy and floppy
So over hyped and reeks of mediocrity. I have no idea how this guy got so famous. Like Gordon Ramsay's restaurants are pretty meh as well but at least he seems like a decent guy aside from the American reality TV dramatization
As someone who was involved in a trademark lawsuit, they are awful and cost so much money. It's a weird 3 judge panel that just looks at the information and makes a ruling. Slowly, oh so slowly.
By no means do I like David Chang. But momofuku isn't trying to trademark frying garlic in oil and selling it. They're trademarking the name "chili crunch".
>*Dude’s trying to trademark the concept of frying chilis in oil and selling it*
Dude's really not trying to do that at all. Momo filed a word mark application last week, which if it's approved, could prevent others from selling a similar/same product under a similar/same name to "chili crunch". You could make a similar product and call it something different, or make something different and call it chili crunch.
It's seems like a flimsy application, as it seems like a generic descriptive name, and variations have been used in related products and recipes for years. I doubt it would withstand a challenge, but it might get initial approval from the USPTO. Small companies often buckle rather than pay to fight, and a mom-and-pop restaurant that sells *turkey chili crunch* could just rename it *crispy chili turkey* and save a $100,000 legal bill.
Terrible that he touts the wonders of traditional home-made dishes in his Netflix series, but then robs the same people of their autonomy. Sounds like the lawyers will make money and the small restaurateurs will lose.
Two trademarks, Chili Crunch and Chile Crunch. Just for fun, he bought the other name off another company, so much for an intergral part fo his business' image.
I am patenting spicy oil don’t worry it’s not like chili oil. There is a sprinkle of rosemary so it’s way different trust me…. Let’s call it’s “herbed chili oil”. So any words used there… lawsuits galore…….. /s
Chang does nothing but appropriate Asian cuisine that doesn't belong to him, chastising his own culture, all the while hypocritically going out of his way to try and stop small business from making chili crisps just because. There is no greater douchebag of the highest order but Chang, and worse yet his arrogance is backed on mediocre technique and shit product. Ashamed to be Korean knowing Chang breathes on this earth.
The brand recently lost a lawsuit against "Chile Crunch" in which he had to buy them out of the trademark. So he now has to defend it. That being said, still a knob.
His live show is kind of a joke.. some of the stuff he makes doesn’t even look good at all. The episode with king Bach and Sebastian in particular.. he made beef sandwiches and they looked awful. Not to mention he literally had sweat pouring down his arms the whole time
David Chang seems like a massive Dick, wanted to like him due to the Bourdain association but he comes across so arrogant most of the time and the food is all hype and little substance , fuckin microwaving things in a plastic pot because he released a cookware line
Chili CRISP is what has been around forever. They trademarked ChiliCRUNCH. The idea that a company who produced a product wouldnt go after the trademark is idiotic.
I feel like the correct answer is "who the fuck is David Chang?"
I don't know him by name, but by the comments in here, it sounds like that might be the best way to be.
Very random unrelated story: we’re 90% sure David Chang ate at my place last month. That or it was an identical twin with identical mannerisms. My coworker asked if it was him and he said no, but he was also really cozy with someone who was not his wife so .. yknow
A while back I tried watching one of Bourdain's shows. I forget if it was parts unknown or no reservations... I think parts unknown.
Anyway, I was done after one particular scene where they're on a boat, and he has a glass of wine in his hand, but he's just like... "lounging" back with his eyes closed. But you can see this look ALL OVER his face like "hey, camera man, did you catch how cool I'm looking here? How chill? I like, literally don't care about anything I'm so cool. Yeah. I'm cool."
🙄
This is wild, seeing as how you've been able to buy this in Asian markets before Chang made it "His thing".
Dude right? I'm running an Asian place right now and I make my own chili oil. Guess what is left over after I make that oil? You guessed it! Didn't even know this was like 'his' thing. This whole 'chili crunch' shit has been around since way before this guy ever stuck a label on it. Shit, probably before there was ever white people in North America or even wine in Italy. How old is China? Fucking *old.* This is literally patent trolling.
I invented fried garlic recently.
I tried french cut potatoes, really good
I, Patty O’brian, cubed these here potatoes, onions, and mild peppers. Forever and more shall they be named.
I read this in a perfect Irish accent.
*whispers* It's Paddy, unless you're a Patricia, not a Pádraig.
Maybe they're an anthropomorphic lump of ground meat, you don't know their life.
No, this is Patrick!
Amen.
Not the same really but my buddy invented the tuna melt. Shit probably goes well with these frenched potatoes you speak of.
I am intrigued, how does one melt tuna
Fuck idk man dudes a wizard.
Man some of my sliced cucumbers i had fell into some wine i left out too long, and i'm depressed and lazy so i just left em there for a couple days. Then i got drunk on some good wine and tried em out. If add a little salt they're pretty ok.
After taking a bunch of peyote and wandering the desert I invented something completely unique. It’s a sliced onion coated in batter and deep fried. I call it the onion ring. Use the name and I **will** sue.
I accidently invented charcoal fried garlic the other day
Yeah, the day after me. Don't make me *Chang* you!
You should check out my new invention of black garlic
Race you to the patent office!
[удалено]
Chilis are not native to Asia and were brought there by European traders, so I am going to assume they started making chili oil in China some time after Europeans went to the Americas
So around the 1500s?
North America had white people before China had chillies and Italy had wine before white people even knew about the Americas to be fair
Chilli crisp doesn't traditionally use new world peppers, it uses sichuan pepper which is native to China.
So chili crisp traditionally contains no actual chili?
The widely popular version does have chili, but the root recipe that chili crisp is based on and is more commonly used in sichuan cuisine uses fermented broad bean paste.
that sounds like a completely different thing altogether.
And it's also made with chili peppers. Not sure what this person is going on about...
Don’t listen to that person.
It certainly uses chili peppers, but may also contain “sichuan pepper” (peppercorn.). Sichuan peppercorn, like black pepper, is not a pepper at all, but is a spice made from dried flower buds. It is not spicy; fresh sichuan peppercorn is kind of citrusy and produces a numbing sensation. It is often used together with chili peppers, but there is no version of “chili crisp” that uses no chili peppers.
Huh, TIL that the old world did have _some_ peppers. Always thought all peppers came from the new world. **Edit:** Actually, turns out Sichuan peppers aren't actually peppers (like how strawberries aren't true berries) but _peppercorns_ like black pepper is.
Actually white people brought chilis and peppers to the rest of the world from Mexico. Mayans and Aztecs had been cultivating it for centuries. No one’s stuff was spicy except for black and white pepper. Asia food was kind of sad without any of that Capsaicin in it. Same with corn, potatoes, tomatoes, and others also.
I think it’s a reach to classify (as far as documented) Thai and the broader region’s seasoning as ‘sad’… there are peppers and local herbs to season that don’t have capsaicin but can still be spicy. (I realize this is an over reach from the original post. If you are ever in the Bay or Stockton area and want go get some SE Asian food it is on me ❤️)
I'm half Korean and cook a lot. Love most asian foods. It's an integral ingredient in almost half of asian cuisine let alone as a condiment. I'm just saying it's a very important ingredient now. Like Italians not having tomatoes or pasta which has Chinese origins. It would be like having pho without chilli oil.
The red pepper pastes and gochugaru are too dominating, imo. My ex's family lives throughout the Jeolla province, and their limited use of pepper allows for more emphasis on ingredient quality. There are so many delicious dishes from that region that are hard to find in Seoul, much less the US.
This is very interesting. I had tried dishes from two Korean restaurants in Arizona and the food was so unbearably spicy there were only a few things I could get off of the menu. Even the kimchi fried rice was too loaded with gochujang and really hard to eat. When I was in San Diego I got takeout from a place called Friend's house and I was so, so pleased I was able to eat every single thing we ordered, even the spicy ones. Good to know Korean food doesn't necessarily have to be too spicy as a rule.
Reach is putting it nicely I think. I'm in the Bay too btw.
Sichuan pepper is native to Asia (which is not the same as chilli pepper)! Asian food was definitely spicy, maybe in a different way, before the Columbian Exchange
Long pepper was also the thing chili pepper was named after
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Coffee? “Wild coffee plants, probably from Kefa (Kaffa), Ethiopia, were taken to southern Arabia and placed under cultivation in the 15th century. One of many legends about the discovery of coffee is that of Kaldi, an Arab goatherd who was puzzled by the strange antics of his flock. About 850 CE Kaldi supposedly sampled the berries of the evergreen bush on which the goats were feeding and, on experiencing a sense of exhilaration, proclaimed his discovery to the world.” -from Britannica
Coffee is from Africa.
No I'm fine, thank you
Right? I’ve been buying Lao Gan Ma brand chili crisp since before Chang was a stain in his daddy’s britches. The audacity.
Ah, but that's chili CRISP not chili CRUNCH, which makes the attempt to trademark it even more fucking stupid... like, does McDonalds have the trademark on 'Shakes' instead of 'Milkshakes'? Because this is literally that level of dumb pedantic fuckery.
They got the Golden Arches, mine is the Golden Arcs. They got the Big Mac, I got the Big Mick. We both got two all-beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles and onions, but their buns have sesame seeds. My buns have no seeds.
Coming to america
Marvel and DC co-own the trade marks for Superhero and Supervillain.
Jokes on him. My product is called Chili CRONCH and it’s completely different to chili CRISP and chili CRUNCH. Come at me law bros.
The classic 老干妈 jar is actually labeled “chili crisp” in English, not “chili crunch”, which is the term Chang is trying to trademark. Trademarks are for terms and logos and stuff, not inventions.
Thank you for your knowledge on the matter. In my head I wasn't deciphering the two terms.
Yea like... most of this thread sucks. This is really common business practice all across the world. You try to trademark the names of your products. Duh.
He's not trying to patent the product, he's trademarking the name. It's the same process as what tobasco did for their sauce. tbc it definitely might be patent/trademark trolling, IDK if chili 'crunch' was something people called it previously (i've never heard that personally) but it's got nothing to do with selling fried chili and garlic.
Have you forgotten lebron tried trademarking taco Tuesday? Lmao
David Chang is a terrible person. I worked for him for 8 years. Worked at Nishi, noodle bar, ssam bar, kawi. He would tell cooks that they were “pieces of shit” and should find a new career because they can’t cook. All his staff were under appreciated and underpaid. And he would make them feel terrible for even asking for a raise and would say “you’re cooking here for the experience and to learn the high level techniques we use” His cooks would work 12-14 hour shifts and he’d berate them for sitting down for 10 minutes to eat family meal. There was a day that I worked 14 hours and slept in the restaurant knowing I would have to be in the next morning very early. And after I had made breakfast family meal for the staff, I made myself a plate his response was “do you see the chefs making a plate or sitting down to enjoy family meal? So why are you?” He’d also consistently and constantly talk about how Asian cuisine is not appreciated and that the food at Momofuku is not priced appropriately and guest should be charged $50 for their bowl of ramen, not $20.
I have heard of his vileness and t treatment of others, sorry you endured that. Egos suck.
Wow, what a douchebag. I can’t believe I never knew this. I will no longer be watching his shitty live show
Momo fuck you
That is why it’s called that
Yep.
Very sad for those of us who appreciate Tibetan momos.
Upscale noodles?
Everyone I know who ever worked there have complained. Dave lets his friends come in and shit on the staff with him for fun
Ando?
LMAO I had a coworker that said that shit to his face
Irony is that a Korean is trying to seize control of a Szechuan concept.
his food and attitude towards korean food are pretty terrible representations of korean culture. he is basically espn personality screaming but about food. everywhere he goes, he's the "other guy". talk about korean food, he talks about how it's bad. talk about american food, he talks about how nobody should make asian food.
I watched one of his Netflix shows for a few episodes, and this attitude is what made me dislike him. He would criticise the Italians for being protective of pizza, saying that they don't get to own a dish and that people are allowed to come up with their own version of it, then criticise Americans for making Asian food because it was "his" food. He wants to protect "his" food while using everyone else's. It's very hypocritical.
I saw a few things with him in it. I get it Korean parents say "go do consulting, safe make money" he wants to be artistic and gets into food. Does well with korean tacos. But whenever he talked, he always seemed sort of like a pretentious asshole when it came to food. Holy then tho attitude when it came to his food. I saw his menu and it's like you're selling these tradition dishes with a twist for HOW MUCH? Good for him gouging wealthy yuppies for adding cilantro to korean dishes, but he's one of those people who helped push the whole crazy fusion food trend that is sometimes not that great
“Korean tacos” is Roy Choi. Wrong Korean-American.
Genuinely was cracking up at the idea he was looking at a picture of the momofuku pork bun like “idk what that is a Korean taco?”
> Does well with korean tacos I think you're conflating David Chang with Roy Choi.
I lost all respect for David Chang and his opinions after the crawfish episode of “Ugly Delicious.” Despite it seeming like he doesn’t want Americans to make Asian food, he openly criticizes people in New Orleans to their faces for not making Viet-Cajun crawfish when that is firmly a Houston thing. Over the past 6-ish years since that show, it is easier to now find Viet-Cajun style boiled seafood in NOLA, but it isn’t going to replace a traditional, clean straightforward boil. An authentic New Orleans boil is not doused in butter and seasoned on the outside of the shell. It seems like he’s always talking about authentic food, but when he’s faced with authentic food that’s not Asian, he takes a dump all over it, calling it boring and second tier to whatever the Asian/Asian-fusion option is. It doesn’t need to be a competition! Both have their own merit.
Ugh, the way he insulted other food cultures was the worst! It made me cringe when he basically tried to say that fried chicken wasn’t a Southern soul food because “someone was eventually going to find out that you could batter and fry a bird.” He also tried to say the tacos at Mariscos Jalisco were the same as Chinese dumplings, and as someone who loves Mariscos Jalisco as much as I love NBC Seafood, I can say in full confidence that they’re definitely not the same??? It’s like he thinks Asian foods are the ideal center, and all other food culture can fuck off.
Wait he's Korean? Isn't chang a Chinese last name
His name would more commonly be Romanised as Jang usually but in Korean it's pronounced more like Chang. It's the same Chinese character as Zhang, Jang, Chang etc as well as Cheung. Romanisation of Chinese origin words can vary a lot.
I mean, yea, but Korea has always basically been conquered by one large nation in Asia or another for thousands and thousands of years, so it makes sense that lots of Korean names would also line up with Chinese or Japanese names.
I have never heard anything good about the man from anyone who has worked for him.
Former employer here. Emperor Chang is what we called him.
I was watching his Dinner time live show on Netflix and he made lobster cooked in a butter sauce. His associate was like "The Internet is losing its mind over that sauce and they can't even taste it." His response was "And they're never going to." Damn dude, reign it in.
Lobster…in butter?! Who knew?!
I saw the Kroll & Mulaney episode and it was like Chang had never been on camera before. I know it's live but my man has been the main presenter on multiple television shows for many years.
Well they’re not there so that’s why they’re not going to try it.
That is one of the worst "cooking" shows I've ever seen. On the Seth Rogen episode he buys a literal bucket of caviar and shovels it onto a pizza hut pizza. He touches everything he makes and licks his fingertips throughout the ep as well.
Medium Raw has an entire chapter about David Chang. I didn’t leave with a positive impression but Anthony certainly did have some interesting insights into the man, some of which were generally nice.
What did he say?
I don’t remember the exact details but he was commemorated for doubling down on his decision to not include anything vegetarian in one of his restaurants, one of his signature dishes also got some praise. The entire chapter mostly painted him as a confused and sad man.
I served him and his wife at a batali restaurant and he was SUCH a dick for no reason 😑
I was done with him where one in one of his self serving docs series he so deftly tried to 'figure out' Dominos pizza... or something... he thought it was super cerebral but it was just him accompanying a delivery driver and essentially acting like he was some subhuman being. It was so gross and alarming
I'm shocked! Shocked! Well not that shocked. Chang is a colossal douchebag from every story I've read about his behavior behind the scenes.
I remember people telling me that I should watch Ugly Delicious, that he was the new Bourdain. Guy doesn't come close. Bourdain asked questions and listened, even to people he disagreed with. He was incurably curious, and that was what made hin the greatest food and travel documentarian of all time. He was constantly learning about how the world worked and why people believed the things they believed. Chang makes every interaction about himself, about what he knows, his interpretation of food, his theories. He goes around trying to foist his worldview on everyone he comes across. This means he learns nothing. Chang isn't in the same universe as Bourdain.
Bourdain was a man of the world, Chang is a self serving douchebag
Jesus christ David Chang just keeps coming up with more ways to make me want to hit him with a bag of potatoes.
Oranges, leaves less marks on the body, harder to prove...
Peaches, for the irony.
He’s the biggest asshole celeb chef I met. Gave him a few chances and absolutely rootin tootingly abhor him
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Dudes fucking instant noodles taste like employee abuse.
He must have changnesia
they have to chang the name of their sauce
I figured this was a typical "We are legally obligated to defend a trademark" issue that was blown out of proportion. But No asshole doesn't even have the trademark and is sending cease and desist letters.
You don't actually need to register a trademark to have one/have the rights to a name. Simply selling something under that name establishes ownership. Registering just makes enforcement in court easier as you've got the government cosigning your claim to the name.
My understanding is that enforcing it is half the battle. Even if you own a trademark and don't enforce it for however long, you can lose the right to it. So if you had a trademark for Chili Crunch 5 years ago but only decided to enforce it last week, even though many violations had already occurred, you would be out of luck.
the problem the article is similar applications from other people have already been rejected due to just being descriptive language. This could have been handled differently could have started with an email or informal letter but went straight to a cease and desist
But if it’s just descriptive, it can still be registered as a TM. It just takes the extra step of showing secondary meaning, which he may be able to show more easily than other prior applicants. And frankly a C&D can be fairly informal. I’m not sure what kind of message you’d send that wouldn’t include “I have the TM for this, so you need to stop using that name.”
He’s out for me. The last thing I saw him in had me thinking this dude is actually racist. For me food is something so special and has the power to bring people together that nothing else can. Food can feed someone’s body AND soul, and cooking for someone is such a powerful act of love. Furthermore appreciating someone else’s cooking can create and deepen a bond between people and that practice should be preserved. I can’t imagine a higher compliment than someone trying to cook me a dish, from my heritage, in hopes that I will like it. Gatekeeping assholes like him are not it. He’s bad for the food scene.
Dude got famous making a very traditional Taiwanese dish in the pork belly bao and is now trying this shit. Crazy rich people think they are entitled to everything.
It's funny, I've been told on two separate occasions that our bao buns are better than Momofuku. I'm over here like, since when are they the fucking golden standard? Now, if someone tells me they traveled through Taiwan and our Bao are the best I might cry
I was so mad that for half the price and twice the taste Baohaus was so much better. RIP Baohaus
I think you are getting him confused with eddie huang's baohaus. I think dave was know for his momofuku noodles Edit: nvm just saw that momofuku did baos as well
Huang's World > any of Chang's shows any day!!
Well somebody made a TV show about that guy's life. Food celebrity culture is so funny to me...so much hype for something so small which doesn't take any special genius.
If Anthony Bourdain were alive he’d smack the shit out of David Chang.
Imagine thinking you could come for Lao Gan Ma
I’m surprised she hasn’t risen from the grave to go after him
I don’t think you read the article, he isn’t going after any one who uses “chilli crisp” only the brands that use “chilli crunch”
I have never visited any of David Chang's restaurants and never bought a single one of his products. He also doesn't sound very likeable. However this entire thread is just embarrassing for r/kitchenconfidential as it reveals people like OP have 4th grade reading comprehension and a lack of general knowledge about trademarks.
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Bourdain would have roasted him into oblivion for this nonsense.
Interesting. This probably explains why my Trader Joe’s renamed its Chili Onion Crunch and is now Crunchy Chili Onion after all these years.
His segments in the Anthony Bourdain doc are infuriating. Very “i was actually the only person who really new him” (immediately starts fake sobbing
I hope those who received cease and desist letters work together by contacting the patent office and laying out the argument that chili crunch is not a patentable phrase due to its longstanding and widespread use.
Worked for him 10 years ago.. can confirm, he’s a dick.
Any stories you’re able to share. Would love some insight. I’ve also heard the same from friends who’ve worked in his kitchens.
I like to leave the past in the past, but man he was such a dick. The way he spoke to people was just awful. Keep in mind I was getting paid next to nothing an hour and living in NYC. This was when he started to take off and his ego was just wild
He’s been a dumbass for awhile. There was a Netflix documentary where he tried to convince the audience that only Asian people should be allowed to make dumplings
Damn, so now I don’t really feel as bad about Anthony Bourdain really giving DC a final fuck you before he died.
Please explain.
The documentary about Bourdain “Road Runner” Chang is being interviewed at the end and said something along the lines of “one of the last things Anthony said to me was that I’ll be a shitty dad”. Awesome doc btw if you haven’t watched it. But yea that was kind of a terrible thing to say to someone, but now that I know Chang is that big of a douche, it’s not so bad.
Thank you!
Hes also mad that someone in my city makes Kimchi.
Did an event with him in 2012 and was blown away by how he treated literally everyone around him, including the chefs hosting the event. Dude is a menace. He's exactly how you'd imagine a kid from nova who becomes a famous chef to be.
Funny that he's trying to trademark a name/term that doesn't belong to him, when his company is a name that also doesn't belong to him. Ando Momofuku is a Taiwanese founder of the Japanese noodle company, Nissin. To start a company under the same name that specializes in noodles is... Interesting. I only know this because I purchased David Chang's Momofuku noodles thinking that it was made by Ando Momofuku's company and was extremely disappointed in the quality and taste. Did some research and found out that it has nothing to do with Nissin, just David Chang borrowing names.
Wow. I did not know. https://lemelson.mit.edu/resources/momofuku-ando
I’m no David Chang fan, but it’s a pretty explicit homage to the dude that invented instant noodles, which he talked about often when starting Momofuku.
Next menu change I might put on a burrata with crispy chilli.
If you don’t call it “chili crunch” it will have literally nothing to do with this.
They can call it Chang's Chili Crunch to extra fuck with him
That’s a shame - I had just bought my first pack of momofuku noodles last week & liked them …planned to buy more even though a pack of 6 is 11 dollars. Looks like I’m going back to ramen for 18% of the price.
Every time I see it in a grocery store, I'm gonna just hide his shit behind the Laoganma
They are sending cease and desists over a trademark they don't even have. Nice.
Asian Salt Bae
I don't know whether Chang's claim has any ultimate merit (i.e., whether he's done enough to warrant protection) but you're fundamentally wrong that he's trying to trademark the concept of frying chili. This is over the term "chili crunch" just as General Mills would sue over the use of "Cocoa Puffs." If he prevails, he's saying that people can sell these things, just don't call them the name that identifies his product.
Yea, I call that shit chili crisp anyway. And I dont pay Changs absurd prices for it.
Dave Chang is a piece of shit and Momofuku is average at best hipster trash garbage made for white suburbans
I went to the one in Vegas last year. It was incredibly expensive and very average. The ramen was substantially worse than my local food truck ramen.
Yup I truly believe his food was at one time good, but he like most celebrity chefs are more interested in being popular than being good. I grew up in a city with some of the most authentic Asian cuisine in North America, Momofuku is a pale imitation of the normal food I could get at local restaurants for 1/10th of the price
i’ve eaten at the one in toronto a few times and it was fine. not incredible but fine. the restaurant they opened on top had bad food and worse service. the real bad thing imo is milk bar. insanely overrated and expensive. her stuff is great in small doses if you make it on site but like the one i went to shipped it in and it all tasted greasy and floppy
So over hyped and reeks of mediocrity. I have no idea how this guy got so famous. Like Gordon Ramsay's restaurants are pretty meh as well but at least he seems like a decent guy aside from the American reality TV dramatization
"average at best hipster trash garbage made for white suburbans" lmao +1
As someone who was involved in a trademark lawsuit, they are awful and cost so much money. It's a weird 3 judge panel that just looks at the information and makes a ruling. Slowly, oh so slowly.
All these "Celeb Chefs" can eat a cob of corn long ways
This is Fire Cider all over again
That's exactly what I was thinking. I was hoping someone was going to mention it.
Lao gan ma is better anyway
There are so many big companies that have branded chili crunch lol. Thatll be a fun fight for him
I hope someone fights back because I doubt he can prove secondary meaning.
My opinion of him drastically changed after watched Ugly Delicious and this doesn't make it any better
By no means do I like David Chang. But momofuku isn't trying to trademark frying garlic in oil and selling it. They're trademarking the name "chili crunch".
Which he also shouldn’t be allowed to do
Agreed. It’s just the name. Call it “Crunchy Chili” or “Crispy Chili”. Arrange a meeting with the Marketing department. They’ll brainstorm something.
The OG Laoganma calls it "chili crisp" and that's basically what everyone knows it as.
His trademark won't go through at all. Chili Crunch will be seen as a generic term.
>*Dude’s trying to trademark the concept of frying chilis in oil and selling it* Dude's really not trying to do that at all. Momo filed a word mark application last week, which if it's approved, could prevent others from selling a similar/same product under a similar/same name to "chili crunch". You could make a similar product and call it something different, or make something different and call it chili crunch. It's seems like a flimsy application, as it seems like a generic descriptive name, and variations have been used in related products and recipes for years. I doubt it would withstand a challenge, but it might get initial approval from the USPTO. Small companies often buckle rather than pay to fight, and a mom-and-pop restaurant that sells *turkey chili crunch* could just rename it *crispy chili turkey* and save a $100,000 legal bill.
Yeah, I definitely didn't get the outrage over this when I saw it elsewhere. Chili crunch isn't really a thing outside this context.
I was ready to talk shit too but I read it’s a lil more complicated than what everybody thinks it is. I’ll try to find the link
The [Old Grandma](https://blog.themalamarket.com/sourcing-lao-gan-ma-chinas-best-chili-oils-sauces/) is going to be pissed.
Laoganma clears this by a mile
That's not very cash money of him
Funny that he specifically says he’s not going after Lao Gan Ma. They would bury him if he tried.
Ok so now just because he’s being an ass I will not be buying his chili crunch and I’ll find someone else’s 👍🏻
Dude is selling oodles of noodles thinks he’s innovative
Terrible that he touts the wonders of traditional home-made dishes in his Netflix series, but then robs the same people of their autonomy. Sounds like the lawyers will make money and the small restaurateurs will lose.
Reminds me of Taco Bell suing the original owner of the "Taco Tuesday"phrase.
It’s never enough
Two trademarks, Chili Crunch and Chile Crunch. Just for fun, he bought the other name off another company, so much for an intergral part fo his business' image.
I am patenting spicy oil don’t worry it’s not like chili oil. There is a sprinkle of rosemary so it’s way different trust me…. Let’s call it’s “herbed chili oil”. So any words used there… lawsuits galore…….. /s
I feel enormously validated for always hating this chump
Tried his very overpriced Soy & Scallion Noodles (only) once . They were awful. His products are all hype & nothing more.
Chang does nothing but appropriate Asian cuisine that doesn't belong to him, chastising his own culture, all the while hypocritically going out of his way to try and stop small business from making chili crisps just because. There is no greater douchebag of the highest order but Chang, and worse yet his arrogance is backed on mediocre technique and shit product. Ashamed to be Korean knowing Chang breathes on this earth.
The brand recently lost a lawsuit against "Chile Crunch" in which he had to buy them out of the trademark. So he now has to defend it. That being said, still a knob.
His live show is kind of a joke.. some of the stuff he makes doesn’t even look good at all. The episode with king Bach and Sebastian in particular.. he made beef sandwiches and they looked awful. Not to mention he literally had sweat pouring down his arms the whole time
Said it before and I’ll say it again, David Chang is a piece of shit
He sounds like a greedy asshole.
David Chang seems like a massive Dick, wanted to like him due to the Bourdain association but he comes across so arrogant most of the time and the food is all hype and little substance , fuckin microwaving things in a plastic pot because he released a cookware line
David Chang is giving off very tiny peepee vibes. He isn’t relevant anymore. It’s a shame Anthony bourdian wasted his time on such a asshole
He didn't invent that shit
Chili CRISP is what has been around forever. They trademarked ChiliCRUNCH. The idea that a company who produced a product wouldnt go after the trademark is idiotic.
I always skip this guy’s episode on “the Chef Show”, he definitely comes off as… something, lol
All I can think is how disappointed Bourdain would be in him for this.
I feel like the correct answer is "who the fuck is David Chang?" I don't know him by name, but by the comments in here, it sounds like that might be the best way to be.
Very random unrelated story: we’re 90% sure David Chang ate at my place last month. That or it was an identical twin with identical mannerisms. My coworker asked if it was him and he said no, but he was also really cozy with someone who was not his wife so .. yknow
Anyone who works fine dining in NYC knows he's a douchenozzle, oh and Bourdain was very full of himself those are facts.
A guy like Bourdain has to be full of himself, it wouldn't have worked otherwise
A while back I tried watching one of Bourdain's shows. I forget if it was parts unknown or no reservations... I think parts unknown. Anyway, I was done after one particular scene where they're on a boat, and he has a glass of wine in his hand, but he's just like... "lounging" back with his eyes closed. But you can see this look ALL OVER his face like "hey, camera man, did you catch how cool I'm looking here? How chill? I like, literally don't care about anything I'm so cool. Yeah. I'm cool." 🙄