Momo I Am, Salt Lake !

Momo I Am has turned into Calcutta’s most hyped destination for momos in just a few years. With the successful launch of two new branches in Golpark and Salt Lake, they have taken the hype to an all new level. Now, Momo I Am is different and infact better than most other momo based restaurants in the city. The reason being the fact that Momo I Am exercises expertise not only in the common variants of momo, but also in a number of innovative types of momo. Also, they are not just restricted to momos. They have a number of Tibetian, Chinese and Thai dishes in their menu, which are unique as well as exotic.

I am a huge fan of Momo I Am. I love their momos, baos, noodle soups, etc. I was recently invitated at the latest Salt Lake branch to taste the new additions in their menu. The restaurant is located near City Centre 1. It is spacious and well decorated. The wall graffiti is their signature theme, which they have beautifully retained here as well. What caught my attention was the crowd on a weekday evening. The place was buzzing with people and I was surprised to see the fast service, which is indicative of the staff being properly trained.

Momo I Am has introduced a number of new items to their menu. We started with the salads. Asian Cucumber Salad with Feta Cheese looked nice. It was very refreshing, owing to the juicy cucumber slices, which were marinated with a tangy mix of spices. The next salad was Indonesian Grilled Pork. The pork was crispy and was mixed with juicy veggies. There was a typical smell of fish sauce, which if neglected, it was a perfect salad with proper mix of veggies and meat.

The Jhol Momos came in a huge bowl, which seemed like a meal in itself. The momos were served in a flavourful broth, consisting of broccoli, babycorn, chillies, etc. The chicken momos were well stuffed and tasted great, while the broth was light and subtle. The Chicken Shanghai Wantons were spicy and tasted amazing. What I loved about their momos were the generous stuffing and the thin outer coating.

The next in line were the dimsums. The Truffle Oil Veg Crystal Dumplings had a delicious stuffing of spinach and mixed veggies. The XO Crystal Chicken Dimsums were stuffed with minced chicken. Both of these variants came in baskets and tasted out of the world with the chilli oil dip. The Asian Stuffed Mushrooms were heavenly. The mushrooms were stuffed with cream cheese and cilantro, which won my heart.

The main course included Momo I Am XO Rice and Harissa Fish. The combo of both was excellent. The rice was spicy and was tossed generous portions of egg and chicken. The fish was cooked in a smoky harissa sauce, stir fried with shitake mushrooms. I fell in love with the beautiful texture of the fish.

I didn’t want to leave Momo I Am without trying my all time favourite, the Pork Bao. It came in a few minutes and looked just the same. The bread was extremely soft. It was stuffed with crispy pork belly along with lettuce and mayo. With one bite, there was a blast of flavours in my mouth. I was lost in its beauty again.

The meal ended with their brand new dessert, Raspberry Bao. The bao was deep fried, glazed with saffron gomme. The fried bao was stuffed with banana slices, sprinkled with shredded coconut and layed over raspberry coulis. It was served with vanilla ice cream. This was one hell of a dessert, where the sweetness was perfectly balanced. The bao was soft and tasted excellent with the raspberry coulis and vanilla ice cream.

Overall, Momo I Am is the best place in the city which you must visit to satisfy your momo cravings. Infact you can’t be happy with just one visit. You need to keep coming here again and again, which might turn into an addition after some point of time. Such is the charm and beauty of this place !