I won’t lie, I was highly skeptical of this new restaurant intruding in my ‘hood. Why did they have such a silly name? And why couldn’t I remember it to save my life? What exactly are Himalayan dumplings and why did they call them Momos? Weird. I can’t exactly explain why I had such a bad attitude, I may have been PMSing, or I could have been completely justified.
My first attempt to brunch at Mad Momos was an odd and and awkward first impression. I arrived looking for a table with no reservation and prepared to wait if necessary. I was turned away and strongly discouraged from showing up without a reservation. I was perturbed to say the least, I brunched else where that week and came again a few weeks later, on Easter Sunday. This time I arrived with a reservation, which needed to be made by calling the restaurant. Calling to make a reservation is a whole other annoyance, but I will let it pass because of the newness of the restaurant.
Adding to my poor brunch-itude has been a few unsettling mimosa slip-ups (ok, I got fucked up) which left me anxious about my drinking strategy each time I was approached with the option for bottomless drinks. I clearly couldn’t handle being left to self-control for pacing myself when it came to alcohol free-for-alls.
Me and the boyfriend arrived first. I ordered ONE bloody mary and asked if I could make the decision for bottomless later, our server approved and that took care of one major anxiety. The Bloody Mary was a bit too seasoned for me, and tad too spicy, which made it easier to stop at one. My boyfriend’s mimosa was delicious however and the juice was not just plain OJ but tasted like some mango-orangey-fruity cocktail, had I ordered that I would have been in trouble.
Once our friends arrived we got to strategizing the menu. Several of the breakfast items featured yogurt and granola as a side, which could not be substituted with anything else. Having arrived after a kick ass session of Hot Yoga we weren’t interested in rabbit food (we also had yogurt and granola pre-yoga that morning already), so we steered clear even though the main entrees that were permanently attached looked delicious.
After narrowing it down to the “our signature shrimp and grits” I then tackled figuring out what the fuck “smash browns” were and should I play it safe with tots instead. The waiter explained that smash browns were smashed up tater tots with peppers and onions, and they happened to be delicious. This explanation proved to be accurate.
The rest of the table selected a good variety of dishes: The fish tacos, which were colorful and featured a healthy slice of avocado, carrots, and a delicious mystery sauce. It also came with sweet potato fries, I’m not sure if those can be substituted but that would have been a deal breaker had that been my dish. The Champion, standard eggs/grits/toast/meat combo which my bf reported was delicious. The Ground, a pork sausage omelette, which I originally wanted minus the yogurt, well seasoned and good but nothing to write home about.
The stars of the brunch menu were definitely their smash browns and grits. Which tasted so freaking amazing with some sriracha thrown in the mix.
What about the Momos you ask? Well, they are your typical pot stickers, and I’m not quite sure what makes them Himalayan. For brunch I would recommend skipping them and getting a brunch entree. While their first impression wasn’t a lasting one, I will give them a second go at happy hour when I’m a bit more in the dumpling mood.
The Bottom Line: Their brunch entrees are surprisingly well done but the lack of substitutions was a bit off putting. The Bottomless Deal is a bit steep at $15, take advantage of just ordering one of their brunch drinks at $6 before really committing.
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