MoMo

I absolutely LOVED this place!
I was heart broken when I found out from a friend that worked there that they sold their lease.
The food was ALWAYS good. There was never an off day. So sad to see this place go.

WHAT. THE. HELL. Why are all the good Japanese places in NYC closing? Seriously, what is that about? First Izakaya 10 and now this?! Funk dat. I lived down the block from Momo and frequented it. The service was great and the food creative, super fresh and well executed. This is seriously a great loss and I bet it’s yet another victim of the horrifying gentrification that’s been going on in Bushwick over the last few years. Ironic, that, as Momo was one of the first parts of said gentrification. Sigh.

WHY IS MOMO CLOSED?! This was the most shocking news I’ve received all week!!!
But I still deemed it appropriate to write a farewell review. I will miss you, Momo.
I visited for the first time just a week ago for a Girl’s Night Out, and we had the best evening with the best food. We shared the Pollo Momo, Red sauce Rigatoni, and Beef Carpaccio. Each and every bite-​full was a delight and all I could say through the entire meal was, ‘I cannot wait to return to MoMo’. The Pollo Momo is a creamy chicken entrée with panko-​crusted chicken and fingerling potatoes. It’s a heavier dish, so it is perfect to share. The Rigatoni was cooked al dente and served with a beef and mushroom based red sauce. The Carpaccio came drizzled in olive oil, placed in a bed of arugula.
Even though the staff is trained to ask their patrons to leave 1.5 hours after they are seated, MoMo was going to become one of my monthly staples.
It’s a beautifully cozy restaurant in the heart of West Village, right on a corner of a residential street, with a view of quaint walk-​ups, French bulldogs, and yellow taxis.
It’s a small restaurant that can only fit approximately 20 patrons at a time, and it can get loud, since they end up sitting on top of each other. I didn’t mind though, because it seemed like a picture-​perfect moment, with my best girlfriends, delicious food, and a bottle of wine.

I love this place. My fave restaurant in the city. I’ve been here a few times while I was dating my husband. Very intimate and quiet, romantic environment yet they also have a bar and TV (on mute). We had a daytime wedding and wanted to have an intimate dinner that night so we came here at night for dinner. It was amazing. They have great wine. I recommend the Rose. Also, their steak and potatoes with sauce, to die for. Their shrimp bruschetta, BEST appetizer on the menu.

The atmosphere and music here are great — listened to some nice lounge music. I would recommend for an intimate/​casual date. Dinner started off strong with the appetizers. We got the eggplant parmigiano and avocado + shrimp bruschetta. Definitely recommend the bruschetta. Nice touch of pesto aioli and acidity from the sherry vinegar. Bruschetta had a nice crunch and was overflowing with shrimp and avocado. Yum!
Then came the main entrees. Brother and I both got the Rigatoni. Rigatoni was not cooked al dente. There must have been a 1:1 ratio of oil to tomato. Bleh. If you like oily pasta sauce, then this is for you. It made us feel heavy… and the flavor was just okay. My cousin ordered the Classic Spaghetti with meatballs. Oh man this was awful! The noodles were so overcooked… I couldn’t tell if I was eating noodles or mashed potatoes. His plate also didn’t have enough sauce — very dry.
I would come back here for drinks and appetizers because I really enjoyed the atmosphere. Maybe I’ll come back and try the entrees. The pasta dishes were a total miss though.

Everything is amazing. We stopped in randomly one afternoon and dabbled with a fairly large array of dishes on the menu — everything was fantastic

This is the West Village’s hidden gem! I have been to MoMo a few times, but my most recent visit was a very memorable experience. I don’t know the name of our waitress, but she had blonde hair and a foreign accent, and she was incredibly hospitable despite my/​my guests unjustifiable impatience!
It was a Wednesday night and my friend made reservations for 8:30 — we showed up at 8:15, starving of course, and waited at the bar for our table. Considering how hungry we were, and the fact that there were two tables open (which we later found out were for a larger party) we may or may not have been a little rude towards the host/​waitress, who was running the show by herself– to assuage our frustration, she offered us complimentary glasses of wine while we waited. As someone who has formerly worked in restaurants, I can say with confidence that she did not need to accommodate us — our table was ready by 8:40, so in essence, we were really only waiting about 10 minutes (which did not warrant a free drink– we ended up leaving a generous tip!)
Two words: Mediterranean. Crostini. This appetizer was absolute heaven! For our entrée, we shared the Cobb Salad and the Spaghetti & Meatballs. The salad was good, but the spaghetti was AMAZING! I always get this dish when I go, and it never disappoints! Aside from food, the wine selection is dynamic and very reasonably priced– we had a delicious Tempranillo.
Overall, I highly recommend this place! Authentic, delicious Italian food complemented by great service!

By far the cleanest and nicest bathroom in NYC. The soap is nice and it is cleanly stocked and spacious. I know it is an odd finding to say this, but if I’m sipping wine, water, and good conversation for hours, I need to have a terrific public bathroom.
The wine selection is decent, but the staff are what makes this place run happily. They are as dry and funny as any other NY service professional. The prices are reasonable, and I look forward to trying their menu next time.
Warning: the clientele tends to be twenty something Ralph Lauren on top J Crew on the bottom wearing women of privilege with a brazen vernacular for exclaiming things are «faggish» or «gay» to their girlfriends while plenty of gay men are right next to you enjoying their Friday night.
Really? You’re gonna say that in a cozy place kiddie corner to one of the oldest and famous gay bars in the country? #beware
At least this place has a nice bathroom to wash their mouths out with the nicest West Village soap! #notnice

What a wonderful place to host a private party for ~30 people. The appetizers were wonderful, and the ambiance was perfect. Very nice manager and staff. Everyone had a great time.

I bookmarked this restaurant awhile ago because I have a friend we call MoMo, so I thought this would be perfect for a birthday dinner!
I called ahead of time and ordered a bottle of prosecco and the chocolate soufflé to come out after dinner and it went without a hitch!
I was with two other girls and we split, the cured meats, artisanal cheeses, crab cake, beet salad and sea bass. It was the perfect amount of food. The corn salad that came with the crab cake was bomb… as was the sea bass.
We ended up staying for like 4 hours but not once did they rush us out! Definitely a cute place to bring a date or your girlfriends!

Completely adorable and delicious. Let me say up front that I am a sucker for lighting and this place does it exactly right. Dimly but interestingly lit. Oil lamps on the tables, bar, and in wall alcoves. Exposed filament overhead bulbs, tube lights around the interior of the bar and the sunken wall-​mounted mirror. Exposed brick and warm woodwork. Intimate, seats maybe 20 when filled. Sexy lounge music. Great date spot. I had the pinot noir the bartender recommended, which was excellent. The rigatoni with pancetta was also delicious; perfectly al dente. This place is a keeper. Definitely check it out. And did I mention the lighting?

In this quaint west village gem restaurant goers will find a collusion of European cultures that fuse together to form an exquisite eatery that is MOMO, I have eaten there maybe 3 or 4 times since February, and I feel inclined to write a review despite being a person that does not typically share his dining experiences. First the food, which at a restaurant takes precedent over other commodities when one is dining out. The shrimp bruschetta is a dainty and elegant start to your meal, the shrimp they are using is succulent, and the tomatoes/​avocados are most luscious. If the diner is pursuing more roughage than I would propose the beef Carpaccio, which is an impeccable combination of filet, arugula, and drizzle of truffle oil applied to perfection. For a main dish it would be impossible to make a false move. Literally shut your eyelids and point your finger at the menu and ask the server for what you land on as there is a copious selection of savory eats, but if I had to make definite choices it would be something like this– the fettuccine al funghi is a well prepared tasty dish with a utopian combination of sauce to noodle. The other two entrees that enter my mind would be the pollo momo and the sea bass. First the chicken which is breaded breast stuff with prosciutto beneath a lemon garlic sauce, it is truly a divine selection as it leaves one with not only fulfillment internally, but a renewed enjoyment about eating or ordering chicken while dining out. The sea bass is a splendid filet of fish which is served in a white wine lemon & caper sauce that will prompt your taste buds to spur into a nearly euphoric state of dining. For dessert I have selected the tiramisu with a side of chocolate ice cream which is an excellent tribute to your meal as you will feel incredibly satisfied and joyous. Now I will discuss the other intangibles that make dining out in NYC a treat. To start the staff who were flawlessly affable for each of my visits. I was lucky enough to meet both owners who approached me immediately and made me feel welcome as if I had known them for numerous years, tremendous people they are. There were two waitresses working both with lovely accents that complimented the restaurants vibe and feel exceptionally well, one had to be Australian and the other I’m going to guess is from somewhere in central or southern Europe she was our waitress and did an outstanding job, in any event they were both were attentive and familiar with the menu and wine list and have made my dining experiences at MOMO even more pleasurable, furthermore any restaurant would be very lucky to have employees like these. Lastly the décor and ambiance I was completely enamored with. It’s a small spot however unlike other similar sized locations one actually has space to converse with the person/​persons joining them without feeling as if they are in a dense location. It is swanky enough with classic movies playing behind the bar combined with moving jazz/​contemporary music playing in the background at a perfect noise level, and is comfortable enough to feel as if the diner is in their mothers kitchen, and conversely it is professional enough to know one is dining at blue chip eatery. I whole heartedly endorse MOMO in the west village, and I deem that MOMO will be a west village staple for numberless years to come,
Thanks

Great Quaint Spot for an Italian Dinner! Everything from the apps, salads, to the entrees was cooked perfectly. I had the Shrimp– Avocado Bruschetta, Caeser and Cobb Salad, and the Spaghetti Meatballs. Soooo good… including their Pinot Noir.

I like this place a lot. Its very small but quaint & a great location! The service was friendly and efficient. Menu was limited but everything on it seemed appealing. There’s a little of everything here. My group ordered apps to split: Shrimp & Avocado bruschetta, Mediterranean crostini, eggplant parm & the crabcake. We were a group of 6 and everyone was able to get a little taste of everything. All were good but the Mediterranean crostini stuck out the most to me. For dinner I ordered the seabass which comes with potato wedges and asparagus in a white wine & caper sauce, delicious. For dessert I got the tiramisu which is my fav and hard to mess up. I loved the plate presentation. I also tried the tartufo & the chocolate soufflé. My only complaint is they didnt have pinot noir which is my fav but the selection our waitress suggested was pretty good.

Was looking for a super chill place to go where it wasn’t noisy and found this super cute and cozy spot. Had a glass of wine and their Sea Bass Entrée. Both were delish! Staff was friendly and welcoming… wish I was in the neighborhood so I can call this my neighborhood bar.

Cozy spot to pop into on a blustery or romantic night. Deep wine selection and plenty of varied dishes with which to pair. Chummy and gracious service from hosts Tony and Andre and bartenders Ana and Bojana ensured our little evening repast was entirely satisfying.

A quiet and tasty Italian restaurant in the cute West Village. We made reservations for 6:45pm on a Thursday, which was not totally necessarily since there were plenty of open tables. We ordered the caprese salad which we highly recommend and my girlfriend had the Richter Estate German Riesling — it was delightfully fruity and smooth!
Our order was simple and came with little wait time (although I can’t remember what it was at this point). The space was a bit cramped but otherwise the food and ambience was great. In particular, the music was perfect!

Friendly environs. Food eh. Ordered a beet salad which was ok. Spaghetti and meatballs with fresh basil completely unimpressive. Friendly and wanted to like the place more but was unimpressed. Very nice service though.

Came here for dinner yesterday with my wine Wednesday girlfriend and her fiancé and had a great night!
Nestled on the corner of 10^th and Waverly– right across the street from one of my favorite bookshops– this small space is furnished with maybe 15 of those teeny tiny wooden square two-​tops (the same ones that decorate every other wine bar/​trattoria in the area), a couple of stools at the bar, tea light candles on every table, and empty picture frames that hang against an exposed brick wall. Cozy, rustic and romantic– typical West Village.
We tried several red wines, each better than the next. I started with a glass of the 09? Bordeaux which was my least favorite. My friend got a glass of the Tempranillo which she enjoyed, and then the three of us split a bottle of Cabernet from Napa Valley which was very smooth and went well with each of our meals. We ended the night with a dessert wine and a glass each of some red… I unfortunately did not get the name of it, and it was my favorite of the night! Guess I’ll just have to return ;-)
While the wine was good, the real winner for me was the food. I started with the soup of the day– pasta e fagioli. Very tasty! The beans were a little al dente and the broth was not overly salty. It was the perfect thing to warm me up, as it was chilly in the restaurant. For my main I ordered the pasta special– penne with 4 different cheeses. HOLY MOLY was this rich! I can’t remember the last time I’ve had something as sinfully indulgent. The only thing that comes to mind is Malatesta’s gorgonzola gnocchi. Anyway– I barely made a dent in it before my stomach gave up. Can’t wait to heat the leftovers up… mmmm. Maybe whip up a small side of broccoli with roasted garlic and oil… now we’re talking!
My friends split the appetizer special– buffalo mozzarella with beefsteak tomatoes, portobello mushrooms, onion and a honey-​balsamic dressing. This was good, except for the dressing. They were glad it was kept on the side. For their entrees they got the spaghetti with meatballs and the rigatoni. I had a bite of the spaghetti and was blown away by the sauce. A+ quality that is not to be missed. Make sure someone at your table orders this dish, as apparently the meatballs were just as delicious (I didn’t try any but I trust their opinion). As for the rigatoni, they said it was not the best as the the flavor from the prosciutto was overpowering and overall tasted too meat-​y. Yikes.
Our waiter was genuine, gracious and very kind. He kept apologizing for the littlest things (forgetting our bread basket, running out of the Cotes du Rhone, not warning me of the intensity of my meal) but honestly, none of them detracted from my experience. I enjoyed a deliciously home cooked Italian meal accompanied by good wine and old friends in my favorite hood. Can’t ask for a better Monday evening.

Lasagne Bolagnese to die for.