Ting Momo

Kinda surprised Ting Momo didn’t make it, kinda not.
I am surprised because:
– In Seattle Tom Douglas can do no wrong
– It was a novel idea
– And if you’re gonna open up a lunch only place, SLU/​amazon-​land is the place to do it.
But I’m not that surprised because:
– Me and everyone else thought the prices were way too high for what you get
– The food/​dumplings were good but not that exciting. I liked the (tiny) sides of soup and chickpea salad the most.
– And the menu managed to be both limited and confusing. They should have let you pick any combo of dumplings you wanted.
I also noted that the one main cook looked «harried and miserable» and that the «floral grandma plates» were at odds with the rustic/​Nepalese décor.
Namaste, Ting Momo.

Pedestrian and overpriced. I don’t see how this business model would succeed if it were not located in the Amazon complex. Tom Douglas has a slew of restaurants down there, and every one of them is better than this one.
I bought a friend lunch and spent $ 30 for six dumplings and a side of red onion. I left poor, and we both left hungry.

3 ½ stars
I went here a couple months ago, but I do not remember the exact items I tried. The food was tasty but not memorable and as others have mentioned a bit pricey since portions are on the small side. I only tried the dumplings, so I have no clue how their soup is. Do not order the Chai tea! It was very disappointing. The type of food and layout was definitely unique, so I am glad I tried it.

If you don’t like this place we cannot be friends.
Okay that is a bit extreme but seriously this place is really yummy. All the dumplings and noodles are made fresh daily. The flavors are wonderful and the vibe is casual.
Okay…so some are not happy with the prices but it’s worth it for the labor intensive product. I think it’s better to savor a small plate w/​quality ingredients. No food is ever perfect but this place does get it right and their food is different than the normal fare in the city.
Luckily I work downtown so I can become a regular lunch customer.

Having read about Nepal on wikipedia, I’m going to go ahead and say I’m an expert on momos. Just kidding, I’m not one of those wankers, I’m a different type.
Got the azag azog combo plate. It was okay. I expected to be price gouged and was not disappointed. My companion got something else and what our meals had in common, we figured out later, was a side salad. The reason we bothered figuring this out is being we had extreme gastric distress a few hours later, almost at the same time and with the same symptoms. I’m texting him with sweat breaking out on my forehead and my stomach roiling, white knuckling my desk. «You doing ok?» Him: «NO.» The salad tasted a little fermented or something, which I thought was just. pickles? I dunno.
I think the pictures on the wall were supposed to be soulful or something but I kept looking for the istockphoto watermark. The fried one was kind of greasy. Then I bussed my own table! BAM. Not coming back.

Let me preface by saying the food here is great. I had the vegetarian combo, and the dumplings were all perfectly spiced and flavorful, and they came with two delicious dipping sauces. I particularly liked the fried samo dumpling, with its flaky, pastry-​style crust (though you can pretty much fry anything and I’ll like it). Everything tastes fresh. The service is insanely quick — my co-​workers and I joked about being handed our food before we could even finish paying. And I love that the place is clearly an homage to the chef, Dekyi, whose (enormous) portrait is the first thing you see upon entering the restaurant. There is also plenty of seating, although it got pretty crowded at noon with the Amazon crowds.
Why the three stars? Because it’s extremely overpriced. I ordered the aforementioned combo (with three small dumplings and the sauces, a tiny cup of salad with garbanzo beans, and a spoonful or two of cabbage), a Dry Soda, and one (again, tiny) yak dumpling. The total? Over $ 17!!! And it wasn’t a lot of food — I finished my meal easily and could’ve eaten another dumpling or two (and I can’t put away tons of food). I just don’t understand how lunch at a place with counter service, even a place with tasty food, could cost $ 17. I won’t make the trek from downtown for lunch again.
Tom, lower your prices!

There is a lot to like about Ting Momo. Again, Tom Douglas has filled a food niche that Seattle really needed-​dumplings. There is a huge assortment here and something to please everyone. They offer a delicious deep fried version called Samo. The one with pork is amazing-​very flavorful and not at all greasy. The daily specials are folded steamed buns, almost like small tacos. On a recent visit, we tried the pulled pork which was reminiscent of BBQ pork buns. The tingmo are very much like Chinese filled buns and also delicious. All of the dumplings I tried, were very good. It is the side dishes that are lacking. They have a chickpea salad, which is fairly bland and watery tasting. The cucumber salad offered on other plates is the same-​uninspired.
Ting Momo is a casual place. You order at the counter, pick it up when called and clear your own tables. You can get in and fairly quickly and a great place to pick up some a la carte dumplings when you are in a hurry at lunch. They are only open 11 – 2 Monday-​Friday, so a tough place to get to if you don’t work freelance or in South Lake Union, but worth a try!

«The Tibetan people are in trouble. Their very culture is in jeopardy. But they still whip up an amazing fish* curry.» (Groupon Superbowl Ad)
My first Ting Momo dumpling experience was A-​MAZING. Five stars. The dumplings were soft, warm, flavorful, and perfectly delicious. Second experience I ordered the same thing and the dumplings were soggy, flavorless, and cold. It was pretty nast’. The soup was even cold. Two stars. Third experience was somewhere in the middle, and I imagine my future experiences will be about the same.
I’m giving this place four stars because I really like the ambiance and plus they are dumplings people. Dumplings.
*NOTE: Ting Momo does not sell fish curry.

My coworkers and I paid a visit after her delightful experience.
My take on it:?
Convenient, fair-​tasting dumplings if you’re willing to shell out an arm, leg, or both. Really enjoyed the chickpea salad, but it was probably worth $ 4 for a small cup. Didn’t really care for the yak, should have tried the combo platter. I’ve never had Tibetan food before though to truly gauge taste, but if you had high expectations for Asian food in a trendy setting, remind yourself we are still in Seattle.
I’ll give it a couple more tries, given it’s close proximity and my love for cucumber salad and eggplant.

I had lunch here today and was pretty excited to write my review, so when I saw the poor reviews they’ve received thus far, I was pretty surprised! I thought my lunch was great! I ordered a meat combo plate with the soup. While I’m not a picky eater, I’ve got to admit that I’m not very adventurous. The dumplings were beautiful! Each was carefully formed and presented artfully on my plate with a red cabbage slaw. I knew that one of them was yak (which I assumed was not locally sourced) and felt a little queasy about it. I just said to myself, «don’t ask»! Each bite was a little adventure full of unfamiliar spices and textures. Everything was delicious. I’m assuming the yak dumpling was the one that tasted like pot roast.
The restaurant was clean and hip. I’m stunned that the Unilocal rating isn’t higher! It was a unique and thoughtfully conceived meal! I am a fan!

I’ve been looking forward to this new Tom Douglas restuarant, so last week we decided to go there for lunch.
Great Ambience! And that’s where it ends.
For a $ 15 meal, you get 3 momos — cold and unappetizing, 2 side salads which don’t belong in any Tibetan or Nepalese cuisine (having lived in Nepal for 2 years and eaten countless momos).
And to top it off — it’s a cafeteria style self-​serve joint.
Extremely disappointed.

More like Ting Hell-​to-​the-​NoNo. If this is what Tibetan food is like, I can’t blame the Dalai Lama for high-​tailing it out of there. The yak dumpling tasted like a dry hairball, and the mushroom dumpling was extremely greasy and bland. Also, the dumplings had clearly spent a significant amount of time under a warming light — they were crusty and luke-​warm, well past their ephemeral prime. I’m all for fast service, but when your plate is ready about 30 seconds after placing your order, you know the food has not been made to order, or even freshly steamed. They may want to take a page from Din Tai Fung’s uncanny ability to serve freshly-​steamed dumplings w/​o sacrificing timeliness.
Let’s just say it’ll take a few reincarnations before I come back to this place.

Underwhelmed by same experience recent reviewers have encountered — mediocre, overpriced cuisine.
Interesting concept but fails to deliver:
–mushroom tingmo (steamed bun) — mushroom filler was tasty, but have had better buns from standard dimsum fare (what the tingmo is most like), dough seems to lack substance.
–yak momo (steamed dumpling) — yak was tough and rather bland, one-​dimensional. Dumpling skin was thicker than desirable, not particularly delicate.
–pork samo (mini-​samosa) — this was hands-​down the worst, an overly greasy samosa in a twist pastry. Have had far better samosas from a flavor and ingredient standpoint as well as texture. must-​skip.
–chickpea salad — refreshing but seemingly incongruent with cuisine
–purple pickled cabbage — pickled in a particularly piquant vinaigrette, interesting spices came through but need to work on balancing out the acidity.

I preferred my garbanzo bean salad to my dumplings, which were soft and light but not exceptionally flavorful.
I like the décor here a great deal, and the setup (entry door, exit door, cash register right before you hit the dining room) seems like it’s built for efficiency. A tip: bus your plates and glasses right before you hit the exit door.
For being such a small space, and just a bit on the expensive side, I recommend coming here a little before or after the typical noon lunch rush, and make sure you’ve eaten breakfast first. I’ve been completely satisfied eating here, but the gentlemen I’ve eaten with seemed to think there wasn’t enough food.

I’ve been wanting to try Ting Momo ever since they opened, and I was aware of the mixed reviews and the prices before I went in. All that considered, I had a perfectly middling experience.
The setup is nice — walk in, order, find a seat, get your food, eat, bus your dishes on the way out. The place is small, but efficient, and the décor is nice. My friend commented that she felt like she was in another country, so mission accomplished, I suppose. The service was fine.
I had the azag azog combo and my friend had the garden combo. I didn’t try any of her dumplings, but she said they were good. She didn’t complain or rave about them. That’s about how I felt about my food too. The garbanzo salad was tasty, with crunchy onions and fresh herbs, and was probably my favorite part of the meal. The pickled cabbage was nice and tangy, but I think there was a little too much vinegar in it. I had the soup, and the flavor was great — all coconutty and spicy — but the noodles were too dense.
The dumplings themselves were just okay. My favorite was the fried pork dumpling — great flavor and a nice crispy wrapping. The yak had great flavor as well but it was a bit small, so the actual amount of yak consumed was itty bitty. The mushroom dumpling had way too much dough, and since it was steamed it was so chewy, every bite was just like eating a mouthful of chewy dough. The wrapper needs to be far thinner and the mushrooms needed more spice.
I think the idea behind this is great, and I think Tom Douglas can pull it off. I think he’s banking too much on the palates of Amazon workers, and while the setup is great, the food needs more work to match the price point. I’d pay that much for the same meal with better flavor.

Inedible and extremely overpriced. Yet another disappointing Tom Douglas experience. I would have been just as upset with my meal at ¹⁄₃ the price.
My lunch cost $ 15 for a soup and 4 steamed dumplings (which come with a chickpea salad). The dumplings were shockingly bad. The noodle was too thick and dry, and the filling was dry and flavorless. I ordered the shrimp momo ($ 9), and couldn’t detect any shrimp. The dipping sauce was also all wrong — I’ve had momo before and this failed miserably. I also ordered a cup of soup ($ 4) which was boring and the thick, dense noodles didn’t work here either.
The restaurant is set up so you order when you walk in, seat and bus yourself. At this price range, you should have really good food and a waiter. The first thing you see when you walk in is a woman making dumplings by hand; while this is probably designed to set a homemade atmosphere, the woman looked tired and miserable. After you order, you can peer into the kitchen, where you’ll see dumplings being pulled from bins (not fresh out of a steamer) in a very messy, chaotic little space.
I’m surprised Tom Douglas would put his name on food like this.

I was pretty hopeful since there aren’t many (any?) Asian options in SLU.
I had the momo dumplings ($ 9) and cup of soup ($ 4). The dumplings were decent, but not amazing enough for the price point; they were slightly doughy and dry. The dumplings were also served with a small salad and pickled cabbage to help fill you up and make you feel just a little bit better about spending nine bucks on like four dumplings. On the other hand, I really enjoyed the soup and it’s decently priced.
In all, I will likely be back here… but only until we get more affordable Asian representation in SLU!

I tried the azag azog combo, which was $ 13 for the following:
–yak momo (steamed dumpling)
–pork samo (fried dumpling)
–mushroom tingmo (soft steamed dumpling)
–thentuk (coconut milk soup with shiitake, red peppers, hand pulled noodles)
–chickpea salad
–purple pickled cabbage
The dumplings were underwhelming. The momo and tingmo were a lot like dim sum items, and the samo was basically a samosa. They weren’t any more delicate than what you get at dim sum or Indian restaurants either. With that in mind, 4 dumplings for $ 8 – 10 was a bit pricey. The chickpea salad was delicious. The pickled cabbage was fine, but I wasn’t interested in finishing the entire mound. The soup was reminiscent of soup I’ve had at Thai restaurants.
This is a casual lunch spot where you order at the counter, pick up your food when your name is called, grab a seat, get your own utensils and water, and bus your own table.
I’d come back for the convenience, but Ting Momo is not a place I’d go out of my way to visit.

Really happy with the addition of this restaurant in the South Lake Union neighborhood. On top of that, it is something completely different. I had the AZAG AZOG combo: yak momo, pork samo, mushroom tingmo with thenthuk (soup noodle) for $ 13. You can get it without the soup for $ 10 but it is worth it. The soup is savory and flavorful and the only thing I wish is that it had a bit more noodle in it (as they did called it noodle soup). This order came with a delicious chickpea salad, a side pickled salad (purple veggies) and two different dipping sauces for my variety dumplings (momo, samo, and tingmo). Once you place your order, you find a spot in the cozy cafeteria styled dining area. They promptly called our names to give us our food. Really efficient.
They have a daily special that’s different depends on the day of the week. I am going back next Monday since the special is 5 spice roasted duck, steamed buns, dekyi sauce for $ 10.
Oh and we got to see Tom Douglas helping out at the restaurant today. He is such a nice guy, for realz!

I’d been waiting for the last of Tom Douglas’ three Terry building restaurants to open, and today it finally did. It’s been exciting watching new places open up constantly in this developing neighborhood, and I welcome the variety of lunch options developing around here.
Ting Momo is a little space behind the Brave Horse Tavern that’s open only during lunch hours (11 – 3). It was crowded today, but the staff – including Tom Douglas overseeing the opening of his latest offering – was operating efficiently, getting food to diners and keeping the line moving. Seats in the 40 seat dining room rotated frequently enough that I didn’t see much waiting around for tables, although many patrons were taking orders to go: I suspect take-​out will be a substantial portion of Ting Momo’s business. This said, the small space is inviting if you wish to sit there. Touches like rattan chairs and copper tables give it a Tibetan feel. If that doesn’t make any sense, forgive me: I don’t know what exactly makes a place feel Tibetan, but I felt more like I was sitting in a hut in Asia than I do in, say, my living room.
Upon entry, you’ll likely see fresh dumplings being made in a prep area adjacent to the register, where you order and pay for your food. There are six different kinds of dumplings you can order (two steamed (momo), two fried (samo), and two «soft-​steamed,» (tingmo) which have a squishy, bready wrap). Additionally, several ready-​to-​order combos are on the menu.
I chose the garden combo ($ 10), which is a vegetarian combo that includes one curried eggplant tingmo, a shiitake tingmo, and curried potato momo. Combos come with what I imagine is a smooth mint chutney, and a thinner dumpling sauce (soy/​vinegar), as well as a refreshing chickpea salad that balances well with the substantial dumplings. I added thenthuk soup to my combo ($ 3), coconut-​milk based and boldy flavored with red peppers and shiitake mushrooms, with delightfully chewy hand-​pulled noodles.
I have no basis of comparison for Tibetan dumplings, but I appreciated the squishy texture of the soft-​steamed tingmo and the curried flavors of the eggplant. The slightly crunchy curried potato samo was a bit of fried novelty, vastly different from the softness of the tingmo dumplings. Next time I’d be interested in a more traditional steamed momo dumpling, none of which is included in the vegetarian garden combo, because none are vegetarian – but there is a shrimp momo available which works for pescetarians.
To wet your whistle, a variety of drinks is available, including theme-​appropriate flavored chais ($ 3), premium sodas ($ 3, Virgil’s Root Beer, Mexican Coke), and beer and wine.
For being a «pop-​in, pop-​out» sort of joint, I still managed to spend plenty. My $ 13 combo plus a root beer (which I ordered in a moment of weakness because damn if that isn’t a good rood beer) netted me a $ 18+ lunch after tax and a $ 1 tip. So, it’s not exactly going to replace Jimmy John’s for a quick, cheap lunch. I imagine I’ll return somewhat regularly, though, because it’s still quick, and vigilant ordering would allow one to get an appropriately-​sized lunch that’s more interesting than a sandwich for around $ 10.