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Monday, May 7, 2012

FINALLY.... MOMO CAFE!


Find the hidden Richie

           Sometime last year, our cousin Rosalyn came back from the states for a short visit and asked Rina if she could take us and the rest of the clan out for dinner. Rina was already looking to spend a day with Rosalyn, so having dinner with her was a no brainer. After finally finding a schedule wherein most of the cousins could make it, they settled on Eastwood as the meeting place, since it would be most convenient for everyone. Naturally, Rina said is everyone was asking me for suggestions on where to eat at Eastwood. I told Rina that I had been wanting to go to Momo for quite some time because I've heard some very good things about it. 

        Since it was a weekday and I work in Makati, you can imagine how my drive to Libis was at the height of rush hour. While I was on my hellish ride to Eastwood, Rina called me up to ask what I wanted to order, so that it would be there when I arrived. Since I was busy maneuvering through C-5 traffic, I told her, "Babe, you know me.. You'd know what I'd want to order when you see it." 

       I finally get to Momo and everyone had settled in. Rina tells me that she ordered me the Slow Roasted Herb U.S. Roast Beef Fingers. That would have been perfectly fine and it was definitely something that I would have ordered.. Had I not seen the dish that was listed two items just above it.. 


      3" Thick Sweet Glazed Double Smoked Bacon. 


     I was actually quite shocked that Rina didn't instantly think of me as soon as she read it (everyone else did), but she was just so excited to see her cousin again, that she managed to miss out that item completely. 


     Though I enjoyed the Beef fingers, I couldn't get the thought of the 3" Thick Bacon out of my head. I swore that it would go against every fiber of my being if I wrote a Cafe Momo post that didn't include it. 


     So here I am, true to my word, nearly eight months later.. 


     Ladies and Gentlemen, this is my Momo Cafe post. 

       
       As a Pasig resident, I would frequent Eastwood a lot (but a recent debacle with their Ultra Cinema may very well change all that, but that's for another post) yet I had never tried Momo cafe. 



            The interiors of Momo Cafe sort of reminded me of a classy, albeit dainty kitchen of someone's home. Since it's located in the ground floor of Eastwood Citywalk near the entrance it has the benefit of having two sides with glass picture windows, leaving the area bright during the daytime. 


THE FOOD

STARTERS




            The free bread that they gave us to start the meal was rather average. I'm assuming it was supposed to be garlic bread, but only a small portion of the bread was buttered. The cheese pimiento spread on the side was also something that I've had countless times before, made by my yaya. 




            For our appetizer, we ordered the Pancake Battered Chicken and Bacon Balls On A Stick (P295). First off, I really loved the Pancake batter they used. It had a subtle sweetness mixed with a light creaminess to it, and deep fried into a perfect crisp.
            



       Biting into the ball revealed a meat to batter ratio that heavily favored the meat. It had a good meatiness to it, but I must admit, I was hard pressed to find the bacon flavor in it anywhere. 

      The dish came with three dips.. a Hickoty BBQ dip, a Cesar, and a Honey Mustard.     

MAIN COURSES



         For Rina, I ordered her the Sweet and Smokey Hickory BBQ Rib-lets (P450). It was topped off with a two juicy onion rings that were fried immaculately. The ribs itself were cooked beautifully, and tore cleanly off the bone and was tender to the bite. The hickory sauce had a wonderful smokiness to it that complimented the natural flavor of the meat. The dish was laid out on a bed of what they called "Party Rice". A corn on the cob added to the BBQ feel of the plate. 




             Finally, we got to the main event.. what I had been waiting months for.. The 3" Thick Sweet Glazed Double Smoked Bacon (P350). In my mind, there are four schools of bacon.. none of them wrong, all equally awesome. Thick Cut, Thin Cut, Crispy and Soft. This one was a mixture of Thick cut and soft.


        Rina noted that because of its because of its thickness, it seemed a bit more like ham. With it's orange glaze brushed over its gorgeous light pink  color, she wasn't far off. 


         I was a little bit surprised to see it wasn't as fatty as I had imagined. But it was bacon, so by default for it was awesome. A delicate smokiness, melded with the citrus flavor of orange to make this a wonderful dish.. one definitely worth the wait!!
           

We finally meet! (I love you)


      Perhaps the only thing I can say about it is that I think the portioning was a little bit too small for me, and though they said it was "For sharing", I don't see how that would be possible for me to do that without getting into a fistfight. 

      The dish came on a bed of Mashed potatoes, Corn on the cob and some weird ass vegetables.       


             Momo also offers an assortment of desserts to choose from. 
But we were too stuffed to order anything

OTHER STUFF RINA AND FAMILY ORDERED DURING OUR FIRST TRIP

While I was on my drive to Eastwood, 
Rina and company were feasting on this!

:(




Crunchy & Spicy Calamari Rings P275
Comes with Fresh Lemon, Garlic Aioli sauce, Spicy Vinegar and fresh Coleslaw



Someone ordered this salad.. 
I Didn't get its name, but it gets plus points for using strips of bacon in it




Boneless Cornflake Crusted Country Fried Chicken (P395)
Served with Wild Mushroom Gravy and Smashed Potatoes




Momo!'s Spaghetti and Mini Meatballs P350




Meat, Meat, & more Meat (P425)
With U.S. Beef, Hungarian Sausage, Meatballs and Bacon




"The Monster"
Crispy bacon, Onion Rings with Hickory BBQ Mayo






            Oh yeah I almost forgot! The dish I ordered the first time I was there.. The Slow Roasted Herb U.S. Roast Beef Fingers (also known to me as 'The dish that was not bacon"). It actually was pretty good, with the slow roasting making the beef unbelievably tender. flavor-wise though, it was similar to a Beef Stroganoff that I've had before.. Nothing really mind blowing and definitely not something I wouldn't wait 30 minutes for. 



My Godson Antoine seemed to love the cheese pimiento bread!



Rina, with cousins Rosalyn, Nina, Sister Chaikka, Cousins Nikka, 
(with my godson Antoine) Aouie and Conci
Two of Rosalyn's friends on the left


        MOMO CAFE is located at the ground floor of Eastwood Citywalk 
and Ayala Triangle Gardens

18 comments:

  1. Huzzah!!! After more than one week (7 years in blog time, hehehe...) you have a new post!!! Glad you were able to fix your blog. Have you tried the bacon slab meal at Poco Deli in Kapitolyo? There's two 1" thick slabs of bacon served with bacon rice and fried egg, all for P280.

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    1. Haha Noel! I didn't think anyone would notice I was gone!

      Funny you should mention Poco Deli because that's supposed to be the next place for me to visit, specifically to try the dish you mentioned!!

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    2. are you kidding me? my friends and I LOVE your blog and eagerly anticipate your posts!

      hope they already have a new batch of bacon at poco deli... their latest one (which we tried just last week) tasted a bit like tinapa, but the previous batches tasted awesome!

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    3. Thats awesome to hear man, thanks so much to you and your friends!

      I'll be going probably in a couple of weeks! I'm excited to try it!

      Thanks again, Noel!

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  2. Woah. Haven't tried Momo's! But I want to and I will soon! :)

    http://www.dekaphobe.com/

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  3. chicken and bacon balls.. interesting! :) drooling over the monster and bbq ribs! i love anything with bbq sauce haha! :)

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    1. Quite interesting right? I didn't know Chickens even had balls! haha!

      *High Five* for BBQ Sauce Love!

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  4. hahaha that's so cute :) I wanna try Momo too. I guess they ahev the same owners as chelsea and mr. jones (which i like!) :D

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    1. Yup! I enjoyed Mr. Jones More, but I enjoyed this place more than Chelsea.. especially cuz of the price :)

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  5. I like the calamari and onion rings. And that big hunk, I mean chunk of bacon looks sooo appetizing, I'm practically drooling. :)

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    1. I don't blame you.. I actually ate it and I still drool when I look at the picture!

      Don't worry about mixing up hunk and chunk.. my wife does the same thing when describing me hehe

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  6. Considering how my office is so close to MoMo Cafe in the heart of the Ayala Triangle, I've never actually gone there! But now, seeing those BACON CUBES... Marching orders accepted; here I go!

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    1. Makati ka din pala Midge! Let's meet up one time!

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  7. Dear RichieZ,

    We would like to invite you to the launching of McCormick’s new Facebook app in the event “Discover Flavors”. Join us on May 10, 2012 as we explore zesty surprises behind McCormick's herbs and spices. We’ll be waiting for you at Fully Booked TopShelf, B6 Bonifacio High Street, 11th Avenue, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig at 3:00pm.

    Don’t forget to RSVP to JC Pullan on or before May 7, 2012. You can reach me at
    the following contact details

    E-mail: jc@dualactionblender.com
    Mobile: 09166426832
    Telephone: 7503416

    See you there!


    Cheers,

    JC Pullan

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    Replies
    1. Thanks for the invite JC! I'll work out my sked to see if I can make it!

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  8. All I can say is that Rina is such a great girl to accept your open love affair for bacon :)

    Then again, so is Lynne for my beer, alcohol, and baby back ribs :P

    All that you ordered were right on the spot :D ! From the ribs, to the pancake batter balls, those are some of our Momo Cafe favorites. Also, their corn dog, ad (of course not to be ignored) their watermelon mojito :D !

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    Replies
    1. bro you just don't see it, but she's crazy about bacon too! one of the many reasons I fell in love with her hehe..


      Funny you should mention the corndogs.. that was on Rina's radar but she thought three dogs might be too bitin for her hehe

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