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    Restaurant Review: Momo Ghar Dublin

    Five years ago, momos made a splashy entrance on the local food scene. Although the momo-makers themselves were pretty quiet, their creations at Momo Ghar inside Saraga International Grocery spoke loudly. The place attracted national attention for momos and Nepalese fare, with coverage on Food Network. Then Food and Wine declared it one of the best restaurants in Ohio. Over time, the momo operations expanded, and it set up shop in another market, the North Market.  

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    That said, walls are important, too (ask ace newsman, Les Nessman), and Momo Ghar now has walls all its own at its Dublin addition. 

    The restaurant set up shop last winter in the former home of Ba Sho, a Japanese restaurant in Dublin. Some of the original architectural aesthetic remains, now featuring a distinct Nepali accent. The tone is set with a collection of Tibetan prayer wheels, they’re big cylinders that hold scrolls of printed prayers; spinning them is sorta like speed-reading. It’s an interactive, meditative tool that functions as art. It makes the momos seem thoroughly at home.  

    For the unfamiliar (after all, it may have been a few years) a momo is a dumpling. And while dumplings are part of many cultures, momos have a charm all their own. Momo Ghar’s particular pockets start with an achingly-tender, hand-rolled shell, that, despite of its tenderness, manages to competently hold its precious fillings and remain firmly intact. Jhol Momo ($11.95) is a good starting point, then. It features momos, wrapped like peddler’s bags around a ground chicken filling that’s accented with garlic and served with a sea of brothy sauce. The reddish sauce has a mild palate-pleasing spike to it, so while the dumpling genre is typically associated with comfort, here it’s teamed with a little burn that makes it uncommonly interesting. 

    Jhol Momo

    Next on the hit list: sautéed momos. For that, we have the Alu Momos ($11.95), filled this time with potatoey goodness. The shells retain their aching tenderness, even as they’re caramelized and crisped. 

    Alu Momos

    And there are more momos. There are pork and vegetable filling options in fried or soupy, saucy formats. At the same time, there are other options well worth more exploration. Case in point: Tsel Gyathuk Ngopa. It’s noodle-based dish that gets a pleasantly toasty pan-fried finish. In the mix are gently sautéed vegetables (including broccoli, spinach, carrots and onions). If offers a nice balance of vegetables and noodles. 

    Tsel Gyathuk Ngopa

    The Chicken Choila Set ($14.95) is more of a starter, but it affords diners an opportunity to try several Nepali treats in one order, all chilled. So, four things: Chicken Choila, which is spicy marinated chicken; Alu Dum, which a Nepali-styled aromatic potato salad; Bodi, a dish that is, for better or worse, defined by it black-eyed peas, and finally Chiura, which are flecks of flattened rice. The Chiura is always curiously better and more addictive than it has any right to be. Variety makes the collection entertaining. 

    Chicken Choila Set

    For now Momo Ghar’s Dublin location is open for lunch and dinner on weekends. On weekdays, it opens at 5 p.m. (You can still get a lunch fix at the North Market, though). You’ll find it at 2800 Festival Lane.

    For more information, follow Momo Ghar on Facebook or Instagram.

    All photos by Susan Post

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    Miriam Bowers Abbott
    Miriam Bowers Abbotthttps://columbusunderground.com
    Miriam Bowers Abbott is a freelancer contributor to Columbus Underground who reviews restaurants, writes food-centric featurettes and occasionally pens other community journalism pieces.
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