Momo Brasserie, Sydney CBD

Situated in the heart of the business district in Sydney near Martin Place, Momo Brasserie delivers hearty food that you may find at a New York brasserie. I have made regular trips to this cafe for coffee nearly every morning but not so much for their food. Making good use of the distance between Momo Brasserie and my work place, I eventually got the chance to check it out for more than just a morning coffee run. 

Considering the location, it's no surprise that most of the people dining at this cafe were office workers in the area. While it claims to be an 'Upper-East Side restaurant, the vibe is down-to-earth and easy going. The atmosphere was relaxing with people sitting down for a meal and those standing near the counter waiting for a coffee. There are so many options to try here that you wouldn't know where to start. Since there are a couple of posters for pastrami at the front, I knew I had to get something that involves the signature meat. In Sydney, there doesn't seem to be many places that include pastrami on the menu except for a few places that serve the Reuben sandwich (an American classic) so might as well make the most of it. 

At Momo, one of the meals that they offer on the menu is an open sandwich with pastrami meat titled the 'New York Pastrami'. I don't know how the New York delis do it but I thought that Momo's version is incredible. There were epic stacks of pastrami piled on top of 2 slices of toasted rye bread along with American mustard, pickles and slaw. It was hard to eat this without getting your plate messy. Having said that, I thought that this was one of the best sandwiches I've ever had. The house-made pastrami takes nearly a week to make starting from the process of curing and pickling the beef brisket then rubbing and seasoning it with various spices and herbs (including peppercorns which I'm obsessed with right now) and then smoked to make succulent, pull-apart, peppery and very flavoursome pastrami. It is perfect to have with the crusty toasted rye bread  as it was strong enough to hold so many ingredients though it was messy to cut and incredibly filling by the end.

New York Pastrami - warm house made pastrami served on open toasted rye, and served with slaw, pickled cucumbers and American mustard ($17.50)

You get a choice of salad or fries as a complimentary side to your meal if you order anything under the deli menu or if you decide to have the Wagyu burger or the Momo sliders. I stuck with the salad which is actually big for a side but it helped a lot with balancing the meaty flavours as well as the carbs from the rye bread with some much needed veggies. And you won't get even more full than you already are.

Complimentary salad

On another visit to Momo, I was craving for more pastrami but with something a little different. This version is served on a bed of potato latkes and veggie greens (I'm assuming it's spinach but this was not mentioned on the menu). I remember loving potato latkes (shredded potato cakes) when I was a kid and mum found a recipe on it in one of her old cookbooks. Unfortunately it's high in carbs but it was a total guilty pleasure. So crusty and crispy on the outside and quite soft inside, I just love digging into shredded potato. Again, the pastrami was well seasoned, tender and juicy. In addition, the slaw, spinach and the slightly sour pickled cucumbers helped in toning down the amount of starch and meatiness of this dish. Like the New York Pastrami open sandwich, this was a generous serving for one person. It will keep you very full for the rest of the day.

Warm Pastrami served with Dijon mustard, pickled cucumbers, potato latkes & sour cream ($19.00) 
 

FOOD PORN!

Thought that this version of lemon, lime bitter was a bit too fizzy for my liking. Still enjoyed the drink regardless.

Lemon, lime bitters ($4.50)

On yet another occasion, work was incredibly busy so I didn't have enough time to head out and have lunch. Momo Brasserie offers a separate take away menu with some of their menu items listed at reduced prices. They sadly didn't offer the New York Pastrami sandwich on the Take Away menu but they do offer the Reuben if you need your pastrami feed. You also get the option to order 100g of pastrami for take away (funny enough this was listed on the website but not on the take away menu at the restaurant but they still offer it when I requested this).

After watching an episode of Man v Food where the host was talking about pulled pork, I was having epic cravings for decent pulled pork in Sydney. Was pretty stunned when I saw that their pulled pork roll only costs $10.00! Like the New York Pastrami, the serving size for the roll was huge. The pulled pork, tangy barbeque sauce and creamy slaw are sandwiched inside a damper roll like a burger. As for the roll, it has a fluffy and slightly crusty texture while the pork was soft, well cooked and packed with flavour. This was also very messy to handle and bits of pork ended up everywhere in the box.  

Pastrami ($3.60 - take away), Pulled pork roll ($10.00 - take away, $17.90 - eat in)

As for the coffee, I found it to be very helpful in getting me through the working day. The mocha coffee had a decent balance which isn't too sweet nor is it too strong though it was quite creamy. 

Mocha (small: $3.00, large: $3.50)

 

Whether you are keen for breakfast, brunch, lunch or just a coffee, Momo Brasserie caters for most of the day from 7am to 4pm on weekdays so it is definitely catering for full time city workers than hungry students late at night. However, the prices are reasonable especially given the portions and if you order takeaway then it's even cheaper. What's even more amazing is that while the food is made to order, it gets delivered from the kitchen to the table quickly. In addition to fast service, you also get friendly and helpful service from the staff. Definitely check this place out when you are in need of something hearty, filling, tasty and a little bit fancy without the pretentiousness.

Momo Brasserie
65 Elizabeth Street, Sydney NSW 2000
(02) 9233 8838
http://www.momobrasserie.com.au/