Momosan Ramen Seattle
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This place is a fun spot to come on a date night or with a group of friends! The atmosphere is fun and the service is great. The open concept kitchen is one of my favorite things about any restaurant and this one did not disappoint. They have a separate seating area upstairs near the bar and that’s where we had the pleasure of sitting. Before you get sat, they even offer to check in you coat at no charge. It’s definitely convenient because they have a lot of stool type seating, and there’s no place to hang your coat. There are little hooks under the table for your bags ladies so that’s a plus.
Something interesting about the menu is it gives you a lesson on the type of foods Momosan serves. Gives you a little history about ramen and the type of noodles they use. Also gives you a rundown about the steps in making the broth and the time that it takes to prepares.
Momosan offers a great menu option of appetizers and drinks to share! I usually don’t drink sake and have probably only had it once in my life, but since we were at restaurant that had dedicated sections in describing sake and the types they offer in their menu, I figured we’d get some. We ended up getting the Dassai 50 Junmal Ginjo. This sake was delicious. It was light and just the like the description says, has hints of green apple. I’d be willing to get this sake again, but with a menu like theirs, I’ll probably be trying all their other drinks :)
The starters we got were amazing. The duck fat fries were perfectly crispy and the taste was rich. It came with a side of ketchup. Our server suggested that we mixed the ketchup with their yellow sriracha and let me tell you, it was a game changer. I actually put the yellow sriracha on everything we had :) It had a great flavor and kick to it.
They also have 2 different baos to choose from. I ended up with the deep fried soft shell crab. I love seafood and anything fried so this was perfect. The spicy mayo gave it some zing. Don’t be intimidated by the claws of the crab though! Since it’s fried, you can take a bite of it all without having to worry about any shells cracking your teeth!
Something that was interesting was the hamburg. It’s kind of like a Japanese meatloaf. It’s a waygu blend and it sits on a bed of cabbage. When it’s served, it’s on a steamy hot plate and then a sweet and savory steak sauce is poured over it. The taste is definitely a little sweeter than what you would expect but it was still pretty good.
Another dish we got was the spicy wonton dish. This isn’t the same as what you would see at Din Tai Fung. The wontons are served in a Szechuan chili oil that has a thick base. Certainly mix up the wontons well so everything is coated. When you serve yourself a piece, make sure you scoop up a good helping of the chili peppers and oil. The flavors are fantastic! The chili gives it such a nice bite and the chicken is moist and so flavorful.
I’m a big seafood lover and when I saw the jellyfish, I knew we had to get it. I rarely eat jellyfish, but if you know, you know. They serve it chilled as the appetizer dish at most asian weddings and honestly, it’s one of my favorites. Here at Momosan, it’s still served chilled and it is flavored with some yuzu soy sauce and chili oil and garnished with cilantro. Textures really don’t bother me. If it doesn’t bother you, I highly recommend getting this dish! The jellyfish has a nice bite and it’s not extremely slimy. The taste from the yuzu compliments the jellyfish well and the ginger adds a nice balance.
Not only do they have a great list of apps to share, but they have a list of their skewered meats, or also know as Kushiyaki. It’s not just chicken you can get but there are different parts of the chicken. Besides that, they offer shrimp, pork, salmon and beef skewers too. You have the option of buying them individually or buying them by the platter.
Now for the main event! I can’t explain to you how delicious everything was. I personally had the spicy dan dan. The noodles were firm and chewy and served in their Szechuan chili oil. The miso pork had a light sweetness which complimented the slice. The kale adds some color and a fresh taste.
The buri bap is almost a take on the Korean bibimbap. It’s served in a stone bowl and it is piping hot. When it’s served at the table, the bowl is steaming the yellowtail is pushed to the side of the bowl to get a nice sear and the egg is mixed into the rice and cooked right in front of your eyes. Once everything is cooled down, the yellowtail is taken off from the side of the bowl and placed on top of the rice and sweet garlic soy sauce is lightly poured over.
The gyukotsu is a special ramen because the braised beef has been cooking away for about 7 hours! It’s so good that they only allow 25 orders per day. If you get there early enough, I recommend getting a bowl. The soup is nice and light.
The tan tan noodle is probably the heavier of the items we ordered that night. The base of the soup was more thick and creamy. It was more rich and filling but still yummy. It almost had a curry taste. The broth is a spicy sesame base. I could probably eat this all if we didn’t order appetizers cause this alone can fill you up very quickly.
They do seasonal desserts but since we were so full, we didn’t get a chance to try any. But we will next time for sure! Overall, the night was fantastic at Momosan. It was great to experience our first time with our friends and we had a blast. The servers were all around so kind and friendly. This place can get so busy but the servers still attended to us when we needed anything. I do recommend this place to try. They are now starting to do lunch so you’re able to go early instead of waiting until 5pm when dinner starts. Since this is right in chinatown, there’s no open parking lot but street parking! Let me know if you get a chance to try this place and let me know that you think!
With Love,
Niki
All photos by: Kristy Neang
IG: @lotusfleurxo