The Hungry Lady: Blogger Lunch Date: Momo's Bistro

Last week, I had the chance to take care of two things that have been on my to-do list for much longer than they should have been: check out Momo's Bistro and have lunch with fellow blogger extraordinaire, Elizabeth. Elizabeth is the mastermind behind Gastronomy (By a Wanna Be Chef), and the two of us have been talking about grabbing lunch since this summer. Things finally worked out in our favor, and we met at Momo's last week to discuss food, families (on her end), grad school (on my end), and all kinds of other randomness.

Momo's lunch menu isn't terribly extensive, but it still manages to have a great selection of classic sandwiches, salads, and larger entrees. It took us a little while to order because we were spending more time talking that looking at the menu. Oops. Anyway, when we finally did order, E went with the French Dip. I know what you're thinking: How boring. Let me tell you, this sandwich was anything but boring (at least that's what I heard). See, Momo's makes their French dip with pot roast instead of roast beef. I know, right? Amazing. And they top it with Gruyere cheese, instead of the more conventional provolone or Swiss. E was a huge fan, especially after she tried the au jus, which reportedly had a really rich flavor that just made the sandwich.

Please note that I have borrowed the pictures in this post from Elizabeth, as hers turned out infinitely better than mine did.

Look at all that cheese! And you can just tell that the roll is crunchy.

Since I peeked at the menu before I left work for lunch, I was pretty positive that I was going to get the fish tacos. These, like the French dip, were not your run-of-the-mill fish tacos. These were made, not with mahi mahi or tilapia, but with grouper. I love grouper, so you can just imagine how excited I was about these. The two tacos were served on corn tortillas and stuffed, and I do mean stuffed, with red cabbage, pineapple salsa, guacamole, and of course, grilled grouper. Each taco was double wrapped - two tortillas per taco - probably since corn tortillas are a little more fragile than flour tortillas. In this case, they were still delicate, but the extra two tortillas allowed me to split up some of the insides so that I could get the taco down to a more manageable size. The fish was utterly divine. It was tender and just perfectly done. The cabbage added a nice crunch, and between the pineapple salsa and the lime served on the side, there was just the right amount of acidity. Side note: I love that this was served with a lime instead of a lemon. The entire plate was just gorgeous, but it tasted even better. And, it was light and refreshing, which was perfect for the sunny, 75 degree weather that we were having in Columbia (in February. I love this town).

Isn't that just beautiful? It was crisp and light too.

I would go back to Momo's for lunch in a heartbeat. I'd love to try them for dinner too. Or maybe for brunch. Actually definitely for brunch. I just looked at that menu, and now I'm starving. I suppose that's an occupational hazard. Anyway. Y'all should head on out to Momo's when you get a chance. It's definitely worth the trip, at least for lunch, but if dinner and brunch are anywhere near as good as our meal was, you'll be safe no matter what time of day you head out.

Final Rating