Springfield
Momo’s
For: Eye-Opening Nepalese
6304 Springfield Plaza Springfield
The menu items at Momo’s aren’t easily Google-able and aren’t even listed in the 7,000-entry “Food Lover’s Companion.” I walked into the strip mall-based Momo’s without researching. And I’m happy for the surprise of finding chiura, a flat rice by way of steamed and pressed rice beans, imported from Nepal, and looking like confetti. The rice come with raw soy beans, fried with red chilis and curry powder, and feels like unpopped kernels. The distinct crunch comes as a shock, but soon turns into an obsession, as my teeth craved the heat and the crack—and the new. The accompanying proteins are either fried lamb or chicken (tash) or grilled chicken (choila) flavored similarly to the soy beans, which makes the latter the better choice. There’s also black lentils in pancake form (bara) and the eponymous momos. Get them fried. / dcmomos.com -Stefanie Gans
(February 2014)