Joburg's Momo Kuro serves up mod dim sum with a killer rooftop view

Tim Lai, Lawrence Lai and Aadil Mayat, the trio behind Joburg’s “Momo” restaurants, are all about experimenting with new concepts and categories to push forward how they define modern Asian food. 

Each of their stores highlights a different aspect of it: Greenside’s Momo Baohaus specialises in baos and sushi, Illovo’s Momo Soko specialises in grilled skewers, and Norwood’s Momo &O focuses on ramen noodles. Now, they’ve added a fourth location – Momo Kuro – on the rooftop of the Trumpet building in the heart of the Keyes Art Mile.  Its speciality? Modern dim sum – and a killer rooftop view.

Co-owner Tim Lai tells us more.

What’s different about your latest addition to the Momo family?

Momo Kuro specialises in dim sum style tapas with a variety of freshly made dumplings, baos and pancakes. We wanted to capture the amazing dim sum experiences of Hong Kong with breathtaking views.

What’s behind the name “Momo Kuro”? 

Momo means dumpling and Kuro means pitch black, which is our colour inspiration for the decor. We wanted to create a space that’s reminiscent of a modern dim sum restaurant while still being warm and welcoming.

The location in the Trumpet building requires guests to enter through a hidden staircase to reach us: I think this adds a little intrigue to the experience, and makes the view at the top all the more unexpected.

What are your menu highlights?

I’d definitely recommend our Peking duck pancakes (amber roasted duck, hoisin, spring onion, cucumber, paper-thin steamed pancake, and toasted sesame) and yuzu chicken pancakes (crispy chicken nuggets, fragrant orange yuzu sauce, spring onion, cucumber, paper-thin steamed pancake, and toasted sesame).

For our roasted duck dish (amber roasted duck, rye noodles, spring onion, and toasted sesame), we carefully marinate the duck, roast it until the outer skin is brought to a fine crisp with the interior still succulent, and then round it off with fresh house-made rye noodles.

What’s your overall vision for all the Momo restaurants?

Our dishes are mainly grounded in traditional Taiwanese, Japanese, and Korean cooking. Overall, we want to showcase authentic modern Asian flavours through interesting and exciting dishes. We want to make fresh and delicious Asian food more accessible so that people can enjoy it on a daily basis.

This article was originally published in the Sunday Times Neighbourhood: Property and Lifestyle guide. Visit Yourneighbourhood.co.za