Japanese Cuisine in Cambridge : Momi Nonmi

Not long ago, I had a free evening so I decided to head to Momi Nonmi for dinner. If you’re not familiar with this place yet, you should be. It sits in the old WuBurger Gourmet location and it is a welcome addition to the Inman Square neighborhood. I was a big fan of WuBurger (both their burgers and their Nashville fried chicken Sundays) so I was sad to see them go, and even more sad to see the storefront remain vacant for months. Luckily, Momi Nonmi moved in last year and not only is the block back at full capacity for restaurants, but we also have a new Japanese / Hawaiian cuisine to enjoy!

Word to the wise – the restaurant is fairly small, seating only about 25 people, so be sure to make a reservation or expect a wait!

After reviewing the drink menu, I made the decision to avoid the usual beer/wine/cocktail options in favor of something more complementary to the food to come : sake! I’m not very well-versed in sake types or flavors, so on the waitress’s recommendation, I went with the sake flight so I could taste and compare three different selections. The in-house sake sommelier served the drinks to me with a detailed description of each, noting what temperatures each were served at and what flavor profiles to expect.

I’m not sure that I feel confident in selecting a sake on my own after the tasting, but I did thoroughly enjoy the flight and appreciated having the ability to taste and compare a couple different varieties.

As for the food, our selection for the first course was the spicy tuna tartare served with house-made rice crackers. I love sushi grade tuna in pretty much any style, so I was happy to see this on the menu! As mentioned previously, the restaurant serves both Japanese and Hawaiian dishes, but the majority of what we ordered leaned more towards the Japanese side of the menu. There was also a tuna poke on the menu, which also sounded amazing!

The tuna tartare that we were served was exactly what tuna tartare should be: simple, fresh, and well-seasoned. The tuna was chopped nice and fine so you could easily scoop up a spoonful onto the crispy rice cracker. Other than high-grade tuna, the tartare had a dash of soy sauce and finely chopped scallions to give it just a hint of onion flavor. It is fairly common to add more ingredients to tartare to add complexity to the dish, but the tartare at Momi Nonmi was simple, clean, and refreshing. I loved being able to taste the tuna itself without having other ingredients distract from the flavor. This was such an enjoyable start to the meal, and something I would highly recommend trying!

Feeling as though we should have a balanced meal, the next item on the menu that we sampled was the roasted brussels sprouts with miso vinaigrette and toasted sesame seeds.

I am absolutely loving the popularity that brussels sprouts are having right now; it seems like every restaurant I go to has them on the menu in some capacity and these did not disappoint! A lot of people remember the soggy, boiled brussels sprouts from their childhood and immediately declare that they have a skunky flavor, but I’ve found that the trick is cutting them in half and roasting them in the oven – DO NOT BOIL. Even just with salt and pepper you can’t go wrong, but the added flavor from the miso and sesame took these veggies to the next level. The sprouts were roasted long enough to get a golden brown color on the cut edges, and the loose leaves were extra crispy (my favorite part!). The saltiness from the miso and the delicate touch of the sesame made these sprouts irresistible and something that I would suggest even those with brussels sprouts-phobia try!

Still looking to eat ‘healthy’, we next ordered vegetable tempura. (fried vegetables are still vegetables!)

Instead of the usual carrots, sweet potatoes, peppers, and green beans, the mix at Momi Nonmi consisted of Portobello mushroom, daikon radish, and avocado served with a homemade ranch dipping sauce. I decided a couple years ago that I do not like cooked avocado (it takes on a very different flavor in my opinion, and I’m not a fan) so I can’t speak to the quality of the avocado slices, but the Portobello mushroom and daikon radish were sliced evenly and seasoned well. The tempura batter was light and fluffy and perfect, likely a product of using sparkling water in the batter to give it the all-important lightness!

Our final choice of the evening was the grilled tuna served on a ball of white rice with fried garlic and a sheet of nori.

Much like the rest of the meal, this tuna and rice dish was full of flavor and executed flawlessly. It can be so easy to overcook fish, but the tuna was warm and well-seasoned without completely falling apart. The fried garlic on top was fried just enough to take out the bite, but not bitter at all. Garlic can go from caramelized to burned in a blink of an eye, and it looks like the chef took great care in the preparation and execution here.

If it wasn’t obvious, I absolutely loved my meal at Momi Nonmi and can’t wait to return. Occasionally they have special Omakase multi-course dinners, which sound like a special treat perfect for Valentine’s Day! What do you think, does raw fish make for a good dinner date? Let me know in the comments below!