Madhu Budhathoki knows about the viral urban legend known as the Momo challenge. A customer at his University Village restaurant told him about the creepy bird lady who supposedly appears on the screens children plant their faces to and ultimately encourages them to kill themselves.
At the Momo World, they’re using commercial dumpling wrappers, which results in a durable dumpling unlike those at Chiya Chai Cafe, the city’s other momo specialist, where the wrappers are more delicate but tend to tear, making desirable qualities like juiciness a bit of a gamble with each individual dumpling. Other varieties may not be as nicely aqueous as the Momo World’s fish momo, but they are consistently juicy, whether they get an assist from their saute medium, as with the choela momo, a fiery chicken- or vegetable-stuffed purse stained with chiles, Sichuan peppercorn, and pickled tomato that may be the Nashville hot chicken of the dumpling world; or dipped in one of eight sauces that accompany plain steamed dumplings such as the graceful spermatozoa-shaped paneer momo or the classic squat ziggurats filled with chicken or pork.
What can’t you put in a momo? v
727 W. Maxwell 312-733-8637 themomoworld.com
