How do you tell a good momo from a bad one?

Look at the wrapper first. It should be thin enough that you can almost see the filling through it, and it should not be gluey. Then check whether the filling holds texture or has been machine-blitzed into paste. Finally, taste the achar: if it is a generic sweet chilli sauce rather than a roasted tomato and chilli achar, the kitchen is not taking momos seriously.

Should momos be steamed or fried?

Steamed is the default and the fair benchmark. Frying can hide a mediocre wrapper, which is exactly why judging a new place on its steamed momos tells you more.

How much should momos cost in Auckland?

A full plate sits around $16 to $18. Much cheaper usually means frozen and bought in; much more expensive usually means you are paying for the room rather than the food.

Are buff momos better than chicken?

Buff is what most Nepalis order and it carries spice better because buffalo is denser and richer than chicken. Chicken is the milder introduction. Neither is wrong, but if you want to taste what the kitchen can actually do, order buff.

Best Momos in Auckland: How to Tell a Good One

Everyone claims the best momos in Auckland. Here are the four things that actually separate a good one from a bad one, so you can judge for yourself.

30 July 20266 min read

Every Nepali restaurant in Auckland will tell you it does the best momos in the city, including us. That claim is worth nothing on its own, so here is something more useful: the four things that actually separate a good momo from a bad one, so you can judge any plate in front of you, ours included.

1. The wrapper is the whole game

A momo wrapper is nothing but flour and water. No yeast, no egg, no fat. Which means there is nowhere to hide: it is either rolled thin and handled well, or it is not.

Hold one up. You should almost be able to see the filling through the dough. Bite it and the skin should give immediately, not stretch. If it feels chewy or gluey, the dough was too thick, and the reason matters: steam cannot get through a thick wrapper fast enough, so by the time the filling is cooked the skin has gone gummy and the filling has dried out. One fault causes both.

Frozen momos almost always fail here. Wrappers get thickened deliberately so they survive freezing and transport, and no amount of careful steaming at home brings them back.

2. Whether the filling was minced or blitzed

Push a momo apart with your fingers and look at the filling. You want to see texture: distinct shreds of meat, visible flecks of cabbage and onion. What you do not want is a uniform pink paste.

Machine-mincing on a high setting emulsifies the meat. It is faster and it produces a filling that steams into a single dense lump with a rubbery bite. Coarser mincing keeps the filling loose, which lets steam move through it and keeps the juice where you want it.

3. The achar tells you how serious the kitchen is

Momos come with achar, a dipping sauce built on roasted tomato, dried chilli and garlic, often with sesame or peanut for body. It should be tangy, smoky and hot, closer to a chutney than a dip.

This is the single fastest tell. A kitchen that has bought in sweet chilli sauce and put it in a ramekin has decided momos are a menu filler. A kitchen that makes achar is treating them as the main event. If the sauce is orange, sweet and glossy, adjust your expectations before you take a bite.

4. Served hot

Momos are at their best hot, while the wrapper is supple and the filling is still juicy.

Give the first one a moment before biting in, then use the achar to balance the rich filling.

What about the fried ones?

Kothey momos, pan-fried on one side, are excellent and also slightly forgiving: the crisp base distracts from a mediocre wrapper. Jhol momo, served in a thin spiced broth, is a genuinely different dish and worth ordering on its own terms.

But if you are judging a place you have not tried before, order the steamed ones. They are the version with nothing to hide behind. More on the variations in what are momos.

A fair price

In Auckland, a full plate of momos sits around $16 to $18. Meaningfully cheaper than that and something has been bought in frozen, because the labour of making them does not compress. Meaningfully more and you are paying for the dining room.

Where to try ours

Chicken, buff and vegetarian momos are on the menu at Snax on Commerce Street in Auckland CBD, two minutes from Britomart. Chicken and vegetarian are $16.99, buff is $17.99, all served with house tomato achar.

Apply the four tests above. We would rather you judged the wrapper than took our word for it. There is more on how we make them on the momos page, or you can order for pickup and check for yourself.