No. 6 Momo Grill

Chef Vytautas Samavičius and his wife Kristina have two restaurants in the same Liepų street but they are of totally different concepts. Interestingly, both kitchens are highly rated and practically have no rivals in Klaipėda.

The “elder” restaurant Momo Grill is a grilled meat restaurant. Dishes are prepared on a special Josper barbecue oven which costs as an expensive luxurious car, so the taste and sub-tastes of dishes can hardly be copied. Yes, Momo Grill was the first to acquire such barbecue oven.

CHEF.

Vytautas has had his internships in foreign restaurants, among them, in Noma set up in Copenhagen. Back in 2010, Samavičius was perhaps the first of the titled chefs who opened his own catering company. Before Momo Grill and Monai, he and his wife Kristina owned a creative kitchen bistro – La Cle.

Before Le Cle, he worked as a chef for the hotel Navalis for 9 years, also for Skandalas and Radisson Blue. Vytautas is not the type of person to go to the dining area and interact with clients. He is a reserved person but he expresses himself by expressing his imagination on a plate.

DINNER.

The main menu of Momo Grill is not extensive but it persuades that every dish is worth attention. Starters and all main courses are prepared in a special Josper barbecue oven.

This restaurant also offers a special of the day, i.e. a dish which depends on the catch of the day by the local suppliers or on whether any particular type of meat is brought to the restaurant that day. It is important to note that everything in this restaurant is prepared locally and for one day only – there are no delays.

LUNCH SPECIALS.

Day menu is changed every day. On workdays it includes a soup of the day (EUR 1.2), salad, and a hot dish – meat or fish (EUR 4.30-8). Menu of the day always includes special momo sausages (from EUR 7). They are also made locally in the kitchen.

INTERIOR DESIGN.

Restaurant walls are decorated with items from Samavičiai travels. Interior of the restaurants: it slightly reminds a butcher’s (perhaps because of white bricks on the walls), industrial light fittings create the impression of a loft, there is a lot of hard wood which creates a cosy home ambience, maybe even a Scandinavian interior where Vytautas spent much of his time. One thing is clear – having opened a restaurant two and a half years ago and having introduced such interior Samavičiai broke the ice in Klaipėda.

WINE CARD.

It seems that Klaipėda city dwellers are not active wine lovers. They prefer beer. So wine card of Momo Grill is not extensive: 5 types of red and 5 types of white wine. These options are continuously changed. Besides the restaurant often offers beer of local breweries, including the famous brewery Raudonų Plytų.

IMPORTANT.

When a restaurant is small and popular in Lithuania, it is very difficult to find a seat without advance bookings, especially, in summer.