Name: Mo-Mo Paradise (Asakusa location)
Ratings and Comments
Exterior – N/A
It’s not fair to rate this restaurant on the exterior because it is located on the 4th floor of a larger building, which is common for many restaurants in Tokyo and Japan.
Interior – 4/5
The dining areas of the restaurant are spacious and feature a variety of design layouts, making the space feel dynamic and interesting. Everything was very clean, especially the self-service food/drink areas. There’s thoughtful attention to detail, with coat hangers and bins for your bags available. I have visited the Shinjuku (Higashi-guchi) location before, and I recall the interior design there being more elevated and elegant. If I were to rate that location’s interior, I would give it a 4.5/5. It’s truly quite nice.
Menu/Price – 4/5
The menu offers a good variety, with reasonable price points ranging from the lower to higher end. On a weekday for lunch, the cheapest course costs 3,080 JPY and includes two cuts of Japanese pork. At any other time, the cheapest course is 4,180 JPY and includes five types of meat: shoulder, loin, and ribs of beef (imported), as well as two cuts of Japanese pork.
Drinks – 3.5/5
The drink station offers a wide variety of options, including soft drinks, juices, teas, and coffees. However, I didn’t give it particularly high marks because the quality of drinks from the machine wasn’t great. The soda and tea ratios were a little off from what I would consider standard.
Food – 4/5
Everything was excellent, and the whole experience was just fun. I opted for the “Japanese Beef Course,” which included three cuts of Japanese beef (shoulder, loin, tenderloin, belly) and two cuts of Japanese pork (belly and loin). All of them were delicious and seemed fresh. For the soups, I chose the classic shabu-shabu and sukiyaki broths. The shabu-shabu broth was a little plain, but that’s typical for shabu-shabu, where you add flavor in your smaller bowl with a citrusy ponzu sauce or creamy sesame sauce—both common in shabu-shabu meals. The sukiyaki broth was more robust, and I particularly enjoyed cooking the proteins in it, as they absorbed its umami flavor.
For the self-service vegetables, noodles, and sauces, here’s what I tried:
- Kabocha (Japanese pumpkin)
- Bean sprouts
- Enoki mushrooms
- Bok choy
- Regular cabbage
- Baby corn
- Shiitake mushrooms
- Chinese noodles
- Udon noodles
- Tofu
- Shimeji mushrooms
- Okra
- Rice (cooked in the rice cooker near the drink station)
There were many sauces and sides, but my favorite was the shrimp chili oil.
Everything was fantastic—try as much as you can when you visit!
Staff – 4/5
The staff were very kind and attentive. A sweet older Japanese lady assisted me and kindly helped teach me about some of the nuances of enjoying a shabu-shabu meal. You’ll see some of these tips in the picture below, which covers “how to cook.”
Restroom – 4/5
Very clean, with a bidet in the toilet, paper towels, and a hand dryer at the sink.
Conclusion – 4/5
I love Mo-Mo Paradise and will continue to make it a go-to restaurant in my travels, as they have locations across Asia and the United States. In my visits to the two different locations in Japan, the service, ingredient quality, and ambiance have all been excellent!
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