Review: MoMo Café at Courtyard by Marriott, Gurgaon

Sunday afternoons are always full of fun family times, especially reserved for my 4-year-old princess-Saanvi and wife-Neha. We look forward to spending the day in style. One such Sunday, we decided to take it a notch higher. Style, luxury, chic, modern, and elegance are synonymous with Marriott; and that was where we decided to go. I had heard a lot about the 4-course Sunday brunch at Courtyard by Marriott, Gurgaon from a couple of foodie friends and decided to try it.

For late risers like me, MoMo Café arranges a brunch buffet every Sunday, which starts at 12.30 PM and goes on till 4 PM. Note that the name of the café is a bit misleading. I had earlier thought that it would be an oriental specialty café, but later I got to know that MoMo was short for Modern Living Modern Dining and was actually a multi-cuisine café.

Located at ground floor, the bright sign of MoMo Café is hard to be missed. Modern interiors adorn the plush lobby and the calm and soothing environment has a unique aura.

We noticed (especially Saanvi, my daughter) that there was a small bouncy for kids and a kids’ activity station just outside the café. Saanvi was sooooper excited at the sight, as she would choose the play area over fine dining any given day ;)

A helpful hostess promptly escorted us to our table and we took in the modern feel and ambience of the café. The table setting is comfortable and cozy and the live music set the mood for a pleasant experience ahead.

Live music adds to the energy of the Café

The seating is very plush and comfortable

We ordered two mocktails with a Guava and Pineapple base and saw Saanvi happily playing under the expert supervision of the hotel’s staff. Definitely a plus for parents like us :)

The café offers a wide range of mocktails to select from

Both the mocktails were nice and refreshing and we loved the one with a guava base. Next we explored the Salad bar that also had a section for pizzas and pastas. The salad spread was colorful, huge and tempting; we had difficulty in deciding what all to try and taste.

Salads, Soups, Pizza, Pasta and more…

We sampled a few regular salads along with corn salad and paneer kurkure. We also gambled on experimenting with a mix of kimchi salad with lamb. The corn in the corn salad could have been a bit softer. The paneer kurkure were quite tasty. The kimchi salad with succulent lamb pieces turned out to be the pick of the salads and our gamble had paid off.

Next, we moved to a live counter that specialized in oriental delights and tried a portion each of chicken wings, potato fries, and veg manchurian. The chicken wings were tender, juicy and delectable- a must try!

Live counter for oriental food

We tried a slice each of margherita and chicken pizza, before moving to the grill station that housed a good selection of meats and vegetables. We tried the peri peri chicken and grilled fish from the non-veg section and cottage cheese with pineapple from the veg section. Again the chicken scored big- juicy, tender and grilled to perfection with a hint of tanginess in the preparation…it was just perfect.

The Grill Station

Steak, Peri Peri Chicken and Fish from the Grill Station

For the main course, we tried masala chicken and Awadhi chicken biryani from the non veg section and bharwa shimla mirch and mexican style potatoes from the veg section along with the regular tandoori roti as the bread.

The biryani was good and boasted of the typically desired biryani aroma and tender chicken pieces. The masala chicken too was quite delicious. This time, the surprise dish turned out to be -bharwan shimla mirch. The stuffed capsicums and the gravy were awesome and there seemed a perfect blend of spices in the dish. It definitely must be a sure shot hit with the vegetarian food lovers.

The tasty bharwa shimla mirch ki sabzi

The Mexican style potatoes were nice too and the garnished olives and other spices gave a nice tangy taste to the potatoes.

Yummy Mexican style potatoes

Next, with the main course behind us, we came to the best part of the brunch. The dessert section! Marriott is known for its desserts, and looking at the spread on the dessert table we knew that we were in for one of the best dessert sessions in a long time!

Unabashedly, we took a portion of each item that was a part of that dessert spread. There was a very very soft New York cheesecake, baked mango custard, the traditional rabri falooda, the very Indian khoya peda, baked yoghurt, son tikki, lemon tarts, to name a few. If just reading these names has triggered your taste buds and the palate, imagine what we would have experienced with all these in front of us to be consumed in real.

Some mouthwatering desserts

And more…..

Finally, we managed to satisfy our sweet tooth (somewhat) and sat back on our seats to relax after the heavy eating session. It was almost time to bid adieu to the delicious food around us and to head back home—but not before a cuppa!

The tea at MoMo café was served in style too. There was a live tea counter at the café set up in the typical Delhi style and the tea was complemented with savories and probably a tea lovers’ best biscuit—Parle G!

The typical Delhi-style tea counter

Where: MoMo Café, Courtyard by Marriott, Gurgaon
When: Sundays for brunch
Timings: 12.30 PM to 4 PM
Price: Rs. 1650/- plus taxes/per pax


Words by: Sachin