Motto motto, GARDEN CITY

After much anticipation, I finally made it around to Motto Motto to see what all the fuss is about.  Motto Motto sets out to be casual Japanese dining, offering quality meals at affordable prices so if you’re after a quick and hassle free meal, but wanting something that is a step up from fast food, this is the place.

The menu is quite simple but still offers a variety of ramen, rice bowls, breadrolls, salads and several sides to choose from.  It is also a licensed venue and has a few Japanese beers on offer along with non-alcoholic flavoured fruit ciders.

Watermelon & Peach fruit cider 

I was extremely excited about these fruit ciders and was expecting the most amazing drink in the world...turns out they were just cute bottles of carbonated water with artificial fruit flavourings. They were tasty for what they were.  

On this particular visit, we started off with some chicken karage followed by red ramen and the wagyu beef roll on brioche. The chicken karage was a bit of let down. It wasn’t crispy, lacked flavour and was very dry.  There were times when I was taking bites of batter that didn’t contain any chicken pieces at all. I don’t usually leave food behind, but my partner and I struggled to get through that one. Luckily our main meals weren’t a disaster.

Chicken Karage & Kewpie mayonnaise

  

The wagyu beef roll was delicious and looked great. The marinated beef was soft and tender while the salad was fresh and crisp – all in a lightly toasted brioche. Filling to bread ratio was perfect, which as we all know, makes or breaks a sandwich of any sort.

Wagyu beef roll on brioche

Red Ton-kotsu ramen was served with couple of pieces of pork belly and half egg and pickles on the side. The soup, advertised as “12 hour pork superstock”, was tasty and full of flavour with mild heat to it. Although it isn’t the best bowl of ramen I’ve had, it was very filling and satisfying and would make the perfect comforting meal for a cold night after a long day at work.

Ton-Kotsu Ramen (red)

The venue is set up to be fast paced and although turnover is generally quick, the venue does has limited seating and gets quite full during peak lunch/dinner hours, so if you aren’t prepared to wait a little while (or sit against a glass wall facing another diner awkwardly) then opt for takeaway and sit on the beach chairs just outside in Town Square. Service is good for the type of venue, its super quick, super efficient and friendly enough to make you feel welcomed.

It might not be my first choice when it comes to casual Japanese food, but it’s good enough that I’ll definitely be popping back in to try the rice bowls the next time I finish work late and too lazy to cook dinner.

Food:  7/10
Value: 6/10
service 7/10
Atmosphere: 4/10
Overall: 6.5

-wd