Om Restaurant & Lounge (weekend brunch)

I am always excited when I find a reasonably priced dining option in a popular neighborhood with good ambiance (such as outdoor seating in the summertime!).

Imagine two hungry people roaming around Harvard Square on a gorgeous weekend summer day in August desperately looking for a place with good food (requirement!), not too expensive (my requirement), nice ambiance (his requirement), and immediate available seating (this is the hardest).  Not an easy task!

We picked Om after seeing that they had tons of outdoor seating available and they were serving a special (and reasonably priced) brunch menu. Score! 

I was a bit sad when I learned that they had filed for bankruptcy back in July due to a landlord dispute. The restaurant remains open (for now).  Let's hope they can resolve their dispute and remain open.

 

Pre-course: free bread!

These mini-brioche rolls were really cute and pretty tasty.  I had several before telling myself I should really save room for the rest of the meal.  (I really love bread!  But I tend to fill up on it too fast because I'm always SO HUNGRY while waiting for the food).

On a side, note, have you ever had Chimay beer? It's delicious. It's a Belgian beer that's brewed by Trappist Monks (seriously!) as a way to earn a living. All Chimay beer is brewed onsite at the abbey, ensuring its quality.  It's thick, caramel-like, sweet, and rich. I love it.

Back to the food . . . . all the items on the brunch menu were quite reasonably priced, ranging from $8-17. I got the fish cake ($10).  It was similar to a crab cake, but made with fish instead. Although it was well made, the fish was just not nearly as flavorful as any crab would be. So, it was only OK - kind of bland, actually. The salad was simple, but done well.  I liked how they offered small portion sizes that I could actually finish it (always a plus).

Bryan got the Kobe truffle burger with a poached egg on top.  At $17 this is actually quite a bargain, and Bryan said it was quite good, cooked to a perfect medium rare.  It came with a side of seasoned fries which were also great.

I know this is not really a comprehensive review since we have only tried their weekend brunch menu. The actual dinner menu has a lot of creative Asian fusion dishes that would probably be interesting to try. This is not a bad place to go on a Sunday if you want reasonably priced, solid fare and a chance to sit outside in Harvard Square.  However, I have a sneaking suspicion that these dishes are not really representative of the type of cuisine showcased on the rest of their menu.  I guess I'll just have to come back another time to try the rest of the menu.

Om Restaurant & Lounge
92 Winthrop St
Cambridge, MA