Asian cafe brings rolled ice cream, other street food to Pickwick Place

A booming Five Points South continues to add new eateries. The latest is Momotaro, an Asian cafe serving build-your-own poke bowls, sweet and savory Japanese crepes, rolled ice cream and Thai-inspired flavored tea and milk tea.

The cafe opened in Pickwick Place on 20th Street South in early October.

The items at Momotaro are prepared in front of guests at a 32-foot marble counter, and they blend Asian street food with French and even American influences, according to store manager Ben Yu. 

“We wanted to bring something new and unique to Birmingham,” Yu said. 

All the ingredients, including the rice and fish in the poke bowls, are prepared fresh daily, and each cup of tea is also prepared fresh, according to Yu.

The chain was drawn to Birmingham by the growth occurring downtown and in Five Points, according to Yu.

“Next year, two years from now… we'll be a hotspot,” he said. “Lots of people will come here for fun and to eat and drink.”

“I see lots of old places getting updated and new, modern places coming up,” Yu said, citing new hotels and restaurants in Five Points.

Momotaro also has locations in Pennsylvania and Michigan.