NOM, Not Only Meatballs – Rustic Italian fare on Elgin Street, Soho

Elgin Street has had a bit of a revamp this year with the addition of two very cool new restaurants; the contemporary Chinese resto Ho Lee Fook, and on top of it, NOM. NOM stands for Not Only Meatballs – but despite the name they do in fact specialise in different types of delicious meatballs whilst also serving up other Italian favourites.

As you walk up the staircase to NOM, you can already feel the chilled out atmosphere and friendly vibe of the place. The space is surprisingly big, considering it is on Elgin Street and space is hard to come by. On one side is the bar area, with casual tables, stools and a view of an open kitchen. On the other side are proper sit down tables if you want to make yourself comfortable for the evening. We sat over by the bar, which was a little bit cramped but great if you just want to pop by for a pizza and drinks!

We started off with said meatballs, and were lucky to try a range of different ones. The seafood meatballs with clams, mussels and seafood broth were definitely different and I liked how flavourful they were. A good alternative if you’re not a big meat-eater as they still had a meaty texture to them.

I have to say that I much preferred the more traditional meatballs, with beef and Neapolitan ragout, served on paccheri pasta stuffed with ricotta cheese. These hefty meatballs were perfectly cooked, firm yet tender and I loved the creamy, cheesy pasta bites underneath. The Neapolitan sauce was divine too – cooked for hours and the ideal tomatoey complement to the beef – comfort food at its best!

I couldn’t wait to tuck into NOM’s delightful wagyu beef sliders! Three plump little burgers arrived, and although they weren’t anything special, they were pretty satisfying… just what you crave after a couple of drinks! The meat was nice and juicy and I definitely could see myself coming back for these.

Although we were nearing full capacity, we could’t resist a slice of NOM’s Mushroom and Black Truffle pizza. I loved the thin crust which balanced the rich ingredients of wild mushroom, chunks of fennel sausage, Taleggio cheese, buffalo mozzarella and indulgent truffle. The fragrant truffle was so tempting, it would definitely be hard to resist this tasty pizza… I recommend making sure you eat it piping hot though to really enjoy the cheesy, truffle fusion.

Although I was getting super stuffed by this point, we had to try a bite one of the pasta dishes. We tried the spaghetti clams, broccoli puree, lemon zest and toasted almonds and to be honest, this was really not my cup of tea. The strange mix of ingredients didn’t really work together as I had hoped they might, and the almonds added an unusual texture to the dish.

All in all, NOM is a fab place to come for casual dinner and drinks – and with a killer Tuesday happy hour which includes unlimited free pizza when you buy drinks, it’s the perfect after-work cure. I like how they keep the food simple and rustic, using quality ingredients and traditional cooking methods. Don’t expect fancy, michelin-star food, but do expect scrumptious Italian fare which will cure that meatball craving… see you there!

NOM, 1-5 Elgin Street, Soho, Central, Hong Kong, 2540 7988, www.nom.com.hk