Wednesday, January 22, 2014

Restaurant Nepal: Serving Authentic Himalayan Cuisine

Hey guys, today I will be reviewing an eatery outlet very near to where I work, and that is Restaurant Nepal, a place that serves authentic Himalayan Cuisine.


I've never tried  Himalayan cuisine before, and usually when I passed by this place, I would think twice about going in because it looks pricey and expensive. BUT I was wrong. The food was exceptionally good, and the price is really not super expensive that I had initially thought. So what did I have that night? Read on to find out!


 Shangri-Lla (RM9 per glass, RM40 per jug)

The favourite drink we had that night was Shangri-Lla. It's a special house drink with a combination of wine, fruit punches, and sliced apple. We actually had quite a lot of glasses that night because it tasted just so refreshing, and the crunchy apple had a distinctly tangy taste to it thanks to the wine :) *two thumbs up*!

Tasting Snack Platter (RM24)

First dish that we were served is the Tasting Snack Platter, which has 6 different types of dishes on it. The mini dumplings that look like Xiao Long Bao is called Momo, and these are boiled. This can be like a starter, if you will. It has the best selling flavours on Nepal and if you're here with your family or a big group, this is the dish to order to share :)

The other dishes on the plate are:
Bhuteko Bhatmas – crispy soy beans marinated in Nepalese spices
Chicken Chili – tastes like sweet and sour chicken! Very Chinese!
Aloo Silam - boiled potatoes marinated with redo onion and Silam, unique Nepalese herb,
Mushroom peas and Nepalese salad


Up close of the Momo, which tastes just as good as the dumplings I love to eat. They are juicy, tasty, made from chicken and chives, and are simply delicious :D

Momo (Fried) (RM12)

Here's the fried version of the Momo. equally as delicious, but not as juicy :D

Tawa Maccha (RM14)

Tawa Maccha is grilled fish, served with a side of lime and Nepalese salad. Tastes like our mamak ikan bakar, and you will definitely get your money's worth as they serve you two fish instead of one :)


Chow Mien (RM9)

Yes, the name does sound distinctly familiar with the cantonese chow min :p And yes, it is wok fried. Though it tastes a little like the fried noodles that the Malaysians are so familiar with, it is distinctly different that the ingredients give off a milder taste, with Nepalese sauce.  The noodles are also different, not the normal yellow noodles that we are usually served with, but the ones here are thicker, and feels less doughy.

Chicken Skewers

This is a new item on the menu, but I didn't manage to catch its name, so I'll just call it chicken skewers. Basically it's tender chicken breasts marinated with special Nepalese spices, and grilled to perfection. I really liked this one as the meat was very juicy and not dried up and hard at all. It is served with a side of lime juice, and this adds a tingling taste to the chicken when you bite into it. Definitely something that I will recommend to anyone who comes here :)

Chatamari (RM12)

Looks like a pizza at first glance, but is actually a pancake mix with egg :) It's kind of like a Nepalese pizza, and is topped with onions, chicken, carrots, and tomatoes :) Again, this is a dish that you can call to share as there are 8 pieces on the plate and is definitely enough to go around :)

Farsi Ko Dal with Mutton (RM18)

The Farsi Ko Dal is a blend made from pumpkin, and this particular dish is cooked with mutton. I initially thought it was just your typical everyday curry but after tasting it, I realised that it's a very special type of pumpkin curry (though it really looks like the ordinary type). The taste is very smooth, and the distinct taste of the lamb is complemented very well with the pumpkin.

Thakali Khana (RM15)

Thakali Thali Khana is a traditional Thali rice set which comes with black or red bean dal, Nepalese Curry, curry vegetables, green spinach, chutneys and salad. Robin mentioned to us that this dish is very popular in Nepal as it is a very well rounded dish with carbs, proteins, and savoury taste. When in Nepal, people usually eat this for lunch together.

There are 3 types of Thakali Khana set to choose from:
Kukhurako Masu Bhat (RM15) – Thali rice set with Nepalese Curry Chicken (shown above)
Khasiko Masu Bhat – Thali rice set with Nepalese Curry Lamb
Saag Sabji Ra Bhat – Vegetarian Thali set with Nepalese Curry Vegetables

Thukpa (RM9)

This is definitely hands down one of my favourite dishes of the night. This is a type of Nepalese soup dish, and you can order it spicy, or not. Though for me when I ordered it spicy, it wasn't as spicy as I thought it would be (but you can add on the spice later, no worries). It's most probably because it is cooked with the Nepalese spicy curry. The Curry is made of Nepalese chilli which has a quick spicy effect but doesn’t stay long in the mouth. So I don't feel the spiciness >.<

It also has a little sweet soury taste like light tom yam but is different. I would definitely reccommend this for a rainy day when you need something to heat you up :)

Kheer (RM8)

Kheer is rice pudding cooked in milk, bay leaves, and clover.

Sewai (RM6)

Sewai is vermicelli pudding cooked in milk & coconut cream.

Though they mention that these are desserts, they felt quite heavy (being rice and vermicelli) to me. But they're sweet and the condiments goes very well with the cream and milk. Personally for me I would not take them as I would have already been too full from my meal, so I would definitely recommend to you that if you want to partake of the desserts and enjoy them, then you should leave some space for them.


Overall, I really enjoyed my experience dining in this place, and I would definitely return to it :) I love the atmosphere in the place, and the prices are not overly expensive. You can really get a decent meal here for under RM50, and I think that's as good a place as any to start hunting for food that you have never tried before, i.e. Nepalese Himalayan Cuisine :)

Restaurant Nepal – Himalayan Cuisine
F-0-6, Plaza Damas,
60 Jalan Sri Hartamas 1,
Sri Hartamas,
50480, Kuala Lumpur
Tel: +603 6206 3904
Business hours:
Mon – Fri: 11:30am – 3pm; 6pm – 10pm
Sat – Sun: 11:30am – 10pm
Til the next time, stay beautiful!

xoxo,
yin

1 comment:

Mieza Everdeen said...

reading this and seeing all the Nepal cuisines reminds me of a book I read about the experience of a Malaysian team hiking mount Kala Pattar. I recognized kheer and thukpa as the writer mentioned about it in the book ;)