Taste From Everest
Nepalese restaurant · Midtown East ·
Momos, duck curry, lamb chops, and sizzling lamb chops
Momos, duck curry, lamb chops, and sizzling lamb chops
"Taste From Everest hides in plain sight, among several notable Indian restaurants on a stretch of Lexington Avenue in Kips Bay. There's an Indian section of the menu, and a steady stream of takeout chicken tikka orders, but we like to dine in—like the weekly regulars in the front window—and let the server take the wheel. Get a proper spread of plump, thin-skinned momos, life-affirming cinnamon- and cardamom-scented duck curry, and a plate of lamb chops, which arrive at your table still sizzling under a layer of slightly charred red onion, and cilantro." - willa moore, sonal shah, bryan kim
"Hiding in plain site among several notable Indian restaurants in Kips Bay, this Nepali restaurant has framed photographs of Mount Everest on the wall, a steady stream of takeout chicken tikka orders, and at least one table of friends with regular-customer status. To have an excellent meal here, all you have to do is step foot in the door. Someone will sit you down, guess exactly what you want to eat like they’ve known you your whole life, and then bring you an extra table when you’ve successfully ordered more than will fit in front of you. Pick and choose from the Nepali and Indian sections of the menu, but make sure you have a plate of thin-skinned momos, some traditional Nepali duck curry that’ll warm you from the inside out, and multiple orders of steaming hot cheese naan. You'll probably finish your last bite 120% full, and just a little bit jealous of those regulars at the table next to you. But that's an easy fix. Food Rundown Chicken Momos Resist the urge to get them fried, and get your momos steamed instead, because the delicate skin lets the filling have its moment in the spotlight. The momos come with two sauces. The chili sauce is good. The mild, cashew-based sauce is even better. photo credit: Willa Moore Changra Chops You'll hear these lamb chops before you see them, sizzling their way up from the kitchen downstairs, on a cast-iron skillet under a layer of raw red onion and cilantro. If you're getting a spread, it should include these. photo credit: Willa Moore Traditional Nepali Duck Curry Tender, bone-in chunks of duck, bathing in a light brown, cinnamon and cardamom-spiced gravy. A no-brainer. Cheese Naan We know how easy it is to fall for garlic naan. Don't do that here. Order the chewy, melty cheese naan, and then use it to sop up all your leftover curry." - Willa Moore
"I love restaurants that blend cuisines, and Taste From Everest does this spectacularly: located at 102 Lexington Avenue just north of 27th Street, it identifies as Nepali but also presents food from far northern India (including Kashmir), Indo-Chinese dishes, Mumbai chaat, Punjabi curry, and Mughal vegetarian fare, making it one of the most varied menus in Curry Hill. It's a project of three brothers from Lalitpur, Nepal—executive chef Gaju Chhetri (currently working in Australia), chef Gopal Chhetri, and front-of-house manager and beverage director Krishna Chhetri—and opened in 2020, managing to stay open during the pandemic (for a while carryout only). The front room feels like an informal café with a street-facing bar, orange walls, and a painting of hikers ascending Everest; the back dining room is more formal with a bar being installed, sturdy brown booths, gray flagstone walls evoking a mountain landscape, blue geometric tiles, and statuettes of Buddha and Ganesh. I was particularly attracted to the purely Nepali dishes: duck chili (choila, $12)—bone-in hunks bathed in a thick dark garlic-and-ginger paste— and a “traditional Nepali duck curry” ($17), a mellow brown stew scented with bay leaves, cinnamon, and cardamom. The momos are more delicate than the huge Jackson Heights purses, with mustard-greens options or chicken jhol momos ($13) served in an irresistible saffron-colored garlic broth that can be finished as a soup; the cod fry ($12), battered in chickpea flour and served with mint chutney, is abundant and pleasantly simple. Among the large menu of over 90 dishes you'll find tandoori poleko khasi (mutton) with a crumbly spice crust, Himalayan lamb hot pot ($19) — a thick tomato-laced stew with lemon and chiles — Mustang curry ($17) with boneless dark-and-light meat in a coarsely spiced sauce (one of the hotter dishes I tried), and vegetable dishes like alu bodi tama ($15) featuring bamboo shoots, potatoes, and black-eyed peas. The place serves halal meat, and because the menu is so vast you really should pop an Indian beer and study it before ordering." - Robert Sietsema
"I was struck by a duck-focused dish drowned in a thick red sauce tasting of ginger and scallions, with no distracting vegetables—an intense, single-minded preparation that recalls chili con carne in its focused devotion to one protein." - Robert Sietsema
"I found Taste From Everest, a rare South Asian spot in Curry Hill that blends Himalayan food from Nepal and far northern India; it’s remained largely overlooked in its three years. A viscous red chili ($10) from Central Nepal is a standout appetizer, with lots of boneless (but gloriously skin-on) duck that delivers a burst of pondwater flavor, and the dish can also be made with water buffalo." - Eater Staff
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