The hills are alive

Delhi’s Himalayan kitchen arrives in Mumbai, and it brings with it warm, cheesy and porky comfort food perfect for nippy December evenings. mid-day’s no-fear-no-favour review

In this writer’s home, pork is mostly enjoyed in gravies—sorpotel, vindaloo and bafat—or otherwise as a pickled delight (choris/sausages). My Goan grandmother and Mangalorean mother  sometimes make their own varieties of pork roast—the base being a generous marinade of ground ginger and green chillies—with the succulent meat, best enjoyed inside a doughy pao. But, that’s just about how we like our pork. Nothing more, just enough. It’s also one of the reasons why we are always looking for a “surprise-me-pork-menu”. 

That happened finally, when we, for the first time, ordered from Yeti-The Himalayan Kitchen. Known for its authentic, home-style Himalayan food from the regions of Tibet, Nepal and Bhutan, the award-winning restaurant from Hauz Khas Village, Delhi, recently forayed into the cloud kitchen segment with the launch of two branches in Mumbai’s Khar and Powai. 

Joy Singh, co-partner, Yeti said the move was bolstered by the massive surge in consumers seeking high-quality specialty cuisine delivered to their homes. 

Needless to say, the menu, which offers a plethora of Himalayan favourites, is for every and any pork lover. The non-veg section features sliced pork with vegetables, pork lemon fried, crispy pork and honey, masala pork, pork with green peppers, fried dried thukpa (egg/pork/chicken and buff). There’s also an assortment of momos ranging from Yeti kothe special momo, newari momo cha, shabalay (a Tibetan meat filled deep fried pie), to name a few. The menu even has an elabourate variety of noodles and veg options as well, gundruk dadeko (sun dried green leaves tossed in traditional spices) and piro aloo (Darjeeling style cumin garlic and turmeric spicy potatoes).

Pork momos

We tried the pork fried rice (Rs 255), pork momo (Rs 275) and a Bhutanese chicken gravy, sha datchi (Rs 375). We were hoping to get by a hectic Saturday afternoon at work, and so, deliberately chose to order light. But the portions were generous, more than enough to feed two very hungry people. Our order came packed in 100 per cent biodegradable packaging—eco-friendly, check. 

Sha datchi is a Bhutanese chicken dish cooked in a creamy cheese curry, and best paired with tingmo, a steamed Tibetan bun that looks like a bread roll. Let’s just say that this dish reminded us of cream cheese pasta, just that it’s not. The flavourful curry is not the ideal Indian gravy that we are otherwise used to. This one is thick, cheesy, warm and uplifting with diced chunks of chicken and bell peppers—it is the kind of comfort food that takes getting used to. The bun was soft and chewy, and when dipped in the gravy, melted immediately. But, this is a dish, we’d suggest having warm and fresh. The consistency of the gravy thickened after a while, and gluttonous as we were, we ate it, but it wasn’t as delicious when cold.

Sha datchi is a Bhutanese chicken dish cooked in a creamy cheese curry, and best paired with tingmo, a steamed Tibetan bun

The pork fried rice was filling. We’re a huge fan of choris pulao, but this is nothing like it. The rice is sautéed with spring onions, and tiny dices of pork; and while it may seem too bland, it came with two different sauces, which loaded the dish with a lot of spice and flavour. The skin of the pork momos were nicely translucent, not starchy in texture, and was packed with and packed with freshly cooked meat.

We enjoyed this Himalayan meal, and it came just a week before an impending trip to the mountains up north. It was like a new home calling us,  first through its food.

Price: Rs 255 onwards
To order: 8655000844

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