Breakfast Buffet can be better. Some of the food especially Indian Cuisines like Chapati, Chole, Sambar etc. were bland in taste.
Location is excellent and it is near Financial Center Metro Station on Sheikh Zayed Road. Rooms were really good and views from the room was excellent. Staff were extremely helpful and kept the room to an excellent standard.
Stayed in February 2019
Masters of Marriott brings celebrated Chef Julien Royer, the connoisseur of modern French cuisine to India
New Delhi, 12th March 2019 – To celebrate the pursuit of consistent innovation and excellence, Masters of Marriott is bringing down Chef Julien Royer to India next week in collaboration with All Things Nice. Chef Julien Royer, a French chef and the co-owner of Odette, 2-Michelin starred modern French restaurant located in Singapore, will be hosting an exclusive dinner at JW Marriott New Delhi Aerocity on 14th March 2019. This experience, which is open to guests, will feature a five-course modern French meal prepared by Chef Julien, along with wines paired by sommelier Nikhil Agarwal, founder of All Things Nice.
Commenting on his upcoming visit to India with Masters of Marriott, Chef Julien Royer said, “I look forward to visiting India, a country that is renowned for its authentic flavours and diverse food culture. I am happy to be a part of Masters of Marriott and associate with leaders in the culinary industry who have chosen to blur boundaries and truly celebrate global talent. I grew up on a family farm in central France’s Auvergne region where I picked up culinary skills from my maternal grandmother. My heart and soul lies with French cuisine and I most certainly look forward to curating an unforgettable culinary experience for Marriott’s discerning guests in New Delhi, India.”
Mr. Nitesh Gandhi, General Manager, JW Marriott New Delhi Aerocity said that, “We are delighted to host Chef Julien Royer at JW Marriott New Delhi Aerocity on 14th March 2019. Culinary experiences always have and will continue to drive focus for us at Marriott. By bringing together our in-house F&B talent and international celebrity chefs, we aim at offering our loyal and new guests unmatched dining experience as they interact with industry experts and sample the best of food and wine.”
By getting associated to Masters of Marriott, Sommelier Nikhil Agarwal, Founder at All Things Nice commented, “ Creating and being part of top-end wine and food experiences have always been our passion. Getting associated with Masters of Marriott which celebrates innovation and culinary art is a thrill. We have made a wonderful selection of wines to pair perfectly with Chef Julien Royer’s menu on his visit to Delhi. All Things Nice is happy to partner with JW Marriott New Delhi Aerocity on this exciting intiative. ”.
The arrival of Chef Julien Royer is yet another initiative by Masters of Marriott that showcases the hospitality brand’s strength and leadership in the F&B industry. It celebrates Marriott’s own talented culinary mavens as well as renowned international chefs and it was launched with Chef Marco Pierre White earlier this year. In the coming months, the brand will continue to host such exclusive experiences for its guests, including ticketed events, masterclasses and meet-and-greets with globally renowned culinary experts.
About Marriott International
Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ: MAR) is based in Bethesda, Maryland, USA, and encompasses a portfolio of more than 6,900 properties in 30 leading hotel brands spanning 130 countries and territories. Marriott operates and franchises hotels and licenses vacation ownership resorts all around the world. The company now offers one travel program, Marriott BonvoyTM, replacing Marriott Rewards®, The Ritz-Carlton Rewards®, and Starwood Preferred Guest®(SPG). For more information, please visit our website at www.marriott.com, and for the latest company news, visit www.marriottnewscenter.com. In addition, connect with us on Facebook and @MarriottIntl on Twitter and Instagram.
About JW Marriott
JW Marriott is part of Marriott International’s luxury portfolio and consists of beautiful properties and distinctive resort locations around the world. These elegant hotels cater to sophisticated, self-assured travelers seeking The JW Treatment® – the brand’s philosophy that true luxury is created by people who are passionate about what they do. JW hotels offer crafted experiences that bring to life the brand’s commitment to highly choreographed, anticipatory service and modern residential design, allowing guests to pursue their passions and leave even more fulfilled than when they arrived. Today there are over 80 JW Marriott hotels in more than 25 countries and territories. Visit JW Marriott online, and on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. JW Marriott is proud to participate in the company’s award-winning loyalty programs – Marriott Rewards®, The Ritz-Carlton Rewards®, and Starwood Preferred Guest® (SPG). The programs, operating under one set of unparalleled benefits, enable members to earn points toward free hotel stays, achieve Elite status faster than ever, and seamlessly book or redeem points for stays throughout our loyalty portfolio of 29 brands and more than 6,700 participating hotels in 130 countries & territories. To enrol for free or for more information about the programs, visit members.marriott.com.
About All Things Nice
All Things Nice is India’s leading luxury, wine and spirits marketing and consulting agency. Conceptualized by Nikhil Agarwal, a trained Sommelier accredited with the Wine Australia scholarship and appointed as Wine Australia’s A+ Educator in India. Nikhil is a certified and well-recognized sommelier, writer and editor, international wine and spirits judge and TV personality. He was one amongst five contenders worldwide (90 countries) nominated by the International Wine and Spirit Competition (IWSC) in London, for The Julian Brand Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Wine Industry.
Nikhil has been featured on TV channels such as NDTV Profit, Times Now, Bloomberg TV and ET Now. CNBC did a feature on Nikhil as part of the show ‘Young Turks’ in 2013 and Discovery Channel featured him in the show The Flying Wine Maker. The show is currently being telecasted in 116 countries and was viewed by over 66 million people.
Nikhil was voted as India’s TOP 10 Movers & Shakers in Verve magazine in June 2014 and has been invited by trade organizations from around the world like HKTDC, SIAL, and ProWein to speak about the Indian wine industry in international markets. Related Posts Relish
Bahrain Food Festival Attracts More Than 150 Visitors in its First Week
Home Culture Inside Bahrain Bahrain Food Festival Attracts More Than 150 Visitors in its First Week Bahrain Food Festival Attracts More Than 150 Visitors in its First Week March 13, 2019 0
The fourth edition of Bahrain Food Festival continues to attract record numbers of visitors achieving an unprecedented level of success. In the first week alone, more than 150,000 people visited the festival which was launched on Thursday, February 28 2019, which is expected to attract even greater numbers in the upcoming period.
On this occasion, the Chief Executive Officer of BTEA, H.E. Shaikh Khaled bin Humood Al Khalifa revealed, “Bahrain Food Festival presents an ideal platform that enables local restaurant owners to showcase their innovative cuisine and obtain a greater level of exposure to a wider audience, especially to visitors from neighboring countries.”
“The festival contributes in positioning Bahrain as the tourist destination of choice for food lovers, and also supports various other food related sectors, thereby fueling the development and growth of local enterprises which contributes to the local economy as a whole,” he added. 1 of 5
Hosting the Bahrain Food Festival comes in line with the strategic vision of Bahrain Tourism and Exhibition Authority (BTEA), which seeks to enrich the tourism sector by organizing a variety of tourism initiatives which work towards enhancing Bahrain’s position as a regional destination in the culinary world.
Since its launch in 2016, Bahrain food festival has continued to attract food enthusiasts from the both the Kingdom and the neighboring GCC countries, in light of the sheer variety of the fun-filled activities and entertainment suitable for the entire family, including: world class live demonstrations by internationally acclaimed chefs, live musical performances by various bands, and a variety of games, to name a few.
In this year’s fourth edition, a total of 108 participants took part all related to the food industry, ranging from restaurants and cafes, to nutrition and culinary equipment; 81 of which are local along with 73 up-and-coming outlets. The festival offered visitors an assortment of cuisines such as Middle Eastern, Western, Asian, Indian, Organic, and Healthy.
The strategic partners of the 4th edition of Bahrain Food Festival 2019 include Batelco and Al Osra; the others partners include Awal Gas, Gulf Finance House (GFH), Bahrain Bay, The Avenues Bahrain, House of Uniforms and IKEA.
Three Athens Businesses Compete to Be the Flavor of Georgia
Three Athens Businesses Compete to Be the Flavor of Georgia The Locavore Tweet Three Athens companies have been named finalists in the annual Flavor of Georgia competition, a showcase for Georgia-made foods that has recognized dozens of barbecue sauces, salsas, honeys and other products in its 13-year history. The competition is sponsored by the University of Georgia Center for Agribusiness and Economic Development, and is judged by distributors, buyers and other executives in the food service industry. The three local companies that will participate in a Mar. 19 showcase event include Epting Events for its braised short ribs, Pouch Pies for its chicken butternut squash pie and Classic City Bee Company’s smoked honey. Founded 45 years ago, Epting Events is well known regionally for its event-planning and catering services. With the entry of its always-popular short ribs in this year’s competition, the company is exploring a possible entry into the retail food space. Epting has teamed up with the UGA College of Agriculture to explore ways to label, distribute and market new products. Keith Roberson, who runs Epting’s special projects and business development, says the company “wants to take some crowd favorites and turn [them] into something that people can get at their local supermarket.” Head chef Janice Witcher, who has been with Epting for 40 years, makes the short rib preparation sound easy: “Season the pan by sautéing carrots, celery and onion, then add short ribs and do the same process. Cover with stock, salt and pepper, simmer slowly…’til they are nice and tender.” Pouch Pies opened its first outlet in downtown Athens in 2013 and has since gone on to serve pie-starved Anglophiles across the country. “We moved to the U.S. 10 years ago from South Africa and discovered a gap in the marketplace of what’s considered to be a good savory pie,” says Charmaine Enslin, who manages the kitchen that prepares the company’s wholesale orders. “All countries except the U.S. have a savory pie in their cuisine,” she says, adding that their customers can “experience flavors from all over the world.” A look at the company’s menu bears this out, with cleverly named pies ranging from Australia’s “Dinki Di,” a pie with ground beef in a tomato-based gravy, to Thailand’s “Yum Mi Pai,” made with chicken in a green curry sauce. Offerings based on Moroccan, Russian, Irish, Scottish, German and Indian (“Mumpie”) cuisines are also available.
The company uses locally sourced vegetables for its pies and is searching for local sources of chicken and meat. The pies are available at the Broad Street restaurant for dine-in or to bake at home. Classic City Bee Company founder and real-estate lawyer Doyle Johnson first became interested in bees during a vacation to Northern California, where he was introduced to a beekeeping family that had been in the business for 100 years. His interest grew during his first year in law school, when he “read everything [I] could about bees, their habits, reproduction, swarm locations. It’s difficult for me to pinpoint what drew me to them.” For spring break during his first year of law school, he built his first beehive. Johnson formed the company in 2016 as a partnership with his father, Scott, who caught the beekeeping bug from his son. They submitted the company’s smoked honey to the Flavor of Georgia, where it caught the judges’ attention and is now a finalist in the competition. “The honey business grew as a byproduct of the beekeeping,” Doyle Johnson says. “Collecting and selling honey allows me to spend time with the bees.” Johnson developed a special “cold smoke” process for the new product, in which the honey is dripped slowly inside a smoky chamber separated from the fire. Johnson says he and his wife like to make salad dressings with the honey, or use it to introduce a smoky note when they don’t want to cook salmon on the outdoor grill. He expects the new product to be available on the company’s website within the next two to three weeks, and it will be rolled out soon after at many local retailers, including the “Georgia Local” section at Publix stores across the state, the Daily Groceries Co-op and the Uncommon Gourmet. The company’s website is a fount of information on bees and their central role in the development of human societies and cultures. According to Johnson, ancient Egyptians traveled with the honeybees up and down the Nile so they could pollinate crops, and still-edible 4,000-year-old honey in clay pots was found in Egyptian pyramids. UGA’s Sharon Kane is the coordinator of Flavor of Georgia, and she is proud of the competition’s positive impacts on the state’s agriculture industry. “Georgia companies have submitted more than 1,400 products to the competition, and research shows that finalists and winners average an 11 percent increase to their sales,” Kane says. “We want to take businesses that are ready to grow and give them the extra publicity and networking to get them to the next level of success.” The competition evaluates products from 13 categories, including barbecue sauces, condiments, honey, meats and seafoods, sauces and others. Judges select three finalists from each category, and those finalists are invited to the Mar. 19 showcase at the Freight Depot in Atlanta. Along with bragging rights, the 2019 grand prize winner will receive exhibit space at the Georgia Food Industry Association’s convention and three consultations from the UGA Food Product Innovation and Commercialization Center.
Store Manager – VSFA – Oman
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Executive Chef-Indian Cuisine – Lulu Group International
• Should have a thorough knowledge of the Indian Cuisine.• Well versed with different styles and preparation methods pertaining of Indian Cuisine.• Develops standard recipes and techniques for food preparation and presentation which help to assure consistently high quality.• Pro-actively presents new menu ideas, involves himself/herself in developing new concepts.• Assists in new recipe creation.• Attending and conducting menu presentations.• Measure productivity and introduce new process change; planned and implemented.• Evaluate statistics on Sales/ Wastage/GP of the current products as well as the New Products Developed.• Ensure that the team receive adequate training and follow given recipes and methods.• Ensures that the store Chefs and junior staff follow all developed specifications regarding portion size, quantity and quality.• Assists in the food production aspects of special events in the Event Calendar being planned.• Evaluates food products to assure that the quality standards are consistently attained.• Contributes to Kitchen revenue through effective food cost/yield analysis.• Ability to interact positively with supervisor, management, co-workers, members to promote a team effort and maintain a positive and professional approach.• Ability to produce a high volume of work in timely manner, which is accurate, complete, and of high quality. Skills
• Bachelor’ degree or related culinary degree.• Minimum of 10 years’ experience in the culinary field out of which minimum 3 years in equivalent or Senior Sous chef position.• Food Safety Certificate.• 8+ year’s hotel or equivalent experience in regards to managing performance and culinary excellence.• Ability to calculate figures and amounts such as discounts, proportions, percentages, area, circumference, and volume.• Problem solving and decision making ability.• Strong organizational skills.• Ability to develop himself/herself in the current role and beyond.• Willing to take on responsibility and able to delegate tasks efficiently.• Very creative and able to think outside the box.• Ability to create and implement training format for teams. Job Details Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates Company Industry
4th COLOMBIAN FESTIVAL ARIZONA
By Editor March 12, 2019 09:34 4th COLOMBIAN FESTIVAL IN ARIZONA
As in previous years, The 2019 Colombian Festival 4th Edition, will honor one specific Colombian region. The chosen zone for this year is The Cauca Valley, where Salsa is the predominant cultural part of this región. Its Capital Santiago de Cali, is recognized as the Salsa Capital of the world. This city is also known for “The Feria de Cali”, one of the most attended fests around the country. Come and join the Salsodromo Contest, as local Salsa schools will compete against each other with their passion for our rhythm. There will be a Salsa workshop where professional dancers will be teaching the Colombian dancing style!
Everyone is invited to the Colombian Festival. Besides Colombians, people from other countries who are attracted to our Latin culture will attend. This will be a great opportunity to pass our traditions from one generation to the next.
During the 2016 Colombian festival, the Northern Coastal Region was celebrated with “The Parranda” (party) replicating the very known Barranquilla Carnaval and Vallenato (typical music from the area). While in 2017, the Festival honored “La Zona Cafetera” the Coffee Region, taking advantage of the venues architectural design (Plaza Tradiciones). Furthermore, in 2018, Los Llanos Orientales (The East Plains Region) was honored. It was celebrated with Arpa a musical instrument and Joropo music, both typical from this area. The attendees were engulfed by the atmosphere.
After the festival, there will be a concert with Galeo Latin Music. This band will be playing some of our Colombian classics. Also Mambo World will be playing their caribbean flavors music. There will be two Djs. (DJ Kalak y DJ Santtiago Café Caderas) mixing all kinds of music. “Colombia Vive” will be performing dance choreographies inspired by Colombian folklore. Children activities available, including Colombian typical games for kids. Typical food from the Cauca Valley Region and Colombian cuisine delicacies such empanadas, arepas, chorizos, and tamales, will be served. The above and more surprises will take place at the Colombian Festival 4TH Edition.
Ticket Pricing as follows: Festival Only : 1pm -6pm ($15) general admission. Kids under 12 free. Concert Only : 8pm-2am ($25) by Galeo Latin Music and Mambo World Combo Ticket : Festival and Concert ($30)
When : March 16/ 2019
Where : 4344 W. Indian School Phoenix AZ 85
Buy your tickets:
Tickets On line: http://ticketon.co/a1134
Outlets: La Tiendita, Comunidad Latina, Simón Hot Dogs, El Auténtico, Puerto Rico Latín Grill, Mi Tienda Latina, Salvadoreño Restaurant (75 Ave y Central locaciones), El Chullo, Latín Fashion LLC
A culinary tribute to Wing commander Abhinandan
A culinary tribute to Wing commander Abhinandan March 13, 2019 at 10:49 am Amidst an array of Indian cuisines and food enthusiasts at the 14th edition of Culinary Art India, chef Jitender Singh had his concentration set on watermelon as he carved out the face of Indian Air Force Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman as a tribute to his heroism. In the thoughtful gesture, Singh, who has served Prime Minister Narendra Modi and former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, carved out Abhinandan’s distinct and “iconic” moustache, on the watermelon, along with “Jai Hind” in Devanagari script and a couple of army men. Being from an army background he had stated that he had lost his cousins during the Kashmir Attack and he is aware of what one goes through when ones dear ones are in danger. What Abhinandan did for our country is beyond courage and bravery. Through this fruit carving, he wanted to pay a tribute to our brave pilot, our Army men and other defence forces. The culinary festival also saw 15 chefs demonstrating their culinary expertise and competing in Authentic Indian Regional Cuisine. Be it Punjabi cuisine or Rajasthani or Odisha cuisine or South Indian cuisine — different flavours and food preparations from across the country were on display on the first day of the Culinary Art India at the Pragati Maidan here. Not only professional experienced chefs but students who are currently pursuing culinary courses also participated at the event too. Chef Vivek Saggar, General Secretary of Indian Culinary Forum, found the CAI competition as a great “platform for young aspiring chefs”. CAI is a great platform for these youngsters. I want people to treat these chefs with respect. There was a time when our profession was taken for granted but now the time is changing and I hope people consider these chefs more than just ‘bawarchis’. Related Posts
How Did Irving Become One of the Country’s Most Vibrant Nepalese Food Enclaves?
Cafemandu Brings a Taste of Nepal to Irving — Including Nine Kinds of Momo Dumplings
The best place to find momos in the United States is Jackson Heights, Queens. That neighborhood’s dozens of vendors participate in an annual “Momo Crawl” festival.
The second-best place to find momos in the United States is on the suburban, asphalt-covered flatland of Irving, Texas. Irving is home to the second-largest Nepali-American population in the country, behind only New York City. Two societies, a spiritual center and at least 13 restaurants cater to the growing community. But start asking around to find out why immigrants from a cool, mountainous country are congregating in a hot, flat suburb, and the answer is surprising: Nobody quite knows how Nepal came to North Texas. *** Brothers Pradip Giri (far left) and Ramesh Giri (far right) cook with their wives Anjana Giri (left) and Rejina Giri (right). Kathy Tran
One of the prevailing theories of Nepali migration to Dallas County centers on North Lake College, the community college that serves Irving. (Disclosure: This author is a North Lake College employee.) North Lake reportedly has the largest population of Nepali students of any American college or university. According to an unofficial tally by the college’s international student center, the school has around 650 Nepali students — a number which, before the Trump administration, was nearly 900.
Those numbers account for a staggering 80 percent of the college’s international student population — all from a country with a population slightly smaller than Texas’ and located 8,000 miles away.
Keith Landry, one of the college’s international student advisers, isn’t sure how to explain this affinity.“I started here in 2006, and it was already 70 percent Nepalese,” Landry explains, referring to the college’s international student population. Landry says he visited Chicago a decade ago and met a Nepali-American working at Subway. “I said that I lived in Irving, Texas. ‘Oh, is that where North Lake is? I have friends who go there.’ Word of mouth.” Sailesh Bajracharya (left) and Dipesh Acharya of Cafemandu Alison McLean
But not everyone in the community here attended North Lake, and anyone trying to explain why Irving became a Nepali enclave faces a chicken-and-egg conundrum. Many NLC students from Nepal say they came to Irving because they had family already here. But many of the locals say their families came here because of North Lake.
Ramesh Giri, one of two brothers who attended North Lake and now jointly own MoMo To Go, sums up the conundrum neatly.
“The people who came here in the ’80s and ’90s, they started making Dallas home,” he says. “Another reason is North Lake College and the DCCCD colleges. I went there. All of my friends and all of my relatives went there. The younger populations are because of the school. The people with the families are because there’s someone they know.”
The prevailing theory inside North Lake’s International Center is that the Diversity Immigrant Visa Program, which began issuing visas in 1995, opened up the United States to migration from Nepal, and that in the following years Nepali immigrants arrived at the college and in the city almost immediately. Why they chose this corner of Texas is still unknown. The entire wave of migration may well have started with just one or two people who told their friends and family about Irving, or about its community college.
Other local schools contribute to the population, too. Dipesh Acharya, manager of Cafemandu Flavors of Nepal, moved to Irving after attending Texas State University in San Marcos. Bipin Thakali, one of the partners at Peak Restaurant, came to the U.S. to get a pilot’s license at a school in Arlington, which has since moved to Fort Worth.
Although Thakali’s background is slightly different, his theory of how Nepal came to Irving still revolves around education.
“North Lake is in Irving, you know, and UTA is in Arlington, so it’s right in the middle,” Thakali speculates. “Some students take classes at North Lake and classes in Arlington and stay in the middle.”
In 2015, when a devastating earthquake struck Nepal and left almost 9,000 people dead and millions homeless, the student body at North Lake College responded by donating blankets, clothing and more than $8,000 in cash. Two Nepali students returned home with $4,000 each. In an interview with the college’s student newspaper, Sudip Hamal recalled spending his share to pack trucks with food and drive them to a remote village in the Sindhupalchok District, where the earthquake had destroyed 97 percent of homes.
“It was a four-hour drive each way,” Hamal told the North Lake College News-Register . “With that money, we helped 200 families. We distributed edibles, things like rice and cereal for them to eat.” *** Steamed momos with dipping sauces at Cafemandu Alison McLean
There must be 50 ways to eat a momo.
The dumpling’s traditional fillings can involve ground chicken, goat, lamb, yak or, most commonly, water buffalo. Vegetarian fillings are increasingly common; pork momos exist, too, and Peak Restaurant in Irving daringly serves beef momos, even though 80 percent of Nepal is Hindu. (Small minorities of the country are Buddhist, Muslim or some localized combination of those faiths.)
Steamed momos are the simplest order of all: The dumplings come out of the steamer basket with little more than a side order of dipping sauce. Pan-fried and even deep-fried momos can be had, and so can fried momos coated in a zestful rub of seasonings, herbs and diced red onions.
Cafemandu is the only restaurant in Irving — and, according to its owners, the only restaurant in the United States — to serve sweet momos for dessert, with a creamy dairy filling. Dairy lovers can pick up a savory alternative at Cafemandu, too: “cheesy white” momo, covered in “creamy cheese” sauce.
For many Nepali-Americans, the perfect cold-weather comfort food is steamed momos served in a hot broth. Jhol momo is, in essence, dumpling soup, with a richly aromatic broth made with tomatoes, chili peppers, cumin, and herbs and spices native to the Himalayas. C-momo at Cafemandu Alison McLean
One of the most beloved of all preparations has its own shorthand: “C-momo,” short for “chili momo,” or, as many menus insist on spelling it, “chilly momo.” However it is named, chili momo is a steamed or pan-fried order coated with a richly spicy, deep-red sauce founded on the flavor base of indigenous hot peppers.
Chili momo, too, comes in many varieties. At Cafemandu, it’s got a subtle heat that may seem innocuous at first but builds in power with every successive bite. Just across Northgate Drive, inside the Texaco station on the corner, Momostop slathers its C-momo in a sauce so fiery red that it might as well be a warning sign. Peak Restaurant’s chili momo are deep-fried, with almost crunchy pleats of dough; some of them have menacing slivers of hot pepper on top or hidden inside.
Every Nepali restaurant in Irving serves momos, even if the kitchen’s primary focus is on another genre of food. Cafemandu is probably the most prominent momo specialist in Irving, with nine varieties available at any given time. Peak, which is nominally a sports bar, also makes the dumpling wrappers by hand. Some businesses, such as Hot N Spicy on State Highway 183, add momos to a menu that’s focused primarily on more generic Indian fare.
And, in a happy marriage of Dallas and Nepali food cultures, the momo has found a home inside gas stations. The rest of Dallas may feature convenience store taco counters, but a Fresh Food Store on Northgate Drive, with two pumps out front, is the home of MoMo To Go. Momostop’s Texaco location is just blocks away. (A second Momostop location, inside a Chevron on MacArthur, recently closed.) From top left, clockwise: butter chicken momo, Jhaneko chicken momo, mo mein, Chhola samosa at Momo To Go Kathy Tran
MoMo To Go was established by brothers Pradip and Ramesh Giri as a delivery-only business that operated out of a small, central commercial kitchen. The location open now, which welcomes dine-in and carry-out orders in addition to serving as a delivery hub, is a mark of the business’ successful growth over the course of two years.
“We already used to make momos on the weekends in our house,” Ramesh Giri says. “If there is a small gathering or anything, we start making momos, because we expect some food from Nepal. We always thought, you know, there is pizza delivery and a lot of American food that can be delivered at home. With all these Nepalese people in the Dallas area, why not deliver momos?”
In the convenience store corner MoMo To Go calls home, specialties include choila momo, chicken dumplings fried in a mixture of spices, and rara momo, steamed dumplings served inside a warm bowl of noodle soup.
“Somebody who has never had Nepali food before, momo is the first thing I would recommend them to try,” Giri says.
Acharya, from Cafemandu, agrees. “It’s more like burgers here in the U.S. In Nepal you get in every corner, you drive by and you find momo stalls. You find restaurants selling momos in each and every corner.”
That’s close to becoming true in Irving, too. We all know the rule: Once we can eat a food inside a gas station, that food is officially part of the Dallas canon. *** Thakali thali with rice, bread, curries and chutneys at Peak restaurant Alison McLean
For Dallas natives, the best way to get to know Nepali culture — at least until construction on a planned cultural and spiritual center is completed in Euless — is through the booming Irving restaurant scene. Momos are just the beginning of a culinary culture that is far from monolithic. At Ramailo, off State Highway 183, Nepali foods get an upscale spin in an elegant setting; try chatamari, a kind of rice flour crepe loaded with toppings, which the staff likens to a pizza, or kawaaf, dry-braised mutton, which cooks slowly in its own juices.
Peak Restaurant is notable for being one of Irving’s too-scarce bars . The city still strictly enforces ordinances requiring at least 50 percent of a bar’s total sales to be food, and prohibiting the sale of alcohol within 300 feet of churches, schools, hospitals and almost all forms of residential zoning. But Peak Restaurant is also notable because partner Bipin Thakali is from a tribal minority — also called Thakali — with roots in Nepal’s steep northern mountains.
Thakali people have their own slightly different culinary traditions. By way of example, take the bar’s thali, a sort of sample platter that is common across India and Nepal. A typical thali comes with rice, bread and an array of different curries and chutneys.
“There’s not too much difference item-wise on the plate, but it’s the spices that matter,” Thakali says. “Even between the Nepali and the Thakali thali. In the lentils we put a thing called jimbu — that’s an herb that you add on the lentils. You put a little bit of butter in the pan, you fry the jimbu and then you add the lentils. That’s something that grows in the mountains. I think the way you cook the chicken or goat is a little different too; a lot of Nepali items sell them more like a curry. Ours is not like a curry — it’s fried, but at the same time has a little bit of soup in it.”
Thakali food, with its roots in mountain crops, also frequently employs a tongue-tingling spice which the locals call timur, and which is better known in the rest of the world as the Sichuan peppercorn.
The use of timur points toward one of the less obvious facts about Nepali culture. The cuisine’s overlap with foods of far north India is clear — many menus feature chicken and breads baked in the tandoor oven, or certain varieties of biryani. But Nepal has another neighbor that also casts a massive shadow over its culture and is a major influence on its cuisine: China.
If any street food in Kathmandu rivals the popularity of momos, it’s chow mein. The familiar takeout dish of stir-fried egg noodles, proteins and vegetables is a massive hit in Nepal, and almost every restaurant in the Texas community serves its own rendition. Dive into a bowl of bhatti chow mein at Cafemandu, choose from five varieties at Peak or grab a “MoMein” platter from MoMo To Go, which is, of course, a bowl of noodles topped with pan-fried dumplings. Seating at Peak Restaurant in Irving Alison McLean
But Nepalese food is stubbornly distinct from the cuisines of its bigger neighbors. The difference lies primarily in the distinctive flavors and spices.
“The spices that we use — it’s kinda similar to Indian spices, right?” Ramesh Giri says. “But we have our own flavors. If you try Chinese momos, it’s more sweet, not very spicy. Chinese dumplings are not as spicy. The fillings are different.”
Finally, Irving’s Nepali community has embraced its new Texas home by building new kinds of fusion foods. Cafemandu even serves a sausage on a stick inspired by the State Fair. More tempting, perhaps, is Cafemandu’s “Nepali burrito,” with nine kinds of beans and a splash of hot pepper sauce.
“You’re in Texas,” Acharya explains. “You gotta know burritos.”
All of this — Chinese-Nepali fusion, regional thalis, goat and mutton curries, chicken burgers, noodle soups, the ubiquitous momo in its many forms — is an expression of the richness of a culture that simply did not exist in Irving three decades ago. But the growth of the Dallas area’s Nepali community faces its own set of challenges. At North Lake College, the Nepali student population has dropped by about one-quarter since fall 2016, part of a general decline in the international student population at the college and across the U.S. This presidential administration has, it appears, been successful in its efforts to discourage migration.
Now Irving’s growth is fueled instead by Nepalese-Americans arriving from elsewhere in the U.S., attracted by the city’s growing national reputation as a cultural center.
“The people who were in other cities have also moved to Dallas,” Giri says. “Because they have friends here or maybe they think it’s a very diversified area. Culturally, every item that they need is easily accessible.”
He gives an example: Nepali customers here have ready access to spices and home-country products via Irving’s Indian grocery stores.
Giri also addresses the question of Irving’s topography and climate, seemingly so different from Nepal’s. “I think they are not really concerned here about the climate or the weather,” he explains. “Most of the time you are inside the house or inside work.”
And not all of Nepal is nestled high in the Himalayas. “The northern part of Nepal is really cold, but if you go south it’s really close to Texas,” Giri says. “For example, where I was born is a place that is warmer than Dallas. We have 115, 120 in the summertime — 45 degrees Celsius.” “Now that we have more than 10 restaurants on the same street, it’s all about who has the better food and the service, you know? That brings a healthy competition along with a community of people.”– Bipin Thakali
Win Tickets to join the Birthday Celebrations at Harringtons Cocktail Lounge
Win Tickets to join the Birthday Celebrations at Harringtons Cocktail Lounge Win Tickets to join the Birthday Celebrations at Harringtons Cocktail Lounge March 10, 2019, 4:26 pm 4 SHARES
Hop aboard Harrington’s Cocktail Lounge for their 2nd birthday bash on the 15th of March!
Join Harringtons for an interactive night of nautical frivolity.
You will kick away from land by the SurfaRosa Tiki Dock from where you will board the HMS Harringtons Cocktail Lounge luxury cruise liner. Venture beyond the ship to District if you dare, beware or might stumble into head hunters on Paradise Island, Yikes! Win Tickets including drinks & snacks
Entrance: Doors open at 9pm, free until 10pm and R100 thereafter. The first 50 people to click ‘attending’ will be added to a complimentary VIP guest list!
Dress: Best dressed gets you loot.
What to expect: Hula girls, Head hunters, Polynesian fire eater and other sneaky surprises!
P.S.: Drink specials will be confirmed soon!
Directions to Harringtons Want more stuff like this? Get the best restaurant specials straight into your inbox!
Email address: Leave this field empty if you’re human: Don’t worry, we don’t spam See more Written by Marvin
Founder of FoodBlogSA Media. B.Bus.Sc. – Marketing; M.Bus.Sc- Tourism. A career in destination marketing was calling but then my passion for food took over. Welcome to our restaurant marketing platform. [g1_socials_user user=”1″ icon_size=”28″ icon_color=”text”] You may also like March Movie Line-up at The Galileo Open Air Cinema
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