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| - Everest is clearly the best kept secret here in the Northwest for Nepalese food (it's been open for about four months). Although the takeout business was fairly brisk that evening, the boys and I were a little leery when we saw the 15-minute parking signs outside and only seven tables inside the restaurant. We were greeted pleasantly by Arjun, the new owner, who seated us immediately. He was very attentive and took the time to describe some of the menu items for us and answer questions about the ingredients in some of the dishes (our son has a mild peanut allergy).
After a few sips of our mango lassis(which were sweet, tangy and creamy), we ordered two appetizers: fish pakoras and chicken momos. These were the best fish pakoras I've ever eaten--the tender, flaky morsels of fish were ever so lightly battered in an aromatic chickpea batter and served with a refreshing mint chutney. Since the thinly wrapped chicken momos (served with grilled tomato chutney) were steamed, you could really taste the wonderful flavours of the mildly spiced chicken filling.
For our main dishes, we tried one of the Nepalese traditional dishes, Everest Sekuwa. The marinated chicken pieces were grilled in a clay oven and served on a sizzling plate with onions and green peppers. Laden with spices (but not overpowering), the chicken was meltingly tender and caused a little "flavour explosion" inside our mouths. The lamb curry was also tender and perfectly seasoned. My son's butter chicken pizza was very good (topped with tandoori chicken, green peppers, red onion, and mozzarella), he loved the generous topping of gooey, stringy, cheese!
For our side dishes, the Aloo Gobi (cauliflower and potatoes with ginger, garlic, curry and turmeric) was cooked until tender but not mushy. The coconut Basmati rice was fragrant and the butter naan was soft and fluffy (not chewy at all). With all these wonderful authentic dishes practically at our doorstep, we will definitely be back!
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