V Rating: VVV
Where: 481 Crown Street, Surry Hills
When: Dinner: Daily from 6pm - 10.30pm.
Tel: (02) 9319 4264
Price: Entree:$6 - $8. Main: $12 - $16.

Last year, a Veggie Friendly reader tipped me off to the Nepalese Kitchen on Crown Street. I’ve been looking for an excuse to go there ever since.

Compared to your average ultra hip Crown Street restaurant, Nepalese Kitchen feels time-honoured and intellectual, the kind of place where conversation could turn to the politics of Nepal’s neighbours China and Tibet, as easily as complaints about the state of the Sydney.

We tried it on a Friday night, where our reserved table was the only free one amongst the busy, noisy crowd.

The excitement was palpable as we checked out the yummy steamed momo dumplings (two out of the three types were vegetarian), but we also ordered the eggplant stuffed with onion and served with a yoghurt sauce. As much as I love momos, the eggplant entree was a highlight. The eggplant was soft but kept its shape, while the onion stuffing was light, and sweetly flavoured with cumin.

There were five different vegetarian mains so our group of six tried them all. At my end of the table the favourite was the Bhanta, an eggplant and potato curry with cherry tomatoes, sauteed with cumin, garlic , ginger and chili. The eggplant was melt-in-your-mouth good.

I also liked the mushroom curry with potatoes, sauteed in a spicy tomato sauce with cinnamon and black cardamom. There’s nothing like sinking your teeth into a whole button mushroom slathered in curry sauce.

The tama was a hot and sour curry with potato, pickled bamboo shoots and black-eyed beans.

The kwali, a nine bean curry cooked with chili, parsley seeds and traditional spices had me at hello.

We also ordered the bandakopi, a vibrant green dish of peas and snowpeas stir fried with shallots, coconut, coriander, green chilies and spices. A sweeter dish, it made a nice contrast to the heavier potato-based curries. To balance out the meal we also shared a light, watery dal.

At the end of the meal we were greeted with a very reasonable bill and a shiny plate of candied fennel seeds to freshen our breath.

A quick poll of the table voted the food as pleasant but not special. I felt more kindly towards Nepalese Kitchen. I enjoyed all the dishes, liked the vegetarian variety, and loved the atmosphere. A fun VVV experience.

Share This