A new Nepalese restaurant recently hitched up in Peterborough city centre and ESP's food reporter Kelly Jackson was invited to sample its menu.
Many of us enjoy tucking into a Chinese or Indian takeaway, but what if you could have the best of both at the same time? That’s exactly what I was treated to when I popped along for an evening at Gurkha Taste, one of Peterborough’ s newest restaurants, to sample some home-made Nepalese cuisine.
For those who don’t know, Nepalese food is a delicious fusion of Chinese and Indian, offering a delightful blend of spices and flavours heavily influenced by these surrounding countries.
From the outside, Gurkha Taste in Hereward Cross appears like any other Asian restaurant and takeaway establishment. But inside, it’s a different story! It’s a small venue with a warm, friendly and inviting atmosphere. With traditional Nepalese music playing in the background and photos of Mount Everest and other landmarks adorning the walls, you could almost be sitting in a Nepalese family’s kitchen – and that’s certainly the vibe I experienced during my visit. It was almost as if Peterborough vanished, and for two hours I was transported to Nepal!
Opening in May, Gurkha Taste is a family-run restaurant serving a variety of Nepalese favourites, including popular street food dishes, all cooked by a Nepalese chef. Before opening, the family, who also originate from Nepal, tried the dishes and gave feedback on the menu to ensure it was offering the very best of the country’s food to prospective customers. And this great care and attention truly shows, with authenticity and affordability two of its unique selling points.
So, I hear you ask, what was the food we sampled during our visit like? I’d never had Nepalese food, but luckily, I had the family on hand to run me through the menu and their favourite foods. In Nepal, it’s common for families to gather and all pick at a wonderful spread of various dishes in buffet style. We followed the local tradition by ordering several dishes to start, which meant we were able to try a bit of everything.
A popular street food in Nepal is Momo, Himalayan dumplings filled with minced meat such as chicken and pork. These small enveloped-sized dumplings had a fantastic after-kick. Next, we tried Choila, pieces of grilled chicken marinated in spices including cumin and turmeric; and onion bhajis, which were crispy on the outside and tender on the inside without being greasy like bhajis can often be.
On the family’s suggestion we then sampled the Gurkha Mix BBQ – which, from my point of view, was the piece de resistance! We tucked into a selection of tender, spiced meats including pork belly chunks, chicken wings and drumsticks, lamb chops and mini pieces of sausage, all marinated in fresh herbs, mint, black pepper, yoghurt and barbecue sauce.
On the side, it comes with salad, chutney sauce and slices of naan, always freshly made in-house. I’d highly recommend any visitors ordering this mix – it’s perfect to share, pick at and go back to at the end of the meal if there are any leftovers.
If that wasn’t enough, we were asked to select a main dish from the menu as well. Again, eager to try new foods, I went with the family’s suggestion of the Nepal Thali set meal. This was served on a large brass plate, the traditional way of serving it in Nepal.
It came with four smaller brass bowls containing chicken curry, vegetables, lentils and salad, along with a mound of rice on the plate. I paired this dish with garlic naan. Thali is a popular local dish in Nepal full of flavours and textures. Just like all the food we tried it was absolutely delicious.
My husband had Chicken Tikka Masala, which he reported back was full of flavour and very creamy. For dessert, we had an authentic Nepalese pudding called Gulab Jamon – a fried, milk dough ball – with yoghurt which was incredibly spongy and moorish.
Everything about Gurkha Taste is homely and inviting, and diners are presented with a big slice of the warm Nepalese hospitality. Nothing is too much trouble – they’re even happy to customise the barbecue platter to suit customers’ tastes. Exciting plans are in the pipeline to launch a lunchtime menu soon, which may just tempt me to venture into Peterborough city centre when working from home for a Gurkha Taste lunch takeaway. Watch this space for more details.
The family has made Gurkha Taste’s prices extremely affordable to introduce their authentic Nepalese food to the Peterborough community and make it accessible to everyone. You’ll find many dishes on the menu for under £10. So, if you like affordable, authentic home-cooked food, I recommend heading to Gurkha Taste – you won’t regret it.
To book a table or to order online visit www.gurkhataste.co.uk
Kelly Jackson
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