The Himalaya's never tasted so good.

Taste of Himalayas
110 North 3rd Street, St. Charles, IL
Cuisine Type: Indian/Nepali
Price: $$

I was spinning a globe at work the other day (every employee gets one) and decided that wherever my finger landed, Theresa & I would try to find a restaurant with that cuisine. The first 65 times I landed in Antarctica (ok so they’re poorly made globes), the 66th time I was out in space somewhere (I landed on my tape dispenser) but the 67th time I landed in the Himalayas. Normally when I think of the Himalayas, I think of three things: mountains, mountain ranges and Mount Everest, so I can only assume the area’s diet consists of rock and glacial ice. Luckily Theresa reminded me that you can’t cook rocks and we remembered a place called Taste of Himalayas in St Charles that specializes in Himalayan cuisine, so off we went.

ATMOSPHERE: Located right off the main drag of downtown St Charles just behind the Filling Station, Taste of Himalayas is in a wide-facing building with a large patio out front. The inside is well-laid out and comfortable, has a fully stocked bar and few Nepali items for flair (look for the dagger on the wall), and felt equally accommodating to both casual and formal dress. The secondary dining area towards the back holds a lunch buffet and more seating.

DRINKS: There’s a full list of 22oz and 12oz Indian beers to try here. Theresa chose the Haywards 5000, a pretty straightforward and flavorful lager, and I chose the Flying Horse, a lager so light and sweet it was almost juicelike; it felt like the ultimate beer-to-cool-down-with-on-a-hot-day, I’ll have to look for it at Binnie’s this summer.

FOOD: The menu is primarily Indian cuisine with Nepali-style dishes and has a ton of vegetarian and non-vegetarian offerings like tandoori specialties, poultry, fish, lamb, veggies, breads and more. We ordered the kashi ko Bhutuwa appetizer, boneless goat meat stir fried with Nepalese spices and cilantro, a little lettuce & cucumber on the side: oh good god, delicious. Every time I’ve had goat it makes me wonder why more places don’t serve it, the meat has a natural sweet gamey/spice to it that was only enhanced with the crisped edges from the stir fry. We had to stop ourselves to leave room for the entrees on the way.

Our entrees arrived a few minutes later, accompanied by basmati rice and excellent tandoori bread. Theresa ordered the chicken tikka masala, marinated boneless chicken roasted in a spicy tomato sauce garnished with ginger & cilantro. The dish was everything she expected it to be plus more. The spiced & creamy tomato sauce complimented the tender tandoori cooked chicken and was quickly a favorite of Theresa's. I ordered the lamb palak, boneless lamb pieces cooked with fresh spinach and Indian sauce, garnished with ginger. Impossible to say anything bad about it, it was fantastic: the lamb pieces were big and tender, the sauce was thick, spicy and rich with a little heat to it, and it all mixed deliciously with the rice and bread. This dish can trick you into thinking you’re not eating as much as you actually are, because it won’t fill you up until 15 minutes after you stop, so I suggest taking it slow!

SERVICE: Friendly, quick and helpful service; our table was waited on by two different guys, each of whom couldn’t have been better if they tried, stopping over frequently to top off our beer glasses and ask if we needed anything else. The owner even stopped by to check on us, and I hope he understood (despite a full mouth) how enthusiastic we were about everything.

OVERALL: A great experience all around, we were thrilled to have tried it. It has different beers, amazing food, great service and is a short walking distance from plenty of St Charles bars. Prices can lean a bit upwards for some drinks & dishes, but everything else easily makes up for it. We were all praise, no complaints. Very highly recommended!

WOULD WE GO BACK?
Anytime, no globe needed!

- Review by Jon