If you’re visiting Nepal, chances are you’re going on a trek. And if you go on a trek, chances are you will be eating copious amounts of dal bhat.
Dal bhat is a staple of Nepalese cuisine that features rice and lentil soup with various sides including a curry, a sautéed green, something pickled, and something spicy. It’s filling and relatively inexpensive, making it an ideal trekking meal.
But once your trek is said and done and you’re back in Kathmandu, you’ll likely be ready for a break from this iconic dish. Luckily, there are plenty of restaurants in Kathmandu, specifically the neighborhood Thamel, that have some pretty stellar eats to be had.
(Get the rundown of our trek HERE!)
Here are 3 Kathmandu restaurants to try ffor when you just don’t want another dal bhat.
1. Organic Smoothie Bowl and Café
“You Are What You Eat” is this health spot’s slogan. Their entirely vegetarian menu boasts smoothie bowls, smoothies, salads, and various types of topped toast for reasonable prices in a casual, un-pretentious setting.
We went every single day after our Annapurna Sanctuary trek because it was just that good.
The green smoothie bowl was my personal favorite. It consisted of banana, pineapple, spinach, and spirulina with chia seeds, hemp seeds, and gogi berries on top. A close second was the mushroom toast that came with two massive slices of sourdough bread totally loaded with sautéed mushrooms with two poached eggs to top it off.
Two americanos, two smoothie bowls, and one egg toast of sorts to share would set us back $5 per person. Which, for Westerns, is a pretty wild deal. Organic Smoothie Bowl and Café is one of the best Kathmandu restaurants when you’re craving a nutrient-packed meal, and is a can’t miss.
2. Four Stories
Four Stories is like Organic Café and Juice’s older sister that came back from a trip to Bali dressed head to toe in loose linen with a couple tattoos and a new yoga obsession. The vibes are airy, light, and chic. And the second floor has on-the-floor seating with super comfy cushions that make you want to stay awhile.
It draws a certain type of traveler who is wearing hippie dippie clothes with plenty of tattoos and an arsenal of travel stories to tell.
AKA it is certainly not a local, authentic Nepalese experience. But they do have great coffee and a healthy menu with salads, smoothie bowls, and other various dishes like the pancakes pictured above. (The pancakes are a huge hit among fellow diners. But personally, I thought they tasted too eggy.”
But the real gem of Four Stories is their 50% off all baked goods after 6pm deal. They sell a mocha pie that is painstakingly delicious. It has a fudgy, just-out-of-the-oven-underbaked-brownie texture with a rich mocha flavor that’s decadent without being overwhelming. The coconut pie is also nothing to sneeze at either.
We had a ritual of going just after 6pm to get a slice of the mocha pie and two lemon honey ginger teas that we’d enjoy while doing the New York Times daily games.
3. Third Eye Restaurant
Given Nepal’s geographical location, it’s no surprise that there’s delicious Indian food to be had. Online forums and blogs pointed us to Third Eye Restaurant, and we were not led astray.
We started with pakora, which is a fried vegetable fritter. It was light and crispy with a nice kick of heat to compliment the fresh cilantro sauce on the side.
Jeremy got the dal makhani, which is a Punjabi dish made with black lentils, red kidney beans, tomato, butter, and cream. Cardamon, masala, paprika, chili powder, and garlic powder work together to add major pops of flavor. The dal makhani from Third Eye Restaurants is thick, warm, and hearty with loads of spices that aren’t “spicy”.
I got the vegetable curry which had a great array of veggies including cauliflower, potatoes, green beens, and peas. Like everything else, it was packed full of warm spices that didn’t blow out my palate.
Third Eye Restaurant is one of the more expensive restaurants in Kathmandu, with meat dishes ranging from 900-1300 NPR/ $6-$10USD. We stuck to veggie dishes, and the appetizer, two mains, and two orders of naan set us back 2575NPR/ $19USD.
These 3 Kathmandu restaurants are perfect stops for when you just don’t want another dal bhat!
Happy eating!
