Spirit of Nepal in Petaluma

<p>There is so much to learn about Indian cuisine. Literally hundreds of different styles of food are prepared throughout the subcontinent, each distinctive, but all woven together by the spices that conjure up the ancient land of the Aryans and Dravidians: black pepper, cinnamon, cloves, cumin, cardamom, coriander, fenugreek, tamarind and turmeric, among many others.</p><!-- Nothing to do. The paragraph has already been output --><p>As one travels through northeast India into the foothills of the Himalayas and into Nepal, the regional cuisine loses some of its opulent use of spices and focuses on vegetables that grow where nights are cold, especially potatoes. By the time one reaches Tibet, it’s too cold for rice, and so the cuisine relies on barley and millet for grains. Mustard grows wild at altitude and is heavily used in Himalayan cultures. Sheep are native to rocky mountain sides, and so lamb is a common meat, along with chicken.</p><p>And yet, here in America, “Indian restaurants” are usually a sort of generic mix of many styles common in lowland India. These places ignore the important distinctions among cuisines. Maybe it’s our melting-pot mentality, but the same thing happens in Britain, where tikka masala is considered the quintessential Indian dish, even though it was invented in Britain.</p><p>And then there’s Sonoma County.</p><p>Here many of our best Indian restaurants are actually Nepalese in spirit because of a talented group of Nepalese cooks who have introduced us to the pleasures of their homeland’s dishes. Their restaurants include Pamposh in Santa Rosa, Namaste Kitchen in Petaluma and now Everest, at the Golden Bear Shopping Center in Petaluma. Chef Gopal Pun does the cooking at Everest. He used to cook at Pamposh and was an owner of Namaste Kitchen. Uddab Timilsina once cooked at Namaste Kitchen and now cooks at Pamposh. The current chef at Namaste Kitchen is Dambar Pun, a relative of Gopal Pun. And so this tight-knit community of Nepalese chefs and restaurateurs provides us the rich experience of this style of Indian food — for despite its Nepalese and Tibetan accents, there’s no mistaking its Indian foundation.</p><p>Everest is in the room that was previously occupied by Cucina Paradiso, the popular Italian restaurant that has moved to 114 Petaluma Blvd. N., where its popularity has increased even more. And from the quality of food at Everest, there’s no reason that it won’t enjoy popularity, too.</p><p>Your server may be Menu (pronounced MAH-noo) Pun, and she will ask you whether you like your dishes mild, medium or spicy. Wishing to experience the food as authentically as possible, we asked for very spicy. That level of heat was to the taste of some in our party; others felt it was a little too much. Unless you’re a true pepperhead, go for the medium or mild.</p><p>One of the Nepalese dishes on the menu is Aloo Bhanta ($10.50 ***½), a name meaning potatoes (aloo) and eggplant (bhanta). Tomatoes join the party in this excellent dish, sweetly spiced with herbs and spices cooked into a sauce in a stove-top pan. Despite the familiarity of the vegetable ingredients, the herbs and spices give it an exotic flavor.</p><p>Scoop up your Aloo Bhanta with torn pieces of Plain Naan ($1.95 **), the traditional Indian bread made in a super-hot tandoor oven. That’s how they eat it in India. Also available: garlic naan, garlic basil naan, aloo naan (naan stuffed with spiced and crushed potatoes), paneer kulcha (naan stuffed with cottage-style goat cheese), onion kulcha (stuffed with spiced onions and cilantro), and roti (also called chapati), which is a whole wheat vegan naan.</p><p>Don’t miss the Saffron Chicken Biryani ($9.99 ***), also available as vegetable or lamb biryani. This is a big portion of saffron basmati rice studded with sweetmeats like bits of chicken, caramelized onions, raisins, cranberries, toasted cashews and a special blend of spices made in house. A mound of this rice topped with aloo bhanta or one of the curries makes a sumptuous plate of food.</p><p>One such curry worth trying is the Everest Lamb Curry ($14.95 ***), subtitled “Chef’s Special.” Tender pieces of lamb swim in an out-of-this-world, thick, coconut-apricot-spice sauce. While coconuts don’t grow in the uplands of the Himalayan foothills, apricots do — and abundantly. These fruits are claimed to be one of the sources of the amazing health of people living in the Hindu Kush region of Pakistan. One taste of this fruity-savory curry can make you understand why.</p><p>There are three Tibetan dishes on the menu — a vegetable curry, a lamb curry and Tibetan Chicken Curry ($12.50 ***). For the latter dish, chicken meat is cubed and simmered in Tibetan spices with potatoes and fing, a Tibetan noodle made from bean flour. The Tibetan spices used in this particular curry don’t seem to include Szechuan pepper, which is ordinarily a part of Tibetan spice blends. This pepper contains a compound that makes the lips and mouth numb and tingly, perhaps a sensation Westerners don’t appreciate.</p><p>Some of the more mainstream Indian dishes were less impressive than the biryanis and curries. Vegetable Samosas ($4.75 *) were turnovers stuffed with spiced potatoes and peas, but the peas had the life cooked out of them and the bready crust was greasy. They were served with a refreshing mint sauce and a sweet and tangy tamarind sauce. Onion Kulcha ($2.75 **) was tasty but dense, while Garlic Naan ($2.50 **½) was lighter and more flaky.</p><p>The tandoor is a clay oven, akin to a large clay pot, fueled by charcoal, and reaching up to 900 degrees F. In that kind of dry heat, meat takes just a short time to cook and acquires a crispy outside while moisture is sealed in. The meat for Everest’s Chicken Tandoori ($13.50 ***) is marinated with ginger, garlic, mustard, yogurt and a house blend of Indian spices, flash-cooked in the tandoor and served with sweet peppers, mushrooms and onions. It’s very spicy (both in terms of fiery heat and in the liberal use of flavoring spices) and quite a lovely plate of exotic food.</p><p>Mattar Paneer ($11.95 ***) is a staple of Indian cooking expertly prepared at Everest. Mattar means peas, here cooked just right, and paneer means cheese, and the dish combines the peas with mild, fresh, house-made farmer’s cheese all cooked in a pan of spicy gravy.</p><p>With all the spicy heat throughout the dinner, a serving of cooling Raita ($2.75 ***) was called for. It’s made with yogurt, cucumbers and mint (or sometimes cilantro). Capsaicin — the compound in cayenne peppers that gives them their fiery piquancy — dissolves in fat, and so yogurt made with whole milk helps carry away some of the pepper’s heat. You may also want to order a side dish of Mango Chutney ($2 ***), and house-made Achar ($2.50 ***), which is pickled vegetables, adds its tangy touch.</p><p>The small wine list isn’t of much interest, but there are three Indian beers available and beer is a good, cold, refreshing accompaniment to all the exuberant spiciness going on in Indian-Nepalese-Tibetan cuisine.</p><p>To sum up: Everest is one of several Sonoma County Indian restaurants with a decided Nepalese and Tibetan character, and they are all excellent.</p><p>Jeff Cox writes a weekly restaurant review column for the Sonoma Living section. You can reach him at jeffcox@sonic.net.</p>