Taste of the Himalayas: Terrific Indian food on Midway

Toni and I found this place by accident. We were buying her tires down the street and decided to have lunch while we waited. We spied the Taste of the Himalayas restaurant, tucked away in an unassuming strip mall and decided to try it. We were amazed by what we discovered.

The place was small. The decor and music were peaceful. The staff, foreign and friendly; they gave the impression of valuing everyone who came in, even though the place does steady business: it isn't unusual for there to be a line out the door, though after a few visits we've seen it but have not had to wait ourselves. If we had to, I would happily wait. The experience is that good.

Today, I'm going to focus on TotH's great lunch special. I didn't take notes, so best memory goes like this. For approximately $8.00, you get soup, bread (naan), and two dishes (one of which is about $11 during dinner.) Toni and I have tried several items now. Some of our faves are papad for an appetizer ($1.95), which is just crispy thin bread with a mint chutney, chicken tikka masala, chicken vindaloo, kukhara ko masa, daal soup, Deena liked the lamb kabobs, the tandori chicken was good. Everything has been good--light, flavorful, and filling. Toni got some Chiya, Nepalese hot tea, and seemed to really enjoy it. They also serve beer and wine, including some good Indian beers.

Give this place a try. So far, it is the best Indian (if not strictly Indian) food we've had in San Diego. Their motto is, "Atithi Devo Bhavah," or, "the guest is truly your god." They are at 3185 Midway Dr. San Diego, CA 92110. And their number is 1- 619- 866-6922.

Erik gives Taste of the Himalayas a rating of GREAT. Toni gives it a rating of GREAT!

Khyber Pass - Awesome Afghani food in Hillcrest

Toni and I are back after our seven continent tour of the underbelly of world cuisine. We studied food with the great chefs of Paris, Addis Ababa, Ankara, Changsha, Florianopolis, and the Ross Ice Shelf. We spent six months with the biscuit guru of Mobile. Now we are back and ready to review the heck out of San Diego. Toni and I have moved into a restaurant heavy part of town and are excited to get at it.

Tonight we ate at Khyber Pass, a Hillcrest restaurant featuring Afghanistan cusine. (523 University Ave.
Hillcrest, San Diego,CA 92111,619-294-7579, contact@khyberpasssandiego.com ) Right away we noticed that the place was nearly empty. Unusual, as Hillcrest has about five restaurants per block and they're all always pretty busy. But Toni and I thought it looked clean, the hostess was friendly, and the menu looked pretty good.

Neither of us had eaten Afghani food before. We noted a lot of lamb, kabobs, curry, and many dishes of which we had never heard.

The decor was fairly minimal. A blown up photo of the famous shot of Sharbat Gula, named 'Afghan Girl,' and an evocative wall painting featuring  a woman, a man on horseback, and a stone city in the mountains, was about all there was. The music was native and was surprisingly engaging.

We started with bolani (bulanni) or awasana, as an appetizer. This is leeks, potatoes, in a yogurt sauce, wrapped in a delicate fried pastry ($3.95). It came with three sauces--chatni sauce, a hot green sauce made of cilantro, mint, green pepper, and garlic; a pink yogurt sauce that tasted a bit like French dressing; and a hot pepper sauce. Toni found out that this is a common party food in Afghanistan, and served often during Ramadan to break the fast. It was delicious! And such a bargain, I'm telling you, we got about eight of them for under four bucks!

Then we got our main courses. Toni got the karahi chicken ($18.95) off the kabob menu; I got the sweet and sour apricot chicken ($14.95). Toni's was chicken stir fried with bell peppers, spices (I hear some turmeric and coriander might have been involved.) with a side of basmati rice. Toni described it as spicy, but not really, tender, and said "it was really good." Toni as research girl, learned that a karahi is the pan the dish is prepared in--picture a middle eastern version of a wok. My food was just how it sounded, good cuts of chicken covered in a mouthwatering apricot sauce, with big chunks of apricot, and a side of rice. (Toni was making me go less spicy tonight.) Sweet, not spicy, and very satisfying.

For dessert we ordered the rice pudding, and as the server recognized us as internationally famous food bloggers, she threw in some pistachio pudding for good measure. Neither was as ordinary as they sounded. The rice pudding had definite cinnamon overtones. We could not identify the flavor in the pistachio pudding; Toni said it was like "a spicy flower." We asked and were told that it was cardamom. Research girl found out that it is related to ginger, is smoked, chewed, and is used as a medicine to treat infection as well as snake and scorpion bites!

We did not order drinks, though the restaurant does have beer and wine and some Afghan teas.

Total damage for 1 appetizer, 2 entrees, one dessert, and two pops - $54.00. I gave Khyber Pass a very solid GOOD all around, while Toni gave it an enthusiastic GREAT!

There you have it. It feels good to be back home writing. Look for weekly posts!