The Veggie Bus: Nepal
The Veggie Bus visited the following places in Nepal. Go to the location specific for restaurant information, tips and more, or read on for some useful general information about veggie eating in Nepal. Kathmandu, Pokhara, Lumbini and Western Nepal (including Bardia National Park)
Introduction to Nepali Eating
Nepals religious mix of Hindu and Buddhist cultures along with the high standards of spoken English make it easy to eat veggie here. Stick to the tourist scenes of Kathmandu and Pokhara and you'll be able to choose from a selection of pizzas, enchiladas, falafel wraps and even fresh salads alongside a wide range of Nepali, Tibetan and North Indian options. But venture off the tourist path, for example into Western Nepal, and you'll repeatedly encounter the Nepali traditional dish Dhal Bhat (literal translation: lentil rice). The staple dish of Nepal is served up as a Thali and usually features rice, dhal soup and curried vegtables at it's most basic level. Other curries (sometimes paneer, bean or potato), chapatis (also called rotis), pickles, papad (or papadams are we know them), raita and/or curd are served as extra dishes. The price varies massively based on where you are, from 60NRs in more remote areas and roadside kitchens to 400NRs in tourist restaurants and 450NRs at the highest points of popular trekking routes. In local joints you'll often get free refills (all you can eat style), but in up-market or tourist restaurants this doesn't usually happen. The good news is, they're all tasty and predominantly vegetarian! Even if you do accidentally get served meat it's always in a separate dish. Just send it back and get 20NRs knocked off your bill!
It's easy to get a decent meal for under 100NRs (1 euro, 90p) in Nepal. However, as with most places in Asia, Western food is dearer and in the tourist restaurants prices can vary from 200NRs to 500NRs for a meal. There's something to suit every budget and also every taste. A lot of restaurants in the tourist areas, be it Indian or Israeli, will serve up a selection of different foods from all over the world, but it's never really a good idea to order pasta from a South Indian restaurant. The Bus's advice is stick to the restaurant's specialty.
Eating in the Tourist Haunts
In Kathmandu and Pokhara you'll see about as many Westerners as you do Nepalis. It's a well trodden backpacker path and as such there are restaurants to cater for numerous different traveler tastes. If you fancy Mexican or Italian then Kathmandu and Pokhara offer a surprisingly good choice and a surprisingly excellent standard (see Kathmandu and Pokhara pages for Veggie Bus recommendations). You can also guarantee that the menu will be in English and at least half of it will be full of tasty vegetarian options. Put simple it's too easy to be veggie in Kathmandu and Pokhara, see the separate pages for Veggie bus advice on where and what to eat there.
Veggie Bus top tip: Often a 10% service charge and sometimes a 13% tax will be added to your bill in Nepal - this is most common within the tourist zones. Check for details on the menu before ordering. If 10% isn't added then a small tip is appreciated.
Eating in the Remote Areas of Nepal
In the more remote areas of Nepal restaurants don't tend to have a menu or a selection of options. You go in, you sit down and the waiter will bring you over some Dhal Bhat. Very seldom do they come with meat but if they do the meat is usually on a separate dish on the side. Just refuse it and it'll knock 20NRs of your bill. Alongside the many places serving Dhal Bhat are Tibetan joints serving up momos (steamed dumplings), chowmeins and tukpa (creamy noodle soup), and North Indian restaurants serving up thick creamy curries full of paneer and potatoes. Again most of these restaurants are vegetarian.
Street Food in Nepal
Street food snacks in Nepal are generally safe for vegetarians (i.e. it has no meat, the Bus won't comment on the questionable hygiene standards). Snacks include many different kinds of chaat - crispy battered balls and potato cakes filled with a sweet and spicy sauce often with chick peas or lentils, dry rice puffs with spice served in a cone of newspaper, bbq corn on the cob (often tastes a little too much like the coal that it's cooked on) and vegetable pakoras served in a light turmeric based lentil sauce (its the guy serving the orange stuff). All street snacks should be under 40NRs, although tourist prices are sometimes inflated in Kathmandu.
Eating Indian in Nepal
In both remote and tourist areas you'll usually find a selection of North Indian cuisine. The menu can often be baffling with so many veggie options to choose from. So here's some of the most popular and most tasty dishes explained. For more detailed information on Indian food see our Indian pages.
Wherever you go you'll find a variety of paneer dishes. Paneer is a soft, unfermented cheese used in many Indian dishes to soak up the rich curry flavours.
Palak Paneer - often a speciality of many restaurants, chunks of paneer are served up in a rich and creamy green spinach based sauce with a hint of spice. Good as a sharer as it can get quite sickly on it's own with rice.
Paneer Butter Masala - one word, yum! You can't taste any butter but you can taste an array of spices in the rich masala sauce.
Dum Aloo (Aloo Dum) - potato (sometimes with grated panner) served in a very rich and creamy tomato based sauce.
Veggie Bus top tip for Vegans. Most Nepali and North Indian cuisines are free from meat and can sometimes appear Vegan. However many dishes are cooked with a big dollop of cream or yogurt - remember to ask in the restaurant. Dhal Bhat is generally safe, but many Indian dishes are not.
Useful Links
We've scoured the web looking for the most useful Nepali eating guides so that you don't have to!
www.food-nepal.com - Introduction to the different Nepali foods
Introduction to Nepali Eating
Nepals religious mix of Hindu and Buddhist cultures along with the high standards of spoken English make it easy to eat veggie here. Stick to the tourist scenes of Kathmandu and Pokhara and you'll be able to choose from a selection of pizzas, enchiladas, falafel wraps and even fresh salads alongside a wide range of Nepali, Tibetan and North Indian options. But venture off the tourist path, for example into Western Nepal, and you'll repeatedly encounter the Nepali traditional dish Dhal Bhat (literal translation: lentil rice). The staple dish of Nepal is served up as a Thali and usually features rice, dhal soup and curried vegtables at it's most basic level. Other curries (sometimes paneer, bean or potato), chapatis (also called rotis), pickles, papad (or papadams are we know them), raita and/or curd are served as extra dishes. The price varies massively based on where you are, from 60NRs in more remote areas and roadside kitchens to 400NRs in tourist restaurants and 450NRs at the highest points of popular trekking routes. In local joints you'll often get free refills (all you can eat style), but in up-market or tourist restaurants this doesn't usually happen. The good news is, they're all tasty and predominantly vegetarian! Even if you do accidentally get served meat it's always in a separate dish. Just send it back and get 20NRs knocked off your bill!
It's easy to get a decent meal for under 100NRs (1 euro, 90p) in Nepal. However, as with most places in Asia, Western food is dearer and in the tourist restaurants prices can vary from 200NRs to 500NRs for a meal. There's something to suit every budget and also every taste. A lot of restaurants in the tourist areas, be it Indian or Israeli, will serve up a selection of different foods from all over the world, but it's never really a good idea to order pasta from a South Indian restaurant. The Bus's advice is stick to the restaurant's specialty.
Eating in the Tourist Haunts
In Kathmandu and Pokhara you'll see about as many Westerners as you do Nepalis. It's a well trodden backpacker path and as such there are restaurants to cater for numerous different traveler tastes. If you fancy Mexican or Italian then Kathmandu and Pokhara offer a surprisingly good choice and a surprisingly excellent standard (see Kathmandu and Pokhara pages for Veggie Bus recommendations). You can also guarantee that the menu will be in English and at least half of it will be full of tasty vegetarian options. Put simple it's too easy to be veggie in Kathmandu and Pokhara, see the separate pages for Veggie bus advice on where and what to eat there.
Veggie Bus top tip: Often a 10% service charge and sometimes a 13% tax will be added to your bill in Nepal - this is most common within the tourist zones. Check for details on the menu before ordering. If 10% isn't added then a small tip is appreciated.
Eating in the Remote Areas of Nepal
In the more remote areas of Nepal restaurants don't tend to have a menu or a selection of options. You go in, you sit down and the waiter will bring you over some Dhal Bhat. Very seldom do they come with meat but if they do the meat is usually on a separate dish on the side. Just refuse it and it'll knock 20NRs of your bill. Alongside the many places serving Dhal Bhat are Tibetan joints serving up momos (steamed dumplings), chowmeins and tukpa (creamy noodle soup), and North Indian restaurants serving up thick creamy curries full of paneer and potatoes. Again most of these restaurants are vegetarian.
Street Food in Nepal
Street food snacks in Nepal are generally safe for vegetarians (i.e. it has no meat, the Bus won't comment on the questionable hygiene standards). Snacks include many different kinds of chaat - crispy battered balls and potato cakes filled with a sweet and spicy sauce often with chick peas or lentils, dry rice puffs with spice served in a cone of newspaper, bbq corn on the cob (often tastes a little too much like the coal that it's cooked on) and vegetable pakoras served in a light turmeric based lentil sauce (its the guy serving the orange stuff). All street snacks should be under 40NRs, although tourist prices are sometimes inflated in Kathmandu.
Eating Indian in Nepal
In both remote and tourist areas you'll usually find a selection of North Indian cuisine. The menu can often be baffling with so many veggie options to choose from. So here's some of the most popular and most tasty dishes explained. For more detailed information on Indian food see our Indian pages.
Wherever you go you'll find a variety of paneer dishes. Paneer is a soft, unfermented cheese used in many Indian dishes to soak up the rich curry flavours.
Palak Paneer - often a speciality of many restaurants, chunks of paneer are served up in a rich and creamy green spinach based sauce with a hint of spice. Good as a sharer as it can get quite sickly on it's own with rice.
Paneer Butter Masala - one word, yum! You can't taste any butter but you can taste an array of spices in the rich masala sauce.
Dum Aloo (Aloo Dum) - potato (sometimes with grated panner) served in a very rich and creamy tomato based sauce.
Veggie Bus top tip for Vegans. Most Nepali and North Indian cuisines are free from meat and can sometimes appear Vegan. However many dishes are cooked with a big dollop of cream or yogurt - remember to ask in the restaurant. Dhal Bhat is generally safe, but many Indian dishes are not.
Useful Links
We've scoured the web looking for the most useful Nepali eating guides so that you don't have to!
www.food-nepal.com - Introduction to the different Nepali foods
