Himalayan Yak

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vagabondqueen

Joined 5 years ago

A comfortable venture beyond Indian food. The featured review characterizes the Himalayan Yak as seedy. While the neighborhood is far from shi-shi, and the 7 train rattles overhead at the nearby 74th Street stop, this restaurant is warm, welcoming, clean, and comfortable -- far from seedy.

If you like Indian food, the Himalayan Yak will be a welcome variation -- spicy and pungent. Vegetarian options are plentiful and authentic, not mere meatless versions of traditional dishes. It's hard to eat alone here, as the dishes tend to be large -- not so much heavy as generously portioned. Great for sharing, and those inclined to small bites with variety will appreciate (and probably swoon over) the Vegetarian Samayabajee (appetizer) and the Nepali Vegetable Thali -- akin to what you'd find in south Indian Thali, but with many unique elements -- you'd never confuse the regions. The pounded rice is not to be missed.

A great value for the money. The only reason this doesn't get 5 stars is for the very limited and not recommended wine list. (I wish restaurants that offer a tiny selection of wine would at least get decent cheap wines -- they do exist.)

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Josh Ozersky

Joined 5 years ago

A Tibetan restaurant specializing in--what else?--yak.. The city's Tibetan restaurants have something of a captive audience: If you want yak for dinner, where else are you going to go? That said, this seedy but loveable joint on Roosevelt Avenue isn't for everyone. The food is heavy and there is a preponderance of clarified yak butter, but a few things stand out--for instance, a version of Tibetan potstickers and the various dal bhat (rice and lentil) dishes that make up the mainstay of the Himalayan diet, which are similar to dishes served in Indian restaurants. As for the Yak? It tastes like a cross between beef and lamb and is well worth a try.