Go vegan at Nepal Cuisine
It’s always interesting for carnivores to see what the vegans are up to in their recipe books. Veggie-huggers have a special knack for taking a typically meaty dish and turning it into something equally satisfying, minus only the animal products. What used to be derided as a twigs-and-berries diet is now full of fun variations, and has pretty much gone mainstream. King Soopers sells Rice Slices, for Christ’s sake.
In the vegetarians’ paradise of Boulder, Nepal Cuisine (4720 Table Mesa Dr., Boulder, 303-554-5828) is courting the ever-growing vegan crowd. Tucked into a quiet shopping center that looks like a former condo complex, the restaurant makes the necessary tweaks for an all-vegan lunch buffet each Monday. Much like with Indian food, vegetarian items are simply part of the Nepalese routine.
The setup is relatively small, but fits well into Nepal Cuisine’s homey, simple ambience. Familiar Indian snacks like samosas and vegetable pakora sit at the front of the line, looking crispy-fried and a tad sinful. The choices take a Nepali turn with dal bhat (lentil soup over rice), white-bean stew, and mushrooms with tofu.
All three are deceptively flavorful and filling. The white-bean stew, especially, looks watery and tasteless in the tray. But after a couple of curry-spiced bites, it’s clear that this is hearty food for hearty people. Ladled on rice, the beans are big and dense, not wimpy little protein-nubs. Big, juicy cuts of tomato make the dish like a vegan version of Campbell’s chunky soup.
Of course, since this is a buffet, it’s not enough to try one thing and call it a lunch. Nay, it’s time to unbutton the top button and get to samplin’. Momo: cute vegetable dumplings, like Japanese gyoza. Mustard greens: unexpectedly spicy, very probably healthy. Pakora dipped in tamarind chutney: more, please.
After the feast, the restaurant’s host bows and thanks guests as they lurch happily into the parking lot. This being a vegan lunch in Boulder, there’s a car in the lot with sanctimonious signs and stickers exhorting everyone to “Go vegan!” Normally, this might elicit a sarcastic comment. Instead, sleepy and sated with vegan Nepalese food, the only word that drifts to mind is “Namasté.”
