Hamil Chuli

1.) Our first food venture brought us to State Street’s Himal Chuli. The food was pretty good and the atmosphere was excellent. I enjoyed the small dinning room and its open kitchen. Our waitress was helpful and took the time to answer all of our questions.

I started my meal off with a Cinnamon Lassi. I have had the mango variety of this yogurt-based drink, but the cinnamon version was equally delicious. For an entrée I choose Himal's Combination Platter, which the menu describes as “two momochas, one samosa, roti and a cup of dal”. As this was my first time eating Nepalese food, I thought the sampler would provide a smorgasbord of sorts. The dal, momochas, and roti were quite good. However the samosa was a little lacking. The outside shell was overly crispy and the filling lacked flavor. For dessert I went with the Khir, described as a “special rice pudding cooked with flax seed and ground orange rinds, topped with unsweetened coconut and almonds”. The sweet rice pudding type of mixture delivered. In fact it was the most enjoyable part of my meal.
The Verdict: 7 out of 10. Overall I would recommend Himal Chuli for those people looking for a fun place to eat on State Street. The food was not exceptional but it provides a good alternative to the three hundred fast food options on State and the atmosphere is great for small groups.


2.) Good: It's different. I mean how often does one get to eat Nepali food in Madison? Aromatic flavors like cardamom, lavender, and orange rind make Himal Chuli stand out from other Asian and South Asian places in town and was a great break from the standard Midwestern fare. The staff was friendly and our server refilled our water glasses regularly and from a distance of up to two feet (as in she held the pitcher high over our shoulders and poured so the stream angled down into the glass) without spilling. The water was flavored lightly with mint and lemon without messy pulp and seeds in the glasses. The menu is extensive, with plenty of both meat and vegetarian options, a few dishes that can be eaten as appetizers and a handful of desserts. The momochas, vegetable and peanut sauce dumplings served in a tomato coriander (though I couldn't taste the coriander) salsa were amazing, albeit a bit expensive ($7.25 for four dumplings). For an entree, I had hyala, which is described in the menu as steamed organic bison meat blended with yogurt, ginger, cumin seed, and special herbs (in reality, it was closer to bison meat in an herb broth) served with choice of roti (bread) or brown or jasmine rice (I chose white to see if that jasmine rice had that light floral scent it sometimes does...it didn't), and a small salad of lettuce, tomato, carrot, and red cabbage. The meat was delicious and tender and the broth was fragrant and not too salty. The house specialty spiced coffee brewed in milk was delicious and I can only imagine it will be even more attractive as the weather gets colder. It was also reasonably priced at $1.95 and I would consider stopping in just for a cup of coffee on my way up State St. this winter.

The Bad: My dish was a little awkward to eat. From the menu description, I had expected the meat to be served much like beef korma or lamb curry often is, as thick stew meant to be eaten on rice. Instead, the little ground bits of meat there were came floating in a broth, like a thin soup. The soup bowl was on the same plate as the rice and the salad and I don't know if it was meant to be eaten like a soup or on the rice like a curry so I did both, scooping out a little meat and peas with my fork to eat with the rice and then drinking the broth. If I hadn't used this method, I would have had a thin soup and dry rice so I'm not sure there was a "right way" to eat this dish. I also felt that for $11, there should have been more meat than broth. Also expensive and underwhelming was dessert:_________ and I split lal mohan, a flour and powdered milk ball dessert fried and served in a lavender-honey sauce. I have had this dish at Indian restaurants before, in Madison and elsewhere, and the dough ball has always been served hot in the cool sauce. The entire dish was cold here and, although it really brought out the lavender flavor of the sauce, this was not necessarily a good thing. It was almost exactly like eating a soggy doughnut hole in a dish of perfume. And you pay $3.95 for just two of these chilly, weird, little devils.

The Ugly: A 6 out of 10. Pretty middle-of-the-road for ethnic food in Madison but upper middle- or maybe even lower upper-tier (depending on what you order...go for the lamb rather than the bison) for State St. The funky Greenwich-village feeling Himal Chuli could get from the hand painted walls, wood accents and ZERO square footage is canceled out by the small, cafeteria style gray tables, the neon lights from the kitchen and the same ZERO square footage. I don't mind sitting close to my neighboring diners but when they actually have to move their table over so I can get to my seat, that's a little too neighborly for my taste. Overall, this is probably a really strong option for vegetarians because of the variety of dishes and unique flavors. Try not to go with a large group (I recommend no more than four) because you'll probably have to wait for a table. But it is probably worth the wait at least one time to see what Nepali food is all about. And to try a cup of
delicious spiced coffee.