Tag: Tibetan food

Kailash Restaurant & Bar

In the heart of Shangri-la Old Town, down a stone paved street and through a small alleyway, there lies a modest and vibrant Tibetan restaurant—the Kailash Restaurant & Bar. Though surrounded by low buildings, it is easily found because of the large, white stupa outside its front door. The restaurant’s wooden frames and large windows hang like rare paintings in an art gallery. The warmly lit world within pulls passersby in through its open doors. The inside is simple and artsy. The Kailash’s atmosphere is set with intricate lighting, elegant artwork, and pleasant Tibetan music.

The Creator and His Food

Samten, the owner of the restaurant, started his business in May of 2008. With the help of his family, who each take on different roles in the business, the Kailash has blossomed into a restaurant of renowned fame. The family farm, eighty kilometers away from the city, sources the fresh livestock and vegetables used in their dishes. Though Tibetan flavors dominate their offerings, the menu is also infused with Indian elements as the family spent a decade in that country. Samten works hard to please the palate of his customers without losing the intensity of the original flavors.

Local Tibetan Hotpot at the Kailash Restaurant & Bar

The Famous Yak Hotpot

The Kailash is known for its large clay pot yak hotpot. The yak meat is tender to the point of falling out of the bovine meat category and qualifying as a type of fish. The soup base magically transforms anything it touches into more of that thing. The radish becomes more of a radish. Potatoes come out more like potatoes. The soup incorporates their distinct notes, and the flavors keep compounding!

Although the restaurant is already known for its innovative dishes, Samten is constantly trying to update their menu to keep creating and offering new local flavors for visitors to Shangrila. The Kailash Restaurant & Bar is a prime destination for tourists looking for savory food to please their taste buds (and fill their tummies!).

People enjoy local Tibetan food at Kailash Restaurant &Bar

Kailash Restaurant is a perfect place to enjoy Local Tibetan food: Yak Hotpot, Yak meat momos and Yogurt.

Contact Info:

Address: Beimen Road Yi Mulang 19-B1, Shangri-la Old Town, Diqing, Yunnan Province

Phone:139 8879 8788

地址：云南香格里拉建塘镇独克宗古城北门街依若木廊19-B1号（香巴拉老街）

April 19, 2019
Three Brother’s Café

Three Brother’s Café is nestled into the heart Shangri-La old town and offers a wide variety of Indian Food. The current owner moved to India in order to explore his Buddhist Heritage. While there, he discovered his passion for the Indian culinary arts. After twelve years of cooking experience, he returned to Yunnan and worked as a chef at two different hotels. All the while, he kept honing his skills. In 2015, he and two of his friends decided to open Three Brothers Café. The name comes from these three close friends who want to share their passion for Indian culture and food. Their strong work ethic and excellent food have made it one of the most popular restaurants in town.

The Gate of Three Brother’s Café

More Than Great Food

As you enter the restaurant, you are greeted with warm hospitality and a delicious cup of tea. From a comfortable seat at your thick wooden table on a balcony that overlooks the heart of the old town, you tap your foot to the beat of the evening Tibetan dancing below you. Three Brother’s Cafe does more than food. It creates an authentic cross-cultural experience.

Mind-blowing Deliciousness

The menu offers a wide variety of options, ranging from specialty bread to Indian-spiced steak. Two must-tries are the eggplant and sweet and sour pork. Your mind will be blown. However, be careful that you don’t offer your firstborn to a lifetime of volunteer dishwashing in exchange for your regular fix, because the best is yet to come. Their myriad curries stand out like champions among all of the competition—like Meili Snow Mountain stands out among her jealous sisters.

Inside Three Brother’s Café

A Home-Away-From-Home Feel

If you fear the embarrassment of not knowing the local languages, run as fast as you can to the Three Brother’s Café. The owner’s wife speaks good English and is always around, like a homestead Mama sweeping the porch and waiting for your return. Here is every traveler’s home-away-from-home…and their “home-cooked” meals will melt your heart as they tickle your bellies.

Address: Yi Ruo Mu Lang Old Town Shangri-la County

Phone: +86 150 0886 1247

April 18, 2019
Tsampa (Barley)
Tsampa ( Barley) (རྩམ་པ། ) is one of the main cuisines in Tibet. Tibetan crops must be able to grow in the high altitudes of Tibet. The most important crop in Tibet is barley. Flour milled from roasted barley, called Tsampa, has been the staple of Tibetan food for centuries. This cereal is an integral part of Tibetan people’s life. Most of Tibetan people grow up by eating Tsampa. If you get the chance to visit Tibet, you must try the taste of Tsampa!
Tsampa ( Barely ) Products

Barley wine/ Beer

We call barley wine “chang” in Tibetan. Tibetan barley wine is brewed from fermented barley grown in the highlands. Some wine is mild, sweet and it has little alcohol. Some wine is very strong. Each glass Tibetan Chang is different from another due to the brewing method and duration. It is the most popular alcoholic drink in Tibet. You can easily get it in any Tibetan area.

Barley Beer

Tsampa ( Barley )Making Process
- We have to choose a sunny day to wash and dry the barley
- Once it is mostly dry, it is ready to roast
- Heat the sand on the hot stove
- Pour some barley on top of the heated sand and roast the barley, shaking it together with the sand in a big pan
- Put the barley and sand to the sifting pan to sift out the sand
- Finally, grind the roasted barely into Tsmapa flour
It’s ready to make the roasted barely into Tsampa flour

How Tibetans drink/eat Tsampa ( Barley ) soup and bread?
- Prepare the butter, dry cheese, sugar and tea
- Put the butter and cheese in a bowel
- Pour the tea in the bowel and let the butter melt and the cheese to become soft
- Drink the tea until you have space to add the Tsampa
- You can either make Tsampa soup with a spoon or make Tsampa bread with your hand. You can put sugar in it if you want it to be
Tsampa ( Barley) bread
June 29, 2017
Momos (Tibetan Dumplings)

Momos ( ཤ་མོག) are seen as one of the most quintessential Tibetan foods, and travellers love to enjoy them. Often described as “Tibetan dumplings”, most see momos as a basic home cooked meal and it is often a family affair to prepare them. Whether you like to dip, dunk, bite, or swallow them whole, your trip to Tibet wouldn’t be complete without trying a few along the way.
What’s in Momo?

With a dough made of flour and water, the skins of the momo are very basic, but it is the numerous fillings that add variety to this dish. While the traditional filling is yak meat, other fillings may include potato, green onion, cabbage, or mushrooms, etc. They are typically served with some sort of spiced oil or a flavoured seasoning salt for dipping, and each sauce will be slightly different based on the chef’s individual preparations.

The momo is made by rolling out the dough into thin circles, and then placing a small amount of filling in the center. Once the filling is centered on the skin, there is a technique to folding and twisting the dough to keep the momo shut (and to lock in the filling’s natural juices). Finally, the momos are cooked in a steamer until the outside is no longer sticky to the touch.

Tibetan Yak Meat Momos ( Tibetan Dumplings)

Size of a Momo

The size of a momo also varies, with large momos typically filling one’s entire hand and the smaller able to be consumed in one bite. As the smaller momos are fiddlier and take more time to prepare, these tend to be reserved for fancier affairs such as special occasions or to be served in restaurants. With the large momos, these are more commonly served at home as the average person would find one or two to be enough for a meal. The larger size cuts down on the time necessary to prepare them as less are required to make a meal.

Eating Momo

There is a bit of a technique involved in eating a momo. While you may use your chopsticks, Tibetans traditionally eat these with their hands, so go right ahead and pick it up between your thumb and forefingers.

Once you have your momo ready to eat, be warned, the good momos have juice inside them! Carefully take a bite of the momo, and as you do, suck the juice into your mouth to get the full flavours of the filling. When biting into your momo, take care not to shoot juice across at your dining companion, as sometimes these things can surprise you (but hey, we’ve all done it a time or two)!

I find there is a sweet spot for enjoying momos where the juices aren’t so piping hot they will burn your mouth, and they haven’t yet gone cold. Although cold momos aren’t bad, if you are eating yak meat momos, I would particularly recommend eating them while they are still warm, as the juices start to harden as they cool. Wait until the steam stops coming off of the momos, and then eat until your heart is content!

Ready to steam Momos ( Tibetan Dumplings )

September 9, 2016