In a nutshell:

A hidden gem where we were lucky to go, thanks to our guide for the trip Passang Sherpa. Outstanding food made from scratch by the couple who run this eatery.

A fabulous culture trip to Himachal Pradesh organized by vana safaris

Address & other details: Tenzin

Larji is the place from where the roads to tirthan & sainj split

Meal for 2: ₹1000 onwards

Cuisine type : vegetarian & non vegetarian

Disclaimer: All restaurants / eateries reviewed by YUMMRAJ were visited by YUMMRAJ himself & he has paid for the full Bill & tips also. http://www.yummraj.com does not have even one featured / sponsored reviews. YUMMRAJ believes in going to a restaurant in anonymity, as a normal guest, experience everything & give a honest account of the same to you.

YUMMRAJ rates all the food items & then gives a final overall rating, which is a simple average of the individual item ratings. What the ratings stand for: 5 = Excellent, 4 = Very Good, 3 = Good, 2 = Fair, 1 = Disaster

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Short description- in case u r in a hurry

Tenzin & his wife Pema run a small eatery where they make from scratch & serve what can now be loosely called ‘Himalayan food’. The sign board outside reads ‘Chinese’ though. The food is Indian Himalayan for sure. Not Chinese.

The entrance to the eatery is through a narrow lane off the bus stop. You can show the picture at any shop near the bus stop & they will send you to the right place.

On the left of the entrance, there is a small kitchen where all this magic is cooked.

On the right of the entrance is a small dining room with 4 tables & 4 chairs each.

The place being small, is a bit cluttered. However we didn’t mind that at all since we are just concerned about great food.

On one of the tables a machine was kept. We asked Tenzin & he said it was a maida sheet thickness control machine cum noodle making machine. I said ‘noodle making’? He said ‘yes’ & offered to show us the same.

Like I mentioned, they make the noodles from maida In-house, in front of guests. The momos are also made there in full public view.

We were amazed at Tenzin’s wife’s speed of making momos.

We got to know on the trip to Himachal that almost 99% of native villagers eat meat & they like mutton much more as compared to chicken. They don’t eat pork & beef.

The mutton that is eaten in this region is meat from Himalayan mountain goats which weigh on an average of 30kgs. The texture of the meat is also different than goat meat that we get in delhi NCR. The colour of the meat is dark maroon-brown.

So, the momos that Tenzin make everyday are mutton momos. On special request he makes chicken momos.

The meat fat & bone marrow do magic to the flavours of the mutton momos & the soup. Each soup has meat with bones. The momos of course had meat without bones.

Bowled over with the food. The simplicity & authenticity of the chat with Tenzin will remain with us for long.

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Detailed description – in case u hv the time to njoy reading:

Day 1

The mutton momos made from scratch were served with an immensely flavourful mutton soup. The soup had Perfect balance of taste. The meat Flavours hit all the senses. There were meat pieces in the soup & the meat was with fat & bones.

Rate the soup 4.75/5

The momos were Full of meat filling, almost falling off. Immensely Juicy, bursting with meaty flavours & just outstanding. Rate it 4.75/5

Day 2

On the way back from Sainj we decided to re-visit Tenzin. We requested for mutton thukpa this time. Tenzin made the noodle from scratch in front of us. The noodles had a wonderful bite that is almost impossible to get in the packed ones.

What amazing thukpa. The thukpa broth was terrific. Full blown flavours of meat balanced with spices. Every sip was outstanding. The meat pieces had bones on it. To add to the flavour.

Rate the thukpa 4.95/5

Overall rating of both the dishes averages out to 4.8/5

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED by YUMMRAJ if you are in that part of the world.