Mount Everest Restaurant

One of the servers here looks 95% exactly like Gael Garcia Bernal http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0305558/. It makes lunch time extra sexy.

What's also sexy, is how I can stuff my gluttonous ass with tons of delicious Indian food for under $10.

I love the little tapioca pudding-like thing that comes with the lunch special. I like to lick it off my spoon seductively as I look at Gael's twin. He is a total professional though, and pretends not to be disgusted by my gross cougarish antics.

Berkeley is plagued by crappy Indian restaurants. When
I first moved out here from the east coast, I was like
"Oh shit. What if there are no good Indian restaurants
out here?" I've found a few good ones, few enough that
when I find a new one, I get pretty excited.

This is a Nepalese & Indian place. It's open until 10,
seven days a week! (Great after a movie.) Amy and I
loved the Bhutanese Chili Chicken. Samosas were good
and spicy. I don't know much about Nepalese food, but
I'll be trying it out here in the future.

Ambiance is like something from a Bruce Sterling novel.
It was originally a Burger King. Various restaurants
have lived there, leaving an assortment of lights,
plastic grape vines. Recently paintings of Nepal and
prayer flags have been added. It feels like the
future.

Service was fast and friendly. We'll be back!

UDPATE 11/07: The momos are FANTASTIC. If you've never had momos, they are one of the most distinctive and delicious aspects of Nepalese/Tibetan cuisine. They're basically a steamed dumpling with delicious spiced meat or veggies inside, plus an addictive tomato-based dipping sauce. Go try these. The okra dish was also delicious. Prices are extremely reasonable!

Original review:

Under new management by the same guys who founded the 3 Taste of the Himalayas around the bay area. It's no exaggeration to say they were the seeds of the Nepalese community here many years ago, so I expect great things will develop here.

I never visited this place before but I heard it used to be terrible. A *MASSIVE* fan of Nepalese cuisine, I was excited to hear about the change of guard. The TOH's have been pretty good to excellent on many, many repeated visits, so I have high hopes for this place.

It is still early days. They're working out kinks in the kitchen. The space is challenging too. However they have already ripped out the old fast food era seating and put in nice tables. The distinguishing feature of the space is a large stage up front, and they are already putting on cultural shows on weekends. When we were there, we saw a dance performance by a couple of the best Nepalese traditional dancers in the bay area. The owners say they'd love to make the space into a sort of Nepalese cultural center. It's certainly big enough.

The best part of my experience dining at the TOH's has always been the people. It's such a lovely experience. The staff is always exceptionally warm and welcoming, and fellow diners are often in a mellow and gregarious state of mind. We joined a table of 3 women and shared stories over wine. How often does that happen around here? (No worries if you prefer dining alone.. you won't be pressured to join others, and will instead just experience courteous service.)

Lots of potential, and I expect this place will continue its upward trajectory to become another fixture of the Himalayan dining scene.

The first time I came here I ordered the Berkeley Special. I really didn't know what to expect, but what I got was overwhelming in a very good way. There was a lot of food (shrimp, lamb, naan, rice... I can't even remember it all) and it was all really delicious. It is definitely a great bargain at about $16-18, feeding two people to the point of bursting with leftovers.

I definitely recommend this place. And remember to get the Berkeley
Special.

New note (4/22/08):
Unfortunately... I just discovered that this place has been closed down and replaced by an indian/pakistani food place.

The mediocre review of this place is not necessarily based on the quality of the food. They have an on-line menu, which is good. However, they radically changed their prices about a month ago and haven't yet changed the on-line menu prices. Creates a little confusion when you order what you expect to be a $30 dinner which turns out to be a $48 dinner. I am not faulting a restaurant for raising their prices. Himalayan food is supposed to be the new hip thing, so why shouldn't they profit. Changing the web site would be a good idea, though.

I have never dined in here. I have only had take out a few times. The first time I went, I ordered from the on line menu and the prices were accurate. However, I was told the wait for the food would be 45 minutes. A little long, but fine since I knew in advance. The food was ready more than 45 minutes later, but not too much longer.

The other night, I ordered and was told 15 minutes for the food. It wasn't ready for over 45 minutes. No real apology. 2 instances of 45 minutes for food is simply unacceptable. The place has been open long enough to know how long it takes to make the food.

Long waits aside, the place was a great option at the old menu prices (which are about 2/3 of the new prices). The food wasn't spectacular but it was good and cheap. At the new menu prices, it is overpriced and not worth the money. I would be very disappointed if I dined in because the decor is not very nice (and I'd be super pissed if I had to wait 45 minutes for my food). Taste of the Himalayas just down Shattuck is much better. The food is superior and the decor is much nicer. Everest had the advantage that it was much cheaper. Now the two places are essentially the same price, so Everest gets the boot.

I'm not sure about my Indian food expertise, but as far as value and service go - this place is awesome!
It was a little eerie at first walking into a HUGE restaurant with not one other person dining, but eventually a few other diners joined in for the lunch time special. In no time, and completely against my will, I felt my foot bouncing and twirling along to the cheerful music.
My bill ended up being in the mid five dollar range which is awesome for a mixed vegetable curry, awesome lentil soup, and a whole basket of naan. I would definitely recommend this place for a good, fast, affordable lunch!

Eh, nothing great about this place. The food is just ok, nothing special. They're closing for two weeks, so probably made the recent visit that much worse. I'm sure they're not keeping up with the fresh stock, etc. The service is never good, today was even worse. How many people does it take to serve the food? Apparently the answer here is 1 plus another 3 to stand around and do nothing.

Delectable samosas, melt-in-your-mouth dal and curries, fluffy naan, all of these are enough to make me ignore the old fast food floor (you know those tiles that look vaguely like fake wood?) and booths. I don't know if the dishes we ordered were more on the Indian or Nepalese side of things, but they were god damned delicious!

There is a lot of great Indian eats in the Berkeley area but this is one of the best!! The service is very-upscale and the food is perfect but the prices are very reasonable. Stop by if you can.

Decent Indian food, service was a tad slow (they weren't busy) but the flavors were rich and the price is decent.