Tibetan chealeey ought to warm you up in this chilly season
Okay, enough with politics and on to food. And of course, no offense to any of Warsaw's fine Chinese restaurants.
Well, Tybet Himalaje is finally open. After months of looking in the window at some fine furniture, I was happy to get a chance to taste the fare. Dexter, a serious fan of all foods Asian, quickly jumped at the invitation for lunch.
It felt fine entering the place after so many months of hoping the door would be open. And the dining room greets you in a grand way. The lighting is soft but the room is bright and warm with orange, red and yellow walls covered with colorful, ornate Tibetan prints and tapestries. The cut of wooden columns against the back wall and the rough-looking wooden beams across the ceiling add an earthy quality. And the room is complete with a Buddha sitting in candlelight.
A friendly Polish waitress in Tibetan costume led us through the half-full room to a window table away from the door. Coats were taken away and menus were presented.
The menu greets you with thoughtful style as well. In Polish and English you can read a brief history of Tibet. Recent history is the shortest bit and is written in a rather clever way. It states that since 1950 Tibet has been "incorporated" into China. Well, that's one way to put it.
Since it was a working day I started with a cola (zl. 3.50) and Dexter ordered Tibetan tea (zl. 3.50). But the waitress told us it was a dessert tea with butter. So, Dexter settled for a normal tea (zl. 3.50) he said was far from normal but sweet and good.
Out of curiosity, I asked for a wine list but was shown the back of the main menu. There was a choice of red or white wine (zl. 5 each) that the waitress said was Italian. This didn't explain all the different wine bottles on display next to the Tibetan boots in the window, but I didn't push the point.
The food offerings start with Tibetan appetizers including steamed beef dumplings called sha momo (zl. 6.90), vegetable salad (zl. 5.90), a marinated radish salad (zl. 6.90) and sha baklay (zl. 8.90) which was described as bread stuffed with chicken. Neither Dexter nor I were interested in the chealeey (zl. 6.90). That would be the tongue.
After a short-list of simple-sounding soups (zl. 7-zl. 20) begins the list of main course dishes (zl. 20-zl. 175). The seafood dishes are the most expensive with the lobster-oyster sauce going for zl. 175 and prawn dishes priced at zl. 48, but everything else is around zl. 20.
There is beef, chicken, pork and lamb prepared with basic vegetables and spices running from ginger and chili to coriander and garlic. Maybe it was the cold, raw day that moved Dexter and I to both agree on beef for lunch.
With our orders taken, we sat back for a chat. Dexter noticed that there was no annoying music. Then we noticed there was no music at all and it didn't matter. The place seemed pleasant and peaceful without it.
In fair time, our starters arrived. With chop sticks, I quickly stole one of Dexter's fried prawns in a thin butter and garlic sauce (zl. 20). It was a bit too chewy and the sauce was a bit too sweet but Dexter was happy enough.
Then began the mystery of what starter I received. I had ordered the bread stuffed with chicken but the meat inside the fried dumplings on the plate was pork, not chicken. The ever-helpful waitress explained there was a change in the menu. No problem. The dumplings were moist but not oily and quite good.
Our main dishes arrived quickly after that. We each got a massive plate of thinly slice beef, as well as a bowl of Tibetan boiled noodles (zl. 8.9) the waitress said were home made. There was also the kokoiy baklap bread (zl. 5.9) I had ordered.
The bread was like an Indian naan and covered in melted butter. It was excellent. And both of us raved about the thin noodles. They were simply good.
I enjoyed my beef with celery thoroughly. And Dexter couldn't finish his beef with coriander leaves and garlic. Though he said it was good, he mentioned that the beef could have been a bit more tender. Overall though, it was a fine meal.
Afterward, we looked out the window at the snow and agreed on two glasses of Tibetan hot wine (zl. 7.50). The wine was piping hot, sweet and frothy with a strong touch of cinnamon. While the drink was on the mark, we wondered how Tibetan it actually was but that really didn't matter.
The bill came to zl. 123 ($35.65) without a tip. Though I don't usually like to spend that much for lunch we'd had a massive and good meal. It was a very fair price for the food, the service and the setting. And a VAT receipt wasn't a problem.
I do recommend Tybet Himalaje and will return without a thought myself. It is quality Asian cuisine with a different style and flavor and well worth the wait. Free Tibet!
Well, Tybet Himalaje is finally open. After months of looking in the window at some fine furniture, I was happy to get a chance to taste the fare. Dexter, a serious fan of all foods Asian, quickly jumped at the invitation for lunch.
It felt fine entering the place after so many months of hoping the door would be open. And the dining room greets you in a grand way. The lighting is soft but the room is bright and warm with orange, red and yellow walls covered with colorful, ornate Tibetan prints and tapestries. The cut of wooden columns against the back wall and the rough-looking wooden beams across the ceiling add an earthy quality. And the room is complete with a Buddha sitting in candlelight.
A friendly Polish waitress in Tibetan costume led us through the half-full room to a window table away from the door. Coats were taken away and menus were presented.
The menu greets you with thoughtful style as well. In Polish and English you can read a brief history of Tibet. Recent history is the shortest bit and is written in a rather clever way. It states that since 1950 Tibet has been "incorporated" into China. Well, that's one way to put it.
Since it was a working day I started with a cola (zl. 3.50) and Dexter ordered Tibetan tea (zl. 3.50). But the waitress told us it was a dessert tea with butter. So, Dexter settled for a normal tea (zl. 3.50) he said was far from normal but sweet and good.
Out of curiosity, I asked for a wine list but was shown the back of the main menu. There was a choice of red or white wine (zl. 5 each) that the waitress said was Italian. This didn't explain all the different wine bottles on display next to the Tibetan boots in the window, but I didn't push the point.
The food offerings start with Tibetan appetizers including steamed beef dumplings called sha momo (zl. 6.90), vegetable salad (zl. 5.90), a marinated radish salad (zl. 6.90) and sha baklay (zl. 8.90) which was described as bread stuffed with chicken. Neither Dexter nor I were interested in the chealeey (zl. 6.90). That would be the tongue.
After a short-list of simple-sounding soups (zl. 7-zl. 20) begins the list of main course dishes (zl. 20-zl. 175). The seafood dishes are the most expensive with the lobster-oyster sauce going for zl. 175 and prawn dishes priced at zl. 48, but everything else is around zl. 20.
There is beef, chicken, pork and lamb prepared with basic vegetables and spices running from ginger and chili to coriander and garlic. Maybe it was the cold, raw day that moved Dexter and I to both agree on beef for lunch.
With our orders taken, we sat back for a chat. Dexter noticed that there was no annoying music. Then we noticed there was no music at all and it didn't matter. The place seemed pleasant and peaceful without it.
In fair time, our starters arrived. With chop sticks, I quickly stole one of Dexter's fried prawns in a thin butter and garlic sauce (zl. 20). It was a bit too chewy and the sauce was a bit too sweet but Dexter was happy enough.
Then began the mystery of what starter I received. I had ordered the bread stuffed with chicken but the meat inside the fried dumplings on the plate was pork, not chicken. The ever-helpful waitress explained there was a change in the menu. No problem. The dumplings were moist but not oily and quite good.
Our main dishes arrived quickly after that. We each got a massive plate of thinly slice beef, as well as a bowl of Tibetan boiled noodles (zl. 8.9) the waitress said were home made. There was also the kokoiy baklap bread (zl. 5.9) I had ordered.
The bread was like an Indian naan and covered in melted butter. It was excellent. And both of us raved about the thin noodles. They were simply good.
I enjoyed my beef with celery thoroughly. And Dexter couldn't finish his beef with coriander leaves and garlic. Though he said it was good, he mentioned that the beef could have been a bit more tender. Overall though, it was a fine meal.
Afterward, we looked out the window at the snow and agreed on two glasses of Tibetan hot wine (zl. 7.50). The wine was piping hot, sweet and frothy with a strong touch of cinnamon. While the drink was on the mark, we wondered how Tibetan it actually was but that really didn't matter.
The bill came to zl. 123 ($35.65) without a tip. Though I don't usually like to spend that much for lunch we'd had a massive and good meal. It was a very fair price for the food, the service and the setting. And a VAT receipt wasn't a problem.
I do recommend Tybet Himalaje and will return without a thought myself. It is quality Asian cuisine with a different style and flavor and well worth the wait. Free Tibet!
