Food

Ok, I know you've all been waiting for this, but it's no problem - in fact, it's gorgeous. My recent trip to Yumthang covers some good examples of the different types of food on offer.

Monday lunch: thali - Indian set meal,which includes rice, chapatis ("roti"), dahl (usually not spicy) and two or three curried vegetables (usually rather spicy).
Monday dinner: Tibetan soup, vegetable soup with home made dumplings, absolutely gorgeous and very filling
Tuesday breakfast: English style, tea, toast (butter + jam) and omelette
Tuesday lunch: Chinese style chow mein (noodles and vegetables), plus a much saltier soup, plus Momos (inherited from Tibetan cuisine, chopped vegetables wrapped in a dumpling-style pastry and steamed)
Tuesday dinner: More Indian food, cooked by our guide, rice, dahl, spinach, a "garlic soup" which was actually err... chillie soup, and also some curried chicken for the rest of the group
Wednesday breakfast: more Indian food, pancakes, vegetable (mostly onion) omelette, plus some other bits and pieces.

I ate virtually all the above and only gave up on the chillie soup and onion omelette for breakfast - especially as it was 0630 :-}

The Indians have a lovely habit of serving every dish separately - or at least on a different part of your plate, so I'm able to try most things and then increase the ratio of rice or chapati if some of the other bits are too spicy. So basically, I'm eating loads of almost everything except the spicy stuff and loving it :-)

The local snack food is fabulous too, especially
*Momos come in several forms (usually steamed with veg and rice filling, but you can also get fried versions, and different fillings like cheese and chicken), and it's ubiquitous in Gangtok
*Dosa takes the place in the local menus of Nan, but it's more like a cross between a light pancake and an even lighter chappati, stiff enough to stand up on its own. A fast food outlet near me has a cheese version that is my favourite indulgent snack.

There's a Western-style bakery near me, so far I haven't used it much, except that as the Indian food I've enjoyed so far tends to be best eaten hot, I pick up pastries and cakes to take on journeys. If I get desperate for a Western fix they also serve Pizza and garlic bread.

Photos of the trip follow soon, honest!

24 Oct 2007