Sherpa Kitchen

The Valley’s first Nepalese restaurant is also one of its best restaurants to open in the last three years. Subash and Chandra Yadav upgraded from their dumpling-starring food truck, Everest Momo, to an intimate brick-and-mortar in early 2020. Those chewy-yet-succulent momos live on, served steamed, souped, and fried, slicked in potent sauces like a tomato-rich curry and gingery chile. Subash sources deeply from local farms, especially Rhiba Farms in Queen Creek. The vibrant hues of peak-season produce color his wok-fried udon noodles, his taruwa (fried vegetables), his gundruk (soup of fermented greens). There is rare personality and vivacity to his food. There is also rare rigor, especially at the modest price point. For one: the gundruk, which takes 10 days to make, recently cost just $6. Even the chai blend is not only from scratch, but presented artfully on slate beside sel roti, a lacy, ghee-fried doughnut. Admirably, Sherpa Kitchen takes major steps to accommodate vegans.