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Himalayan Yak Restaurant
Rating Details »
Category: Himalayan/Nepalese [Edit]
Neighborhood: Elmhurst72-20 Roosevelt Ave
Jackson Heights, NY 11372
(718) 779-1119
- Nearest Transit:
-
74th St-Roosevelt Ave (7, E, F, V, G, R)
- Attire:
- Casual
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- Yes
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
10 reviews for Himalayan Yak Restaurant
So you can tell this is an authentic place when you actually see Himalayans eating there!
The food was very falvorful, though I highly recommend you get the steamed buns to help you if you get something too spicy.
I had one of the chilis and it was extremely flavorful! Their teas --- I'v had like 5 different ones are all amazing, but you should know they do come with milk in them already.
The atmosphere is nice, and sometimes includes live music. If you do not like that style of music, you may want to skip on those nights. Oddly, they have TVs which they keep on Food Network...not exactly what one would expect in a Himalayan place serving food.
Himalayan Yak was the first of many stops during a family day in Jackson Heights, so we only ordered enough to get a taste.
We started with an appetizer sampler, samayabajee, that came with shredded meat, pickle, beaten rice, and soy nuts. The beaten rice was very unfamiliar to us; it resembles uncooked oatmeal and had a pleasing chew and took on the sauce that it came with.
We could not turn down the wild boar sausage, which looks like a fatty piece of bacon.
It was loaded with smokey flavor but had a bit too much fat on it for me.
Momos were another must have, we ordered the pork version.
With the doughy bun and juicy filling, Sister compared the texture and flavor to a soup-less soup dumpling, and I agreed.
I hope to return for a full meal.
I've always been to Himalayan Yak for dinner (sometimes for delivery and sometimes to eat in). I find that eating in at the restaurant is best. For some reason, the food tastes different after delivery.
My favorite thing of all time to get here are dumplings (momos). They're fantastic!
If you are looking to eat yummy momos, you won't find it at Yak. I recommend only aloo dum (spicy potatoes) and chili chicken over here. Trust me, I have eat in every single Himalayan place in this neighborhood and this is not the best but I used to go there because my friends liked it.
I would have given 4 stars butI hate eating with loud music and distraction and this place has both. The service is SLOW. Also don't come here super hungry cause the portion is tiny.
Tibetan...Nepalese...Indian Cuisines.......A trio of different cuisines represented in their extensive menu. I came here for the Tibetan food since I already had the other two. My husband being Indian I had mastered the art of all kinds of curries....Nepalese on the other hand was introduced to me by an old friend in the 80's. She use to make Aloo Tama (Potato, black eyes peas and bamboo shoot) and Joghe Tartari (Mixed veg with hot sauce) and Kikhura Masu Ko Jhol (Chicken Curry) Very tasty and delicious.
A very ornate door greets you as you walk in. Inside more delicately carved wooden frames hanging on the wall and so are the sidings of the bar and the area of the band. I assume there is one playing in the night as there were all the instruments and microphone neatly sitting on one corner. The staff all pleasant and attentive.
A buffet was on the left corner ...some dishes almost half emptly...it was almost 3:00 in the afternoon anyway. I choose to order from the menu. Camille had the buffet. It turned out to be a disaster...She did'nt like it...she only like the Paneer...I happen to taste whats in her plate and most of it are terrible including the dessert!!!...Can't figure out the taste...At least .I was happy with mine...Goat Stew cooked in some Spices ...very delicious sauce. The problem was the portion was so small ...I was still hungry after I finished it. ....To sum it up, .I guess if a restaurant is offering more than one cuisine there is a chance that they must have mix up the taste......just wondering..
It's rare that you go try out a new restaurant with someone, and then the two of you have completely different experiences. That's pretty much what happened to me when I came with my Mom.
Always eager to try something new, we decided to head over to tibetan yak and have our first taste of himalayan cuisine. I took a look at the menu, but had trouble picking a dish that appealed to me. The waitress suggested that I might like to try their buffet so that I could sample a variety of different things. I decided to go the buffet route, while my Mom ordered a goat dish.
Her goat arrived and although she said it was very delicious and tender, it came in such a small portion that she was still hungry. She contemplated ordering something else while I sampled the buffet. EVERYTHING in the buffet was pretty awful. Chicken curry was bland, chewy and uninspired. The fried fish was cold and slightly soggy. The noodles, which didn't look too different from lo mein were completely greasy and tasteless. The only thing that was decent was the paneer and the dahl, so I grabbed some bread and made a meal out of it. I had my Mom taste a bit of everything I would try from the buffet and she agreed that it was pretty terrible.
Maybe it was my mistake for getting the buffet to begin with. And I believe I was the last to have it since they took it all away after I finished eating. Even so, the waitress really never should have recommended it knowing it had been sitting out all day and that the food was cold and ready to be tossed it the garbage. Booo!!
They still get 2 stars because my Mom enjoyed her goat, but I won't be returning.
Which do you want first, the good news or the bad? Okay then, let's get the cons out of the way:
CONS
1. The service is slooooow. It doesn't just take a long time to get the food, it also takes a long time to get the bill, even if you're the only one in the restaurant. How very European of them. You practically have to walk over to them to ask for the check.
2. They give you a buttery tea with your meal and it is disgusting, even if you really like butter. Ick.
3. The atmosphere is nonexistent.
4. The restaurant is called Yak. Is that ironic? I don't know anymore since Alanis.
PROS
BUT, along with the bad comes the very good: the food. YUM. The spicy chicken is incredible, and worth the wait. But beware: The "spicy" is as hot as the service is slow. But dang, it's good. Also, there's a fried rice with chicken dish that is excellent. That's all I've had when there because it's so good I didn't want to try anything new. I live in Manhattan now but consider one day venturing back to Queens just for (not to) Yak (heehee).
Why such a high rating when there are so many cons? The food trumps all. As long as you know what you're getting into when you come here, the food is what you come for. And I can't give food that good three stars.
its actually called himalayan yak which is more appropriate than tibetan yak because they offer cuisine from tibet, nepal, india and bhutan. one chef is tibetan and 3 are nepalese. the staff is super friendly as are 99% of the nepalese and tibetans that i know. the wooden doors and various wood pieces inside the place are quite nice. the dalai lama shrine up front is a nice touch. near the bar is a stage where a nepalese ensemble plays bollywood style music.
so the menu offers vegetarian and non-veg options. there's bound to be something appealing for everyone. the bhutanese dishes are crazy hot. when they ask if you like hot they really mean hot. most indian places when they ask if you like hot medium or mild - they have the western palate in mind. with over half the dinners being nepalese you should know that this hot means business. be prepared with a fire extinguisher when you order bhutanese (if you are the type that can eat the kind of chili that gets hotter and hotter after you've swallowed your bite long ago then this should be no problem for you because this food is not quite that hot).
the tibetan tsel gyanthuk is the favorite among tibetans, it is equivalent to pad thai for a thai. it is made with chinese style hand pulled noodles and is really tasty. i kind of wonder though if the soup broth is enhanced by MSG because of that really subtle chemically taste.
its a nice relaxing atmosphere. the dinners are really laid back and the servers are just the best. they will bend over backward to make you happy. just be prepared for slow service, the words schedule or deadline don't exist in their vocabulary. you'd think they had to send a hunter out looking for a wild boar in order to make your pork dish because it takes soooo long for the food to come out.
overall definitely worth the wait and the whole cultural experience. seems when you're done shopping in little india this would also a good change of pace from eating at one of the average indian places on 74th street.
This was kind of a weird thing. I had passed this restaurant a number of times on my way to Renee's Kitchenette and, though my friend said it was great, had never gone inside. Then I continued my Columbia University experience by going to grad school where I met the brother of the woman who owned half of the restaurant.
He took us there one night and I thought everything was very delicious, but very different from other cuisines of the region. It's certainly a trek from Manhattan, but is probably as authentic Tibetan as it gets.
the reason why queens is so well-known for ethnic food is places like this. himalayan yak..tibetan yak...whatever this place is called..it doesn't matter. the food is delicious, especially in the midst of a cold winter spell. only problem is that you have to haul azz to queens.