If you can’t get your fix of Nepali food at Dobhan, Himal Chuli or Mirch Masala, now you can go to HungryBadger Cafe, which enters the food scene by focusing primarily on momos (dumplings).
Here, you can choose among six kinds of momos, including alu ($8), which is akin to a spicy potato pierogi. My first order was the classic momo. You can get these in chicken ($8.50) or beef ($9.50), and I opted for the latter. These did taste like traditional momos–which I’ve been fortunate to eat several times at a Nepali friend’s house–with the majority of the flavor coming from the turmeric, garlic and ginger.
I also enjoyed the brat-stuffed Badger momo ($9). One bite and you immediately taste the bratwurst, plus some of the scallions. It felt weird to dip the momo in the accompanying ketchup and mustard, but honestly, it worked. In both cases, the momos were a little tough at the pinch points, a sign that they were a bit overcooked.
I did sample a few other items on the concise menu. As you’d expect, the samosa ($7 for two) is stuffed with potato, onion, peas and spices plus corn (instead of the red pepper listed on the menu). The pastry dough shell was thinner and thus less crispy than other samosas I’ve had. A nice twist was the tamarind cranberry sauce, which added sweetness, and the unexpected cilantro mayo, which was garlicky, that came with the plate.
The campus chili ($7.50) is made of beef and three kinds of beans mixed with a “secret spice mix;” however, the chili was not full of spice flavor at all. In fact, you mostly taste the beef and the beans. You also get a rosemary roll (essentially, naan) to peel apart and dip in the chili, but the chili was thick, not soupy, so you couldn’t dip the roll at all.
HungryBadger Cafe is open for lunch and dinner Sunday and Tuesday-Saturday.
***
See more photos in our HungryBadger Cafe Flickr album.
