Taste Tibet is the result of a chance encounter on a mountain path in northern India (above) on Friday 13th November 2009. The date that Yeshi and I met is easier to remember than that of our wedding anniversary, which this year we both forgot.
And it’s become more memorable still. Without even planning it this way – Covid did its thing for many months in 2020 and it just happened to come to pass – we opened the restaurant on a Friday 13th November as well. The following year, Taste Tibet made its national TV debut on November 13th when Saturday Kitchen ran a segment about us in the run-up to the BBC Food and Farming Awards.
This weekend we’re throwing a little party to celebrate not just four years of the restaurant during what must be the hardest period for hospitality in recent times (listen to our interview on Radio 5 Live last week if you want to hear our thoughts on the current state of the industry – scroll to 30 mins 45 seconds), but ten years of Taste Tibet and fifteen of Mr and Mrs TT.
How easily the whole thing might never have happened. On 13th November 2009 I decided at the last minute to turn right out of my hotel in instead of left into the small hill town of McLeod Ganj, and ten minutes later I met Yeshi on the road winding up the mountainside. He was taking a photography course at the time and was out looking for inspiration. We happened upon the same snow monkeys playing in the trees beside us, and I followed him to get a closer shot.
Many of the wonderful people who come through our doors today remember well their first taste of Tibet from the pop-up shop inside our own home around the corner from the restaurant on Magdalen Road. Sounds adventurous, but these beginnings were borne out of necessity as Yeshi couldn’t yet drive himself to the market in Gloucester Green.
Our kids were three and just turned one at the time and we have a feeling that most people came as much for the theatre playing out in our front room as for Yeshi’s marvellous momos.
We’d like to thank you for your many years of incredible support for our small business. This Saturday we’re setting up our pans outside the restaurant like the old market days, and we’re offering all our newsletter subscribers free boxes of big beef or heavenly vegan momos all day long (one serve per customer). If you haven’t yet joined our mailing list you can subscribe through the link at the bottom of this page or directly through our free Substack. We’ll send you out the passcode you’ll need to claim the deal.
We’re open the following hours this week (note all-day opening on Saturday for our party):
Weds – Fri: 5 – 9.30pm (dinner only)
Saturday: 12 – 9.30pm
Sunday: 12 – 3 (lunch) / 5-9pm (dinner)
This week’s menu is up on the website – check it! Come by for take away, dine in or you can order home delivery through Deliveroo.
Come also for a rummage through our freezers, for chilli oil and for our cookbook.
Thank you for supporting us.
Love and momos!
Julie and Yeshi
Opening hours this week:
Weds – Fri: 5 – 9.30pm
Saturday: 12 – 9.30pm
Sunday: 12 – 3pm 🥢 5 – 9pm
☏ 01865 499318
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