FOOD MATTERS
Himalayan Spi 10 fantas
Thirty-one New Street on Plymouth’s Barbican has a rich history dating back to the Elizabethan age. Built in the late 1500s, it would have witnessed the Mayflower setting off from the harbour just a few steps down the cobbled road.
Story and by Laur
The current chapter in its long and colourful history began in 2007 when chef and businessman Kishor GC walked through its doors. His mission? To transform the previous eatery there into the best Indian and Nepalese restaurant in Plymouth. Welcome to Himalayan Spice. Ten years on, and the restaurant – next door to Elizabethan House – is a firm favourite with locals, visitors, traders and corporate clients from some of the city’s biggest organisations, including Plymouth University, Babcock, MoD, and Derriford Hospital. With three distinct dining areas over two floors, it’s also popular with groups wanting a space to themselves. Kishor’s old friend Krishna Rayamajhi joined him as the restaurant’s head chef, following a career in Mumbai and Dubai before bringing his skills to the UK. His 20 years of experience has helped Kishor in fulfilling his mission, with his food garnering four and five-star comments on the major review sites. Kishor admits it wasn’t easy to begin with, particularly when it came to introducing new cuisine to customers: “We’ve built it up from nothing, really,” he said. “But now we’re very busy, we’re open seven days a week and we’ve almost doubled our staff.” Kishor says Krishna is one of the reasons why customers keep on coming back: “It’s all down to his recipes, flavours and his traditional cooking style, the way he uses the fresh spices which we grind ourselves, and his cooking techniques. “A lot of people tell us that our food tastes different to elsewhere because of that freshness and the flavours. One of the most recent reviews on TripAdvisor says we make the best curry in Plymouth. That sort of feedback is very nice to read.” Krishna agrees that the secret of their success is to keep it simple and let the flavours do the talking: “There’s nothing fancy about what we do here. The food is fresh and consistent, the
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The Plymouth Magazine September 2017