Namaste Restaurant & Bar opens in St. Louis Hills

The Nepalese and Indian eatery is a welcome addition to the South City neighborhood.

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Namaste Restaurant & Bar, an Indian and Nepalese eatery, has opened at 4915 Hampton in St. Louis Hills.

The restaurant is one of a kind in an area that's seen impressive restaurant growth over the past decade. While there are already numerous pizza and taco shops nearby, Indian and Nepalese food was nowhere to be found in the burgeoning district. That changed once the Chuhan family took over the space formerly occupied by Giancarlo’s Ristorante, which had sat vacant for seven years. It took eight months for the family to transform the space before the grand opening.

“It took a lot to make this happen,” Arzun Chuhan says of transforming the building. “From February, we started remodeling. We had to tear down everything and start new.” The interior now has a prominent theme of red, black, white, and gold. Digital screens have been placed in the corners, along with art depicting ingredients found on the menus. Red cloth, a water jug, and a candle adorn every table. A beautifully constructed, warmly lit bar is situated near the front of the restaurant.

The menu is broken into different sections of traditional Nepali and Indian entrées. Among the categories are a variety of dumplings, known as momo, a selection of meats and vegetables cooked tandoori-style in a clay pot, breads such as naan and roti that are made in house, impressively portioned noodle dishes, curry with rice, and thali (akin to a sampling platter of Nepali cuisine).

There's also a “special menu” category, featuring a potpourri of items such as chicken chili, choila, and sekuwa, a Nepali-style grilled beef. Among the starters are a variety of budget-friendly dishes, including veg-samosa and aalu chop. The restaurant also serves chicken or lentil soup and a Nepali salad consisting of fresh carrot, tomato, cucumber, and red onions with a sour dressing. 

On the dessert menu, you’ll find an Indian cottage cheese prepared with sugar syrup and mixed with milk (ras malai), milk pastry balls served in rose water and sugar syrup (gulab jamun), and a traditional Indian rice pudding (kheer).

Drinks include sweet or mango lassi, masala chai, as well as fountain soda. While Namaste’s liquor license is still in the approval stages, the bar will likely be utilized for dining when tables are hard to come by.

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