A new restaurant opens its doors in St. Louis Hills today—but discerning diners will recognize many of the dishes on its menu. After a brief closure this summer, Namaste Restaurant & Bar has reopened at 4915 Hampton Avenue as Namaste Curry Lounge. The new concept builds on owners Arzun and Robert Chuhan’s prowess for traditional Indian and Nepalese flavors, with the addition of new street food dishes and a new cocktail menu.
The Concept
Along with a few other family members, brothers Arzun and Robert Chuhan opened Namaste Restaurant & Bar in St. Louis Hills in 2021. The restaurant specialized in traditional Indian and Nepali dishes, such as curry, dal, biryani, samosas, and more. In addition to more familiar Indian dishes, such as tikka masala, butter chicken, and saag paneer, Namaste earned a following for its Nepali dishes, such as momo (a variety of dumplings available steamed or deep-fried) and thukpa (a hot noodle soup), which reflect the Chuhans’ heritage. The brothers were both born in Nepal after their parents arrived as refugees from Bhutan, and their family lived in Nepal for 20 years before immigrating to St. Louis in 2010. Namaste is their first restaurant, and after a few years running it in its original form, they felt the time was right for a change.
“We’ve been open almost four years, and we didn’t want to be just the same boring restaurant,” Robert says. “We wanted to upgrade the menu—the food and the bar menu—and the space. The new concept is keeping up with the trends. We wanted to infuse more fusion food, and now we have more South Indian food, like dosas and Mumbai street food.”
The Chuhan brothers closed Namaste on June 23 for a brief remodel before reopening on August 15. They chose to slightly tweak the name of the concept—from Namaste Restaurant & Bar to Namaste Curry Lounge—to highlight the new menu’s focus on curries and reflect a more family-friendly atmosphere.
The Menu
Fans of Namaste need not fear: Robert says they added more dishes than they took away. Customer favorites such as momo, biryani, tandoori chicken, and various curries (such as chicken tikka masala, butter chicken, and chicken korma) have carried over to the new menu. In keeping with the new name, curries are prominently featured on the menu, including several varieties of chicken, lamb, goat, shrimp, and vegetarian curries. Fans of Namaste’s momos will be excited to see an expanded selection of the Nepali dumplings, including momo sadeko (pan-fried momos served with spices and herbs) and kothey momo, which are steamed and then fried, resulting in a crispy base and soft top.
The Chuhans have also introduced a few more dishes that reflect different regions of India and Nepal, including popular Mumbai street foods such as pav bhaji (spicy mashed vegetable curry served with butter-toasted buns), chole bhatura (chickpea curry served with deep-fried leavened bread), and vada pav (a spicy potato fritter in a bun, similar to a burger, served with garlic chutney and tamarind sauce). They’ve also added several varieties of dosas (a thin, crispy savory crepe made with a fermented lentil and rice batter) stuffed with fillings such as spiced potatoes, melted cheese, or spicy chicken.
“We didn’t really remove a lot of dishes, but we did add a lot of exciting new dishes,” Robert says.
The menu also includes a few fusion dishes, such as masala fries, tikka wraps (available with chicken, paneer or a spicy potato fritter), and a butter chicken burrito. The Chuhans hope they’ll be an accessible entry point to diners who are new to Indian food.
“It’s fusion in the way that we want to do it,” Robert says. “We are not making Indian dishes in American way, but we are making American favorite dishes in an Indian way. Most people, if they have ever tried Indian food, are familiar with butter chicken. So for those people, if it is their first time coming into an Indian restaurant, they might think, All curries are spicy… I cannot handle spice that much, so they are like, Oh, no, I don’t want to do curries or Indian food. But if there is finger food like burritos or wraps, like a butter chicken wrap, they might try that. Some people who have been scared of trying Indian food because of the spices…we want to bring them in and introduce them with that fusion menu.”
Eventually, the Chuhans plan to add a few Afghan dishes to the menu to cater to the growing Afghan community in St. Louis, including mantu (steamed dumplings filled with ground meat and served with yogurt sauce), slow-braised lamb shank with herbs and bolani (stuffed flatbread with potatoes and green onions).
In addition to the reworked food menu, Namaste Curry Lounge also has a new bar menu. Previously, Namaste served a limited selection of alcoholic drinks, including wine and Indian lagers, as well as soda, juice, mango lassi (a traditional yogurt-based drink), and several flavors of bubble tea. The bar menu now features several cocktails including the Lali Guras Mule (with vodka, ginger beer, blood orange syrup, and lime), the Himalayan Berry Jatra (with mint, berries, rye, lemon, and raspberry purée), and the Panchratna Margarita (with silver tequila, reposado, blue curaçao, and raspberry syrup). In addition to their names, some drinks have a twist from Nepal and India—for instance, the Lal Mirch Margarita features jalapeño-infused tequila and a chaat masala salt rim.
The Space
Namaste Curry Lounge fills the 3,000-square-foot space that was once home to Giancarlo’s Ristorante. The Chuhan family spent about eight months renovating the space before opening the original Namaste in 2021; now, Robert says, they’ve reworked the interior yet again.
While the overall footprint of the restaurant is the same, with a large corner bar and seating for about 80 diners, the carpet has been ripped out to reveal warm wood floors, and all of the tables have been replaced, including new wooden banquettes with red booths. Arzun and Robert plan to have live Nepali music on weekends, which they hope will add to the fun and welcoming vibe.
“I would say people will be excited when they come in,” Robert says. “The vibe is going to be different. We changed a lot of things around. Even myself, when I come in, I feel more happy and excited. The vibe is different, just for me walking in here, because of how everything is arranged, how everything is organized, and it looks open. We will try to deliver the best home-style, authentic taste for the food, and customers will get the vibe, customer service, and ambience as soon as they walk in.”
📍 4915 Hampton, St. Louis Hills
📞 314-696-8585
⏰11 a.m.–3 p.m. and 5–10 p.m. Tue–Sun
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