Sherpa House Restaurant and Cultural Center

Though the interior of the Sherpa House Restaurant is fragrant with the smells of naan bread and spiced curries, this tantalizing cuisine is only part of the eatery's allure. The space itself functions something like a museum, except that visitors can actually take a seat and speak above a whisper. Built as a reproduction of a traditional Sherpa house in Nepal, the restaurant seats diners in a family room with a kitchen, in a buffet room beneath a thatched roof, or on a patio perched beneath waving flags. A shrine room, photo gallery, and museum room with traditional artifacts afford more in-depth peeks at the rich culture and history of the Sherpa people, who are widely known for their mountaineering skills.

Behind the scenes, chefs work carefully to make sure that their entrees accurately capture the seasonings and healthfulness that Nepal's cuisine is known for. Cumin, garlic, tomatoes, and ginger spice up pieces of beef, lamb, whitefish, and yak. Naan bread, which they bake in a clay oven and cool on a windowsill atop Mount Everest, soaks up savory pools of curry, stew, and daal bhat. Desserts include kheer, a Nepali rice pudding, and sweet lassi, a drink blended with yogurt, rose water, and sugar.