Gluten Savvy

Nepalese food has always been a favourite. Happily, like a lot of Indian food, the main dishes are mostly gluten-free. Sadly, of course, you have to avoid the breads, but what’s new?

Gurkha’s Brasserie is one the Gurkha’s growing chain, although it’s not a fast food restaurant. We sat at the front on those knee cushions you sometimes find in Thai restaurants. The waiter brought a basket of pappadums which we ascertained were chickpea flour.

Nothing on the menu was marked gluten-free but the waiter was very helpful. Following our usual pattern, we ordered the most unusual things we could find on the menu: the goat curry and the crab curry. They were utterly delicious. The crab was served with a silver tool for cracking the legs, but the shell was so soft we didn’t need it. Thankfully, we were also given a bowl of water to clean our fingers.

We had saffron rice and yoghurt raita as sides. The raita was unusual, in that it had onion, apple and tomato as well as the usual cucumber you’d find in an Indian restaurant. It worked surprisingly well with the goat.

My partner had a “Nepalese tea” (very much like chai) and I had mango lassi. Unfortunately, we didn’t have time to stay for dessert.

The total for the night was $51 — where else can you get a crab dish this good for only $16.50? We will definitely be returning. Gurkha’s reputation is well deserved.

Rating:

Gurkha’s Brasserie
190 -192 Chapel St
Prahran VIC 3181