Taste Of The Himalayas — Restaurant in Baldwin

The storefront and signage are low-key and easy to miss as you're driving down 51, but it's actually pretty swanky on the inside.

There's been an increase in Indian, Bhutanese and Nepalese restaurants in the South Hills. So while you might have gotten along on novelty in the past, more choices does make for pickier customers.

I was overall happy with Route 51 Restaurant. The naan was delicious. Their Chicken Tikka Masala had a nice richness and good spice to it (not heat spice, but seasoning). We also ordered a Curry along with a plate of Chicken 65 and Veggie Momos.

The portions of the momo's and Chicken 65 were almost surprisingly large. Way more like an entree than an appetizer. In retrospect looking at the price of them, they are about the same cost as an entree.

I'd say for two people an appetizer, entree and some bread is probably enough.

My only real 'complaint' would be that it did take some time for the food to come out, and it came out a few dishes at a time. We were warned it would take 15-20 minutes, but our last dishes didn't come out until almost an hour after we ordered. We were eating the dishes as they were made, so it's not like we were starving. Fortunately we always split our food anyways. Otherwise one of us would probably been pretty upset.

The fact that the meal takes time means the food is being cooked fresh, a good thing. Does make the it drag on a little. Luckily we weren't in a hurry at all.

The portion size along with the wait, by the time the curry made it's way out we were both stuffed.

I can definitely see myself going there again. I think the food is a little better than the restaurants up the road. It's probably middle of the road as far as pricing goes, the check was a surprise but not a shock. The wait wasn't awesome but... I'd rather wait for real food than quickly be served some reheated or frozen...

This was among the worst Indian food we've ever had. We ordered takeout as we had a long day and wanted to avoid the hassle of making dinner for ourselves. My wife called and ordered Paneer Tikka Masala for her and Lamb Korma for me, both medium spice level as we are familiar with Indian food and like heat without crushing pain. The basmati rice was bland, lacking any aromatics. The masala was tomato forward and oily as was my korma, but the biggest surprise was a BONE IN EVERY BITE!!! See the plate of bone in my photos. And, after I thought I removed all the bone, I found shards of bone remaining. Never, in all the places I've ever eaten Indian food across my travels, have I ever received a lamb korma with the bone in. The dish was simply impossible to enjoy with having to test each bite for bone before extracting bone from the food in my mouth. Yuck! This was a colossal miss, and for $28 before tax, it was simply too expensive to make the repeat mistake. A call to the restaurant to inform them about the bone dinner was met with several "I'm sorry," but no offer to refund. We won't...

I was an early fan of this restaurant when it first opened, enjoying fantastic food that was full of flavor. However, with its growing popularity, the quality of both the dishes and service has taken a nosedive.

Despite giving them several chances, the decline in quality persisted. Whether it's waiting extra time for orders placed over the phone, discovering out-of-stock items upon arrival, or receiving incorrect and sometimes undercooked orders, the experience has been consistently disappointing.

While the food might appeal to non-Nepali customers, it falls short for those familiar with Nepali cuisine standards. The chaotic weekends amplify these issues. If you do decide to try it out, aim for off-peak hours, double-check your order, and ensure the items are available.

While I might consider returning for a laid-back, intoxicated meal, I'd recommend exploring other options if you're seeking an authentic Nepali dining experience with reliable quality...