Lakeside NYC, a new Nepalese restaurant in Jackson Heights, serves water buffalo

The Nepali-Himalayan restaurant Lakeside NYC opened about a month ago at 77-05 37th Avenue, near 77th Street, a stone's throw from the Jackson Heights post office. The storefront features a striking yellow sign, and inside hang framed photos of a wheat harvest scene alongside images of runaway mustangs, Buddha, and the White House in Washington, D.C. The owner is Pashupati Shrestha, a certified public accountant from Budhanilkantha, north of Kathmandu.

The menu, with over one hundred options, features Nepalese appetizers and main courses, Indian curries, Tibetan noodles, and momos in a variety of combinations. It also has two sections dedicated to Newari cuisine and another called "Lakeside Local," with dishes such as fried noodles, roasted soybeans, and grilled pork chops.

The name refers to Phewa Lake, a holiday destination in the Kathmandu Valley in central Nepal, where the Annapurna mountain range, part of the Himalayas, rises to the north. Its shores are dotted with rowboats that take visitors to an island with a famous Hindu temple. The valley is home to the Newar, an ethnic group with its own language, predominantly Hindu or Buddhist, and influenced by Indian culture.

On a recent visit, we sampled dishes from the Newari and "Lakeside Local" sections. These are the ones that stood out the most.

The buff samay baji, from the Newari section, is a complete meal served on a porcelain platter with compartments for each element, for $17. “Buff” refers to water buffalo, now supplied by a Pennsylvania vendor. It has a flavor similar to beef, but is drier and more fibrous, so a small amount goes a long way. The platter includes pounded rice called baji, the base of the dish, a fried egg, potato curry, mustard greens, chutney, roasted soybeans, pickled vegetables, and buffalo offal.

From the "Lakeside Local" menu, the $15 chicken sandheko is the Nepalese equivalent of chicken nuggets: fried poultry bites coated in a spice mix and mixed with chopped onion, cilantro, and chilies.

The egg bara, from the Newari section, costs $8. They're lentil pancakes that look like restaurant food at first glance, until you taste them. They're usually sold as street food, cooked on a tawa and served with chicken or vegetables. This version has an egg inside each one and is served with a spicy chutney of chilies and tomatoes.

Gundruk sandheko, at $3, might be mistaken for a meat salad, but it's actually fermented vegetables of a vibrant forest green, with a strong flavor of spices and mustard oil. It pairs perfectly with any dish on the menu.