Charlotte’s Momo Truck is a four-wheeled ambassador of Himalayan flavors. Here’s where to find it.
Ever dreamed of visiting Asia’s Himalayan Mountains? Now a bit of Himalayan culture is roaming Charlotte.
The Momo Truck, a bright orange mobile eatery, is turning up all over the Queen City, including at the Rural Hill Food Truck Rally in northern Mecklenburg County on Saturday.
Truck proprietor Jay Subedi fled the ethnic wars in Bhutan and Nepal to come to Charlotte in 2008. He was among the first arrivals from that region north of India, which has become the Queen City’s fastest-growing immigrant stream in recent years. Subedi launched Charlotte’s first Bhutanese/Nepali grocery store, Central Market, while earning a degree in civil engineering at UNC Charlotte.
He eagerly talks about the traditions behind his food truck’s menu of wraps, dumplings and rice bowls. “Our food is Indo-Chinese,” drawing on Indian and Asian influences, he says.
The Momo Truck’s katti roll traces its origins from the Himalayas back to Kolkata, India. There, a paratha flatbread is rolled around grilled meat and sauce. Subedi substitutes a tortilla for the paratha, creating a wrap that feels familiar to Charlotte customers.
Momo, the truck’s namesake, are dumplings stuffed with meat. They’re the Himalayan take on the potstickers found on Asian restaurant menus, but much plumper and meatier, with a zesty sauce on the side.
Subedi makes the momo sauce, a key ingredient in most of his menu items, by hand. “It’s roasted tomatoes with Indian spices,” he confides. He’s toned down the pepper heat a bit to please American palates. “Ours is a fusion truck,” he says — a four-wheeled ambassador of Himalayan flavors. “Things people really like, easy to make, easy to eat.”
For future locations, check “Momo Truck” on Facebook or at the website www.momotruck.com.
Find community historian Tom Hanchett’s writings at HistorySouth.org. Reach him at Tom@HistorySouth.org
The original version of this story ran at CharlotteObserver.com.
This story was originally published August 2, 2018 at 10:42 PM with the headline "Charlotte’s Momo Truck is a four-wheeled ambassador of Himalayan flavors. Here’s where to find it.."