- cumin: a small annual herb (Cuminum cyminum) of the carrot family cultivated for its aromatic fruits; also : the seedlike fruit of cumin used as a spice
- Cumin: A Nepali-Indian restaurant in the Wicker Park neighborhood of Chicago
Rather than poring through guidebooks and multilingual dictionaries like we should be doing, the Hubs and I opted for some culinary research at Cumin, a Nepali-Indian restaurant in Wicker Park. As it was a Friday night, we'd made a reservation to ensure we wouldn't have any problems being seated, and when Matt noticed the hostess deftly refusing a bribe for a table, I was glad we did. Cumin's clean, modern interior design is off-set by landscape paintings of Himalayan mountain ranges and a giant photo of Durbar Square. The food has a hearty, stick-to-your ribs quality that one would expect from a rugged, mountainous country. We started off with Matt's favorite Nepali street food, momos, which are steamed dumplings filled with vegetables or meat. A co-worker of mine had recommended the Parvate Aaalu Tama Ra Bodi, a main course consisting of black-eyed peas cooked in Nepalese spices, with potatoes and bamboo shoots. I opted for the Namche Bazar Ko Sekuwa, goat meat marinated in Nepalese spices. I've never had goat before; the texture reminded me of a very tender roast, but the spices aren't comparable to anything I've ever had. So how does the food at Cumin compare to the “real thing”? I suppose I'll soon find out...
