Pocatello restaurateur brings global flavor to the Intermountain West

Idaho State University alum expands Himalayan Flavor restaurant from Pocatello to Utah

Story and photos by Elise Barker

Roshan Kumar, owner of Himalayan Flavor in Pocatello, which recently expanded to Logan, Utah.

A warm aroma of garam masala and the sound of rattling dishes greet visitors to the Himalayan Flavor restaurant in Pocatello. The smell of garlic, cloves, cardamom, turmeric and coriander drift from the buffet, where a patron takes a plate and ladles a large scoop of bright red sauce and chicken onto his plate. He says it's his favorite dish: butter chicken. The buffet offers a steaming array of dishes, including bright green saag paneer, dark red butter chicken, milky orange tikka masala and, of course, biryani rice. 

Himalayan Flavor is the creation of Nepalese native Roshan Kumar, who came to Idaho to study finance and accounting at Idaho State University. After he graduated in 2016, Kumar opened the Himalayan Grocery and Smoke Shop near ISU in an effort to provide Pocatello with hard-to-find foods, such as the soft Indian cheese, paneer.  

Kumar’s next ambition was to open a restaurant. 

“There was a need for fresh, authentic Indian food with a Nepalese flair in Pocatello. So I opened Himalayan Flavor in 2018,” Kumar said.

In the summer of 2021, Kumar expanded yet again, opening a second restaurant in Logan, Utah.

“Pocatello’s size made it an easy place to start financially, but I hope the larger community in Logan can help us weather recent financial challenges,” he said.

Logan, another college town, is a natural location for expansion. Kumar said he understands the culture of the local market and has found a business model that works. He strikes an intentional and thoughtful balance between offering those unique Nepalese flavors and welcoming Americans who might be intimidated, helping to shrink the distance between the local and the global. 

With inflation, Kumar’s costs for labor and food have been rising in recent months. By offering an affordable variety, he assumes some risk to get patrons through the door.

“Our lunch buffet doesn’t make much money, but it gives guests the opportunity to sample a lot of options,” he said. “I hope they’ll come back knowing what to order for dinner.”

Visit Himalayan Flavor in Pocatello
303 E Alameda Road
11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and 4-9:30 p.m. Monday-Saturday
12:30-7:30 p.m. Sunday