By Sujan Tiwari

“Most of the restaurants in Kathmandu claim to serve Italian, Indian, Chinese, continental and everything in between. How can a small place prepare a good meal from every corner of the world?” wonders Robert E Desjardins, Director of the famous Kilroy’s of Kathmandu. Desjardins, French by nationality, was in Nepal for the first time in the year 1969. He was here after his extensive travel around the world, and says he instantly fell in love with Nepal. “I found Nepal very different from the rest of the world. The festivals, the people, the architecture, everything fascinated me,” recollects Desjardins. He visited Nepal ten times between 1989 and 1999 once each year. His acquaintance, Thomas Kilroy, a reputed chef was working in Bermuda back then. They both came to Nepal once, and Kilroy also liked the country. But when it came to eateries, they noticed that all the restaurants boasted all the possible cuisines, and couldn’t succeed in serving it good. “As a result, the food wasn’t good at all,” says Desjardins.

So, both the friends thought of opening a restaurant that’ll serve ‘real continental food’. Kilroy’s is the outcome of that thought, a restaurant conceived with the sole purpose of providing good continental food. Kilroy’s of Kathmandu, opened in November of 1998 has been the hotspot for tourists and expats in Kathmandu who crave for excellent continental food, wide collection of wines and an antique atmosphere amidst the hubbub of Thamel ever since. According to Ramesh Kumar Shrestha, Manager at Kilroy’s, almost 95 per cent of the customers here are foreigners. “Kilroy’s has become a foreign brand over the years. Nepali customers don’t come here much, but we want to encourage them to come here as well,” said Shrestha. There’s a garden with comfortable seating arrangements, a terrace and a terrace bar, and a main dining hall, a lot of options to sit back and enjoy the meal. Kilroy’s can accommodate 250 people at once. The entire place was designed and decorated by Thomas Kilroy, and he prepared the main menu with a few contributions from Desjardins.

Apart from the main menu, two seasonal menus are added every year. The most loved starter here is smoked salmon soufflé from the seasonal special menu. Feuillete de chevre, local goat cheese baked in puff patty is also very popular here. For main course, a delectable option could be seared breast of chicken stuffed with nak’s cheese and mushroom sauce. This is the most admired main course here. Kilroy’s is also well known for its delicious steaks. There is also a tandoori kitchen for the lovers of Indian food. It serves numerous veg and non veg Indian delicacies. The menu also features a variety of salads, soups, sizzlers, sandwiches and everything in between. The dessert menu prepared by Kilroy is still on today, except for a few additions now and then. Kilro’ys lemon tart and warm chocolate fondant is loved by all. In addition to the good food,the place is also very well known for its selection of wines. Kilroy’s hosts monsoon wine festival every year, which goes for three months straight. “We started the wine festival to introduce Nepalis to the world of wines. This has been going on for last 9 years,” explained Desjardins. Owing to its widespread popularity, Kilroy’s of Kathmandu is visited by many prominent figures, both national and international. Some in the list are Sir Edmund Hilary, former US ambassador to Nepal Michael Malinowski, renowned mountaineers Late Babu Chiri Sherpa and Appa Sherpa, Sher Bahadur Deuba and Ram Chandra Paudel among others.