Food Available in the Everest Base Camp Trek
The food menu in the teahouses en route to the Everest Base Camp is pretty much comprehensive. As the Everest region is in the remote part of the country, yaks and porters have to carry it all the way up to the mountain region. As most of the dishes in the teahouses are made from non-perishable ingredients like grains, rice, cereals ad so on, you will find the most traditional dishes in the region based around these ingredients.
The traditional Nepali dish, ‘Daaal Bhaat Trakari’, cooked lentil soup, steamed rice, and a vegetable dish along with several side dishes including ‘Achaar’, pickle, is a typical Nepali dish that you will find in all of the teahouses across the route.
However, it doesn't mean that you won’t be able to taste other dishes and will have to rely on the traditional dish for the entire adventure. Depending upon the extensive service of the teahouses, you can often switch up the traditional meal option for a Western dish. Macaroni, varieties of soups, sandwiches, burgers, spring rolls, pizza, spaghetti, french toast, boiled eggs, milk, porridge, pancakes, etc including Tibetan dishes are some of the delightful dishes you can enjoy at the Everest Base Camp trekking teahouses whenever you feel like you are missing home.
You can also enjoy the several snack option at the teahouses along the trail; just if you snack a lot, make sure to re-stock them when you enter the major hub. As it may not be possible at the higher altitude to get your favorite snack. And for the vegans, don’t worry, you will also survive in this beautiful expedition of the Himalayas.
As with the increase of vegan guests, the major hubs of the Everest Base Camp trekking like Lukla and Namche Bazaar have especially started including the vegan option in their menus. Even along the teahouses during the expedition you will find several vegan options like oat porridge, mashed potato, chapati, traditional Nepali diss ‘Daal Bhaat Tarkati’, obviously, and vegetarian variants of the Western dishes.
If you are vegan or a vegetarian, you could just ask the cook to exclude the meat options for you, they will prepare a separate dish for you, relax they will use different cooking utensils. Veg and non-veg diets are a very big deal in Nepal, so, the cook will strictly follow the code of conducts in every aspect to prepare the meal from using a separate cutting knife, and board to the cooking pots.
Meal Time in the Everest Base Camp Trek
Generally, the meal time in the Everest Base Camp can differ slightly depending on the itinerary; during the acclimatization or early trek, you can enjoy the meals a little bit earlier than on other days, whereas, as you are trekking, you may have to wait for a little bit longer to reach the marked break & meal points.
However, the typical breakfast time during the trek is around 7 a.m. to 8 a.m., and the lunch period falls around 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. Further, you will usually arrive at your resting destination before sundown, so you will have dinner around 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
What Kind of Food is Available on the Everest Base Camp Trek?-- The Breakfast
The first meal of day will be light and nutritious; like a typical Western eatery, you will have several options for breakfast.
Bread: Toast, Cheese, French Toast, Honey, Jam
Eggs: Boiled, Scrambled, Cheese, Vegetable, Plain
Pancakes: Apple, Banana, Chocolate, Honey Lemon, Plain
Porridge: Oats, Hone, Apple, Tsampa, Rice pudding, Chocolate pudding
These are just some of the comprehensive menus available throughout the teahouses; depending upon the part, the menus can e further extensive. A traditional Nepali breakfast in the mountain region includes chapati with honey, jam, baked beans, curry, or fried eggs.
What About Lunch and Dinner?
After half day's worth of trek, you will have lunch around noon-time; unlike light nutritious dietary during breakfast, the lunchtime menu will be slightly filling.
Traditional Nepali dish:‘Daal Bhaat Tarkari’ will be on the top menu during lunch and dinner time, as it is popular among the localities and Nepali expedition crew members. But, there are several variants of this traditional national dish if you are feeling bland with the same one.
Rice: Veg fried, egg fried, mixed fried, fried rice with cheese, fried rice with tuna, fried rice with chicken
Noodles: Egg, Mixed, fried with cheese, veg, chicken
Dumplings (MoMo): Veg, chicken, cheese, buff, potato, fried
Pizza: Mushroom, mixed, vegetable, tomato cheese, tuna
Sandwiches: Grilled, tuna, tomato, cheese tomato, egg
Burger: Cheese, veg, egg, chicken, buff
Pasta: Cheese, veg fried, tomato sauce, cheese fried
Spaghetti: Cheese and tomato, tuna, veg tomato
Macaroni: Veg, cheese, egg, mixed, plain
Potatoes: Fried, cheese, mashed, French fries, boiled, grilled
Tibetan/Sherpa: Thupka, Yak steaks with chips, Sherpa Stew,
Dessert: Apple pe, German Bakeries, cholate pudding, rice pudding with sugar, snicker roll, apple filter
Note: Menus can vary depending on the grade and services of the teahouse you are staying at. The standard teahouses have more extensive menus to choose from than an ordinary teahouse.
But, What About Water?
The price of goods gradually starts to climb up simultaneously with you ascend, you can’t really blame them, it is really hard to transport goods at the higher altitude, not to mention the cost for yaks and porters. If you want to buy bottled water it can cost around $1 to $4, price increases at the higher altitude, however, there are plenty of water sources along the trail that you can drink from.
Although it is not recommended to drink water directly from the tap, the teahouses along the route will offer you boiled water. Drinking just boiled water is the safest and most efficient way to keep yourself hydrated through the Everest Base Camp trekking expedition.
You can also use SteriPEN or purification tablets to purify the tap water and make it safe to drink. So, make sure to drink just boiled water or processed water to avoid any kind of inconvenience during the trek.
For those looking to add an extra layer of challenge and adventure to their Himalayan journey, the Everest Three High Passes Trek is an excellent option. This trek not only includes the classic Everest Base Camp route but also takes you through three of the highest passes in the Everest region, offering breathtaking views and an unparalleled experience of the region's diverse landscapes.
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