Exploring Butwal, Nepal: Terai cuisine, Lumbini trails and a stay at Hyatt Place

Somewhere between the overlooked and the underrated lies Butwal, a city in western Nepal that rarely figures on tourist itineraries. Cradled by the Siwalik Hills, known locally as Chure Pahad, it stands at the edge of Nepal’s Terai (plains) region, with the Tinau River winding quietly through. Part trading hub, part cultural centre, this quaint valley town — 26 kilometres from the India–Nepal border and 123 kilometres from Gorakhpur Airport — serves as a gateway to Lumbini, birthplace of Gautama Buddha, and offers a scenic intersection of hills and plains. From a suite at the newly-opened Hyatt Place Butwal, the landscape unfolds in layers: grey-blue hills rising beyond clusters of colourful houses, each crowned with a mumty (a small structure built on a rooftop) and threaded by serpentine lanes.

The façade of Hyatt Place Butwal
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“Butwal’s proximity to India, particularly the Gorakhpur feeder market in Uttar Pradesh, positions it as a natural hospitality gateway for cross-border business and leisure travel. The seamless road connectivity from Gorakhpur and Gautam Buddha International Airport reinforce its tourism and business potential,” says Tushar Nagar, pre-opening general manager at Hyatt, explaining Butwal’s scope in Hyatt Hotels Corporation’s strategic growth across South Asia. The hotel’ was up and running in December last year, he adds. 

Zing Bar at Hyatt Place
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The conversation meanders from some of the most-visited sites in and around Butwal — Jitgadi Fort, Siddhartha Cable Car, Manimukanda Park, Akhileshwor Mahadeva Temple and Nuwakot Hill — and halts at food. Head chef Umesh Tamang, unassuming and reverently passionate, paces to the table from behind Zing Bar’s kitchen door. Rubbing his hands together, as if warming up for a challenge, he smiles and introduces the topographic disposition of Nepal before placing the menu card.

Head chef Umesh Tamang
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“Nepal has many cuisines; the spectrum ranges from the ceremonial richness of Newari food to the nourishing simplicity of Himalayan dishes like tingmo (steamed Tibetan bread), gyuma (himalayan sausage), phapar ko roti (buckwheat flatbread) and sisnu ko jhol (nettle soup). Meanwhile, the tharu cuisine of the Terai region is closely connected to Nature and rivers, with dishes like dhikri (steamed rice flour dumplings); ghonghi (snail curry); anadi rice dishes (sticky rice specialty); tarua (lightly spiced vegetable fritters) and tharu style fish curry. Since we are in the Terai, try some mutton with local rice and small bites?” he suggests, before disappearing into his kitchen.

(Left) buckwheat-flour based fries kanchemba; (Right) an assortment of chutneys, curd-based chukauni, along with dry and fresh pickles
| Photo Credit:
Amarjot Kaur

This is followed by a peek into his well-oiled culinary workshop, with verticals spanning bakery to larder, where he orchestrates more magic than mere meals. Calling it an impromptu lunch is both, accurate and an understatement: within an hour, he conjures a spread that could easily pass for a festive banquet.

(Left) Sukuti meat, reminiscent of the North Indian mutton handi; (Right) sukuti sadeko, made with smoky dried mutton pieces
| Photo Credit:
Amarjot Kaur

To the Indian palate, the taste is favourable, echoing familiar impressions of spices and flavours in home kitchens. The Nepalese mutton curry, called mutton sukuti meat, is reminiscent of the North Indian mutton handi. It arrives in a clay pot plonked atop smouldering coals and sealed with a sheet of wheat dough and is paired with yellow-toned, mildly sweet rice chamre bhat. An assortment of chutneys, curd-based chukauni, along with dry and fresh pickles, accompanies the meal and starters like mutton sukuti sadeko, made with smoky dried mutton pieces, and buckwheat-flour based fries kanchemba. The savouries are punctuated with a dessert inspired by panchamrit, signed off with the subtle sweetness of honey, milk and cinnamon.

The dessert is inspired by panchamrit, signed off with the subtle sweetness of honey, milk and cinnamon

Umesh’s description of Nepal’s traditional dishes lingers. It evokes sensorial graphics of dishes like thukpa (noodle soup) and thenthuk (hand-pulled noodle soup) from the Himal (mountains) region; and wachipa (rice mixed with burnt chicken feather powder and spices), kinema curry (made with fermented soybean), sargemba (mixed meat and radish curry), tongba (fermented millet drink) from Rai cuisine (eastern hills).

Hari, the bartender at Hyatt Place Butwal
| Photo Credit:
Amarjot Kaur

With a full stomach and a mind still turning over Nepal’s culinary details, the luxury of a siesta beckons — there is plenty to dream about. The reverie is interrupted, however, by a timely knock from room service, a reminder for a spa session followed by drinks at the hotel bar. Behind the counter, Hari, the bartender, juggles the bottles with practised ease, assembling heady potions with generous portions of rum, whisky and brandy. His top suggestions are the Golden Wash, a ghee-washed whisky cocktail, and Ayurvedic Rum, made with spiced Khukri rum infused with Chyavanprash.

The cocktails at Hyatt Place
| Photo Credit:
Amarjot Kaur

Umesh recommends sadeko bhatmas, a crunchy soyabean salad that serves as a textural counterpoint to the cocktails. Dinner is a carefully curated thali, with Tharu-style fish curry as a centrepiece, bringing the day’s exploration of Terai flavours to a fitting close.

Sadeko bhatmas, a crunchy soyabean salad
| Photo Credit:
Amarjot Kaur

The gentle intoxication lulls one to a good night sleep, but morning arrives with a rude awakening. Butwal’s unpredictable weather tests your patience and rewards perseverance. The valley pairs sudden showers with unexpected surprises. It starts at the gym with a training session by trainer Rubina, unwinds at Jitgadi Fort, site of the Anglo Nepalese War (1814-1816) where the Nepalese defeated the East India Company in the Battle of Jitgadhi, and takes an adventurous detour to a casino.

Jitgadi Fort, site of the Anglo Nepalese War (1814-1816)
| Photo Credit:
Amarjot Kaur

In between, a visit to the rain-washed Maya Devi Mandir, an ancient Buddhist shrine situated at the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Lumbini, and World Peace Pagoda, helps contextualise Nepal’s historical, cultural and spiritual arc.

Maya Devi Mandir, an ancient Buddhist shrine situated at the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Lumbini
| Photo Credit:
Amarjot Kaur

The outdoor excursions come to a tentative halt with a late lunch at Hyatt’s Zing Bar. Umesh continues to push the envelope, packing his creative prowess in a warm, herby quail soup and the showstopper, garlic kheer.

While the day gently slips into the dusk, an aromatic massage at the spa soothes the tired nerves. Deepa, at the spa counter, offers the menu and three bottles of oils. “We have tea tree oil, lavender oil and olive oil. The guests could choose the one they like, but I would suggest tea tree oil for aromatherapy and lavender oil for deep tissue,” she says.

Spa at Hyatt Place Butwal
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Special arrangement

The spa area, with four rooms, including one for the couple massage, is earthy yet chic. The massage is followed by steam, bath and sauna — particularly in that same order. “We have a separate steam room, sauna room and bath cabins, just two minutes from the spa. Though each spa room is accompanied by a bath-cum-toilet area, and a post-massage shower would suffice, but I suggest steam. It allows the oil to penetrate into the skin and bath washes away excess oils. The sauna further relaxes the tissues and improves skin texture,” Deepa informs.

For those who hit the sack early, spa would make for a befitting end to the day. But for the nocturnal, Nepal’s casinos offer more than just luck-testing arenas! It is interesting to note that Nepal’s Casino Regulations prohibit Nepalese citizens from entering a casino or gambling there. Though legal, casinos are only strictly allowed as a tourism activity for foreigners. In Butwal, Casino Tiger Palace is the biggest. It accepts Indian rupees and charges a customary entry fee of nearly ₹2,000, which includes a lifetime membership of the casino and allows two free games. Inside, you are likely to find men (mostly Indians, aged mid 40s and above), evocative dance performances by women on a stage guarded by bouncers and a bouquet of games, from Russian Roulette to Black Jack. Drinks and food are on the house.

The view from the Siddhartha Cable Car
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A quick takeaway though comes from a young dealer: somewhere between winning and losing, instinct speaks — wisdom lies in listening, he says. With that thought on the bedside, and a restful sleep, the itch for that one last adventure motivates an early trip to Siddhartha Cable Car. Somewhere between the land and sky, amidst green hills adorned by the aventurine-green Tinau River, the fate of Nepal’s impending elections stands discussed. A co-passenger predicts: “It has to be the rapper-turned-politician Belan (Balendra Shah) of Kathmandu. He will win”. Another responds, “Nothing will change. Power is structured to protect the interests of the ruling class”.

As the cabin glides over the valley, Butwal unfolds below — a mosaic of hills, houses and roads
| Photo Credit:
Amarjot Kaur

As the cabin glides over the valley, Butwal unfolds below — a mosaic of hills, houses and roads. Back at Hyatt Place Butwal, the lobby installation pays tribute to Nepal’s national bird, the Himalayan Monal. Between Tushar coordinating a destination wedding and Chef Umesh packing savouries for departing guests, the hotel hums with quiet efficiency. By the time news filters through that Balen has won, Butwal seems unchanged — still unhurried, still understated. Somewhere between a trading town and a pilgrimage gateway, between hills and plains, it remains what it has always been: Nepal’s quiet in-between destination.

The writer was in Nepal at the invitation of Hyatt Place Butwal.