Our guest today is Kyikyi, owner of Himalayan Dumplings, the first woman-owned Tibetan food brand in the U.S., which makes and sells Tibetan dumplings, or momos, and Tibetan hand pies. Kyikyi’s parents and grandparents fled Tibet when the Chinese invaded in 1959, and settled in the town of Darjeeling in India, where Kyikyi grew up. She immigrated to the U.S. a little over 20 years ago, and now lives in Oregon with her family.
To help preserve her Tibetan culture, especially for her daughters, Kyikyi started selling home-made momos and hand pies at the Beaverton Night Market eight years ago. You can buy the Himalayan Dumplings momos and hand pies frozen, and cook them on-demand at home, or eat them fresh at the new Himalayan Dumplings café in Beaverton. We talk with Kyikyi about her experience as a Tibetan refugee, the food she grew up with and loves, and what it’s like to start a one-woman business in Portland, working up from pop-ups at local markets to her own brick-and-mortar restaurant. Just a note that Kyikyi prefers not to user her last name professionally, for reasons of privacy.
Photo of Kyikyi courtesy of Briana Morrison Photography
- KBOO