If you are interested in Kolkata’s food scene and are on social media, you must have seen or heard about Rinchen’s viral rose momos. Vlogger Rinchen Wangdi Bhutia moved to Kolkata from his hometown in Sikkim in 2016 and took baby steps to establish his cloud kitchen, Rinchen’s Momo, in 2023. Appreciation and success followed, and in a year, the 33-year-old opened his first quick service restaurant (QSR) in the Entally market area of central Kolkata in June 2024. This year, he is back with a new offering for his fans and patrons — a dine-in restaurant.
Last month, Rinchen announced that the dine-in will open this month in south Kolkata. My Kolkata spoke to the foodpreneur to know about the new restaurant, his entrepreneurship journey, and more.
Plans for Rinchen’s Momo restaurant
The new 35-seater dine-in restaurant will be at 23A, Sardar Sankar Road, Kolkata - 700029, close to Lake Mall. For the menu, Rinchen will be serving up a fare that showcases his Sikkimese roots, his Nepali connection, and his love for Bengali cuisine. While the full menu is yet to be finalised, the selection of momos will include vegetarian and non-vegetarian options of the crowd-favourite ‘rose momos’, along with a range of other options.
“There will be the usual Sikkimese menu, which will have my special momo. I have also planned to do some Nepalese food because my mom is Nepali from Sikkim and there are many dishes that we have grown up eating. And, of course, there will be some Bengali fare too, because I love the food here. If you see my vlogs, you’ll know I cook a lot of Bengali food,” said the young entrepreneur.
Rinchen’s popular rose momo is made in the shape of a rose, with dough that is coloured using uses spinach and beetroot Satyajit Shaw
As Kolkata’s foodies and Rinchen’s social media followers track the progress, he says the wait will now be short. “The date will be announced soon! We are still working on the interiors and menu. I am still looking after the food while my team takes care of the logistics. We are planning to open in March. I am putting out the making of the restaurant through reels.”
A challenging but flavourful journey
Rinchen’s entrepreneurial journey began in 2023, when the boy from Sikkim quit his banking job in Kolkata and returned to his hometown. There, he started his vlogging journey and nurtured his passion for cooking. He came back to Kolkata and started his cloud kitchen from his home, promoting it through Instagram and delivering via Zomato. Soon, he hit thousands of followers on two of his handles — @rinchen_momo and @vloggingkitchen, and built up a loyal community.
Then, the cloud kitchen’s menu comprised only momos, and on most days, his stock would sell out on Zomato within minutes. “Many people would try to order, but would be disappointed since we sold out very soon. I was doing everything by myself, from shopping for raw materials to cooking and packing. So it was impossible to make food in large quantities. That’s when I decided to start the QSR at Entally with the help of my sister and brother-in-law,” he said.
Rinchen’s Momo in Entally, central Kolkata Satyajit Shaw
The QSR soon became a hotspot for momo lovers, with patrons from across the city visiting. The takeaway-only spot is always busy, with people waiting in long queues during weekends, since there isn’t any seating arrangement — a fact that bothered Rinchen, despite the largely positive response from patrons.
“They would come and have the food in the scorching heat or rain. I felt bad at times. But, I feel blessed that people showed me so much love!” he said, adding that the lack of seating was one of the factors, apart from location, that fast-tracked his plans for a restaurant.
The menu at the Entally outlet serves momo, soups, appetisers, rice and noodles
“I had the restaurant planned. There were many people from south Kolkata, who could not reach the outlet or get the food delivered. The restaurant will allow me to do more with my food, and offer better customer service. I know people love my food, so this restaurant’s priority will be its service,” said the foodpreneur, signing off to get back to his to-do list for Rinchen’s Momo.
