Himalayan D’Lite kiosk opens in City Hall Park

BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) – A new food option has opened in Burlington’s City Hall Park.

Nurbu Sherpa of Sherpa Foods on Wednesday handed out free Nepalese food to celebrate the opening of Himalayan D’Lite in Burlington’s City Hall Park. “A very emotional moment, so to speak,” Sherpa said.

It was a full-circle moment for Sherpa, whose business got its at the Farmer’s Market in nearly the same location back in 2015. “To open our cafe in South Burlington, and then be able to come open a satellite location in Burlington City Hall Park, where we kind of start — It’s an amazing feeling. It’s like a really just, you know, I can explain it. It’s really good,” he said.

City officials in June said that Sherpa was chosen after a proposal went out to business owners. The city paid for the new structure using federal funding.

“This new kiosk demonstrates our city’s commitment to creating inclusive, vibrant, and dynamic public spaces to make Burlington truly a special place,” said Burlington Mayor Emma Mulvaney-Stanak.

Officials say the idea is to provide a more welcoming experience for visitors while at the same time trying to discourage frequent drug use, fights, and other behavior that has plagued the location.

Sherpa says since his soft open on Saturday, things have been going great. “So, everyone has different situations in their life, you know, different things happening. So, we have no other issues, and we haven’t had any problems or anything like that. I think people are just hanging out there, doing their own thing, and we’re doing our thing at the kiosk,” he said.

The food stand will be open year-round. Three percent of the profits will be donated to local nonprofits.