New Food Cart Cafe Jhapa Brings the Flavors of Nepal to Denver

A love story led to the launch of Cafe Jhapa, a food cart that serves traditional Nepalese favorites in the Mile High.

Jacob Keller is originally from Ohio and was raised in North Carolina. In 2005, he moved out west to pursue the ski bum life.

On the other side of the world, Mon Gurung was born in Bhutan and raised in the Jhapa District of Nepal. She immigrated to the United States with her family around 2013, landing in Colorado.

Six years ago, they "were working for the same concessionaire [at Denver International Airport]," Keller recalls. "I had an office role, and she was working at the coffee shop. Every time I was at the airport, I'd go visit the coffee shop. I just kind of started stalking her for about two years, and then I finally got up the nerve to talk to her, and it blossomed from there."

For Gurung, food has always been a passion. "I grew up cooking. When I was maybe eleven years old, I learned how to cook," she says.
Keller, on the other hand, brings nearly two decades of experience in the hospitality industry with a focus on concessions. "I worked for Levy Restaurants, which is a major concessionaire in sports and entertainment. I did Ohio State University, University of Colorado and the Georgia World Congress Center. ... I was a kitchen manager on the mountain at Breck for Vail Resorts, and I did airport concessions," he explains.

Their combined expertise, along with the noticeable lack of authentic Nepali cuisine in the area, motivated the couple to launch a food business of their own, and the pandemic proved to be the catalyst they needed. "A year in operations during COVID at the airport drove me crazy, and I decided that we had an opportunity to really serve her community," Keller says. "As popular as food trucks had become, we felt like there was an opportunity to bring her food to areas where it's not presented or displayed."

They had many conversations about the idea, but the aha moment came in 2022, when Keller was working as the director of operations for Biker Jim's. "I took a hot dog cart to the White Water Festival in Salida and ran the cart for four days," he remembers. "I noticed a Nepali restaurant that had brought their food out and served it every day, but it wasn't meant to be mobile. They had tables and an electric warmer to keep the food they prepared at the restaurant warm. We tried it and said, 'There's got to be a better way to do this, and I think I know how. I'm sitting on a cart that has almost all the tools I need to do it except a steamer.' As soon as I got home, I started researching equipment and buying different parts. ... While working full-time and returning to school, I somehow managed to put it all together."
After nearly two years of planning and building, the couple officially launched Cafe Jhapa in July. At the heart of its menu is the beloved Nepali street chapate. "It has puffed rice and all kind of veggies, potato, cucumber, onions, tomatoes, Thai chile, cilantro, mustard seed and a little oil," Gurung explains. "Then it's topped with a crunchy spicy mix of dry ramen, and then the main thing is lemon juice." With a little bit of spice and a crunchy texture, it's no wonder this dish is one of the most popular street foods in Nepal.

Another popular street dish on the menu is momo, a Nepalese dumpling. "It's made with ground pork, cabbage, onions, cilantro, chive and ginger," says Gurung. The dumplings are served with a tomato-based sauce, but that recipe is a secret, the couple notes.

The couple's passion for sharing Nepalese culture through food is what makes this cart a must-try. "One of the things that blew me away when I got integrated with her family is the communal nature with which some of the stuff was prepared," Keller says. "A lot of times, you'll see the females sit together — all the females in the family — it's a social event as they sit and make momo by hand all day long, and the way they incorporate that into their family structure is really endearing."

For a taste of Cafe Jhapa's fare, visit its Facebook page, which is where its schedule is posted, and follow @cafejhapa on Instagram.