Street Stories S2 E6: Inspirational Story Of A Single Mother & Her Daughter From Darjeeling

by Tonakshi Kalra

Delhiites have a strange love for momos. It’s such a popular dish now that we get it at every corner in Delhi. We have tried steamed, tandoori, fried and even gravy momos. But have you ever had Darjeeling’s specialty, Rice momo? No, we are going to tell you an inspirational story of a lady named Euden who brought the authentic momos of Darjeeling to Delhi and created her own little world with her daughter Shiwangi.

Here’s Her Story

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Euden is a single mother from Darjeeling, who got separated from her husband quite early in life. Euden didn’t want to depend on anyone so she came to Delhi alone in the year 2000 leaving her daughter with her grandparents back in Darjeeling where she was studying.

She moved to New Delhi and started working with a BPO company. After 10-12 years, her daughter Shiwangi came to Delhi to stay with her mom. Shiwangi was meeting her mother after almost a decade so she wanted to spend as much time as possible with her mother but their working hours didn’t allow that. Shiwangi was working in a leading airline as cabin crew while Euden was with that BPO company only.

Passion For Cooking

Euden had a passion for cooking. She used to cook different dishes for her daughter and her friends every other day. One day, Euden saw an event happening in Delhi called GoBuzzinga Momo festival. She randomly talked to Shiwangi about it. That’s when Shiwangi told her that ‘we should also put up a stall of momo there’. And that’s how their journey started.

The Beginning Of Momo Journey

They participated in the momo festival and received good response from people and also the authorities. They were praised for their varieties in momos and the authentic taste of it. Then Shiwangi asked Euden to quit her job so that they could focus on it more.

They both left their jobs and started participating in events after that. But this was not enough for them. Euden, Shiwangi and Ashish(her to be son-in-law) used to sit together and discuss on the future plans. That’s when the idea of opening their restaurant in Delhi came up but unfortunately, they didn’t have enough funds to start their business. They started asking their relatives for loans but no one helped. They also approached the banks but that too was denied due to two reasons i.e. she is not from Delhi and she doesn’t have any male dominant in the family. This left Euden disheartened.

When There Was No One To Help

After this, Ashish put forward to help them financially and one of their other friends as well. They started looking out for the location of the restaurant and finalising other things.

When we asked Euden about the name of the place, she said that “we wanted to give a tribute to our birthplace Darjeeling and Steamers we thought of because Darjeeling’s famous train is a steam engine and we steam momos too.” That’s how we decided on the name ‘Darjeeling Steamers.’

Also read: This 76-Year Old Sardarji Selling Omelettes In Delhi Is Inspiration Personified!

There are many people in the society who still treat people from North-east differently. Euden and Shiwangi also faced many problems on their way. But they stood by each other as a rock. Today, they have a famous momo restaurant in Delhi, that too in Shahpur Jat, which is one of Delhi’s posh area.

What All Darjeeling Steamers Offer

Darjeeling Steamers has over 21 types of momos. One of their best selling is rice momo which is a non-vegetarian variant and its presentation is something you’d definitely love.

Besides this, they offer different-coloured momos (and the colour is of the dominant ingredient used and not artificial) which are healthy and gluten-free. They have other Nepali dishes as well like Handmade noodles, Thakali, Thukpa and many more.

Also read: Game Of Momos In Delhi Offers 70+ Varieties And It Has Us Drooling Already!

Not only that, they also have many options in tea like Blue Tea, Darjeeling Ruby Tea, Detox Green Tea, Herbal Tea etc.

It’s not easy to move to a new city and start a new business altogether. But this mother-daughter duo did it. They have had their own share of ups and downs, but the fact is that they have never given up in life and overcame all the obstacles. Now, they are aiming to open some more outlets in different cities by the name ‘Darjeeling Steamers’.

Deets:
Address: Darjeeling Steamers, 252/1, 2nd Floor, Near Bank of India, Shahpur Jat, New Delhi
Timings: 12 pm to 10 pm
Cost for two: ₹500