PHOTO COURTESY OF DIPAK PRASAI

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A new restaurant — opening as soon as next week — aims to bring something new to south St. Louis: the cuisine of India and Nepal.will offer fine dining, complete with a full bar, and a menu featuring Indian dishes as well as a few Nepalese classics. It's taking over a stand-alone spot that previously held a Long John Silver and, later, the Vietnamese restaurant 3J Sandwich & Noodle.Its new proprietor, 35-year-old Dipak Prasai, was born in Nepal and lived in California for a while before coming to St. Louis approximately five years ago. He's been working as a chef at Rasoi, the well-regarded Indian spot in the Central West End, and has ten years of experience in the industry.'"I've been looking for somewhere I can opena place of my own," Prasai says. "I want to do my own style."Prasai says he's made renovations to the interior ("it used to be very miserable," he acknowledges). He's hoping to draw customers hungry for a taste of southeast Asia, without having to leave their neighborhood."Right now people have to go all the way to west county, or the Grove," he says. And unlike Rasoi, Himalayan Yeti has its own parking lot.The menu will be familiar to those who love Indian food. "Nepalese cuisine is very similar to Indian," he says, "and we'll have a full Indian menu, too. But there will be extra Nepalese options."Himalayan Yeti hopes to be open by month's end, if not sooner.