Kathmandu, Feb. 19 -- If coming from Kathmandu, take a right at Patan Dhoka and follow the road until you arrive at another smaller gate, where you take a left and follow the winding claustrophobic alleys until you arrive at a large, resplendent pond. This is the Pim Bahal Pokhari, a quiet pond where the community congregates under the gaze of an adjacent Buddhist stupa. Locals sip tea while a cheery man in a sooty plaid shirt sells fresh roasted makai out of a four-wheeled table that also doubles as his barbecue.

As he furiously fans the coals, a line of people is coming for his corn. Simple fare, the corn steams in its husk before being roasted directly on the coals. The result is a smokey, chewy, cob where the only complaint is that t...