A Granite City restaurant is to stick with its Mount Everest-inspired name despite China and Nepal agreeing that the mountain is just a little higher than previously thought.
8848 on Union Street is named after the Kathmandu-determined height of the world’s highest peak – a height that has been hotly disputed between the two countries whose border it overlaps.
But China and Nepal jointly agreed on a new official height for Mount Everest this week, ending the longstanding disagreement between the two nations.
The new peak height is now 8,848.86 metres, which is slightly more than Nepal’s previous measurement and about four metres higher than China’s.
8848 manager Kris Bhetuwal described the name as “symbolic” and as referring to trying to meet the “highest standard”.
He added: “There have been discrepancies with the size over the years where China used to claim a different height than Nepal on side.
“The debate has been going on for a long time.
“Even now that they have agreed on a new height I think we are going to be sticking with 8848 for now.
“The name is more of a symbolic reference to the height and means ‘the best of the best’ in Nepal because it is the highest mountain on earth, so we took that aspect when we started the restaurant.
“We consider it a metaphor and make it a principal with our food and service here.”
The height of Mount Everest was first determined by a British team around 1856 as 8,842 metres.
But the most accepted height has been 8,848 metres, determined by the Survey of India in 1954.
Mr Bhetuwal, who visited the mountain himself in 2018, said: “The height also depends upon the snow level and the environmental changes in the region, so sometimes the height goes up and sometimes it goes down – it’s a very dynamic place.
“I’ve been to the base camp myself and it’s a regular practice for people who live in Nepal.”
The 37-year old also said 8848, which opened in 2014, has managed its way through Covid-19 thanks to the loyalty of its customers and adapting the business over the last 10 months.
Mr Bhetuwal added: “We’re trying our best to survive at the moment and obviously focussing a little more on the home delivery side.
“Personally and professionally we’re very excited about the vaccine coming out as it’s a light at the end of the tunnel for us and hopefully brings customers back in large numbers for 2021.”
