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Charcoal Chicken - Pakistani in a Chantilly Strip Mall With Fantastic Naan


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The best naan in Northern Virginia.  That's right, I said it.

Let m back up.  As a GMU alumni I follow Tyler Cowen.  A few months back he wrote this place up.  I used to work near it so I had been years ago (right after they opened).  I had not been impressed at the time.  Being in their recently, they either cleaned up their act or changed hands.

My kids have swim lessons at the Swim School in the same shopping center.  I got the bright idea to take them their Saturday night for the open swim which runs right until bedtime.  Keeping small children up late had an obvious result, chaos.  My 4 year old was in full on rampage mode (Like something out of Archer, but without the guns).  It was 8:00 and against our better judgement, we took them to a restaurant to feed them instead of ta place they could trash and still allow us to get out with our dignity intact.  It was amazing..... tood got my kids to shut up, be still, and eat quietly.

We ordered the lamb korma, butter chicken, chicken kahari and two kids meals (chicken kabob and seekh kabob).  My 6 year old loved the chicken, my 4 year old loved the seekh kabob.  The other entries were fine.  The kahari was the star.  If/when I go back I will err towards the Pakistani side of the menu.  With all that said, if I want chick peas, Rawal Kabob is better.  I prefer the kahari at Khan Kabob.  But the bread.... oh my, the bread.

Bug huge flufy fresh pieces of Naan.  Perfectly cooked.  Not dry and the perfect texture to sop up some sauce or another.  I'm not sure how well it would travel, but eating it fresh out of the oven there..e highly recommended.

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While waiting for my car to be serviced last Saturday, I ventured across Highway 50 in search of lunch. Since Charcoal Chicken was so convenient, I popped in. (I was considering Punjabi by Nature, but gave up trying to find it after a brief walk).

I'd read the chicken karahi was a go-to dish on Tyler Cowen's blog (didn't see this thread), so I ordered the bone-in version, spicy, with naan. As ulrath mentioned, the naan is perfect. The small pieces of bone in chicken were braised in a sauce consisting of onions, garlic, ginger, chiles, and tomatoes, and flavored with traditional spices such as garam masala, coriander, cumin, and turmeric. The chicken arrived in a serving dish, accompanied by a mint chutney, and a bit of salad. 

Did I mention I chose with the spicy option? I was sweating like Ryan Lochte in his second interview with Matt Lauer. The chicken was perfectly cooked, moist, and tender. The flavors were well-balanced, and despite the perspiration that resulted, it was not unbearably hot to eat. One of the best Pakistani dishes I've had in some time. 

There was a large group of people sitting together, and they ordered a number of dishes that looked great. The customers seemed very pleased, and it made me look forward to trying some of the other items on the menu.

Certainly worth a stop if you're in the area. 

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It's funny, I forgot all about this thread, and even my post above, so I thought I had discovered a hidden gem this weekend. Dammit, DR.commers beat me to it.

I had the lamb Vindaloo which was as flavorful as it gets. The sauce was rich and velvety with plenty of heat. I was disappointed that some of the lamb pieces were tough, but that sauce was beautiful.

I wanted to try the charcoal chicken too, so I grabbed a leg and a thigh for my carry-out order. I've found that Tandoori chicken can often be dried out, but definitely not here. I want more right now.

My SO had the Mutter Paneer, the leftovers of which I devoured last night. She also ordered a side of chickpeas that were perfectly cooked-- not mushy, but al dente if you will.

And as mentioned above, the naan is first rate.

I think I'll run over there for lunch. They're only 2.4 miles from where I live according to Waze and I can get there in 6 minutes. Off I go!

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