Simul Parikh

Ha - sorry for creating confusion. Karahi or Kadai - North Indian/punjabi/pakistani stir fry in a metal wok like device. Lots of fresh ginger on top.Lots of garlic. Thicker gravy/tomato based typically. Spicy. Ridiculously awesome. That's what I meant. Lamb Maghaz Masala = lamb brain currry. I will not eat brain.

I really like Bombay Curry Company in Del Ray, but it's not as strong for veg dishes, because it's focused on the curry. It's a more limited menu than most Indian places - and I like that, allows for focus. Masala Art in DC is very good, but as I've said in another post, I think it's more expensive than I'm used to. Good atmosphere. Karaikudi out by Dulles used to be very good, than got bad, and now has a new name, Bawarchi, and I haven't been to it since it's changed. Supposedly good. Passage in Bethesda has a strong following here, and I went twice, and I must have ordered wrong, because it didn't blow my mind. There is a place in Columbia, MD that I went to before a concert at Meriweather, Royal Taj. Excellent, as well, but really far away for me. The best service I've ever had at an Indian restaurant. Ravi Kabob is Pakistani, been discussed a lot on this board, more of a kabob joint, has some customer service issues. Lamb Karahi is ridiculous. Just ridiculous. I like the way they do their chickpeas. Delhi Club in Clarendon is solid. Bombay Club in DC is high quality, fancy Delhi style place, great Sunday brunch. I liked Indique, but felt it was pricey. Good for dates. Of course, Rasika. It's #1 on TS list and Eater. Not classic Indian. Great appetizers. Beautiful presentation. I take out of towners there. I feel like the Foggy Bottom one is equivalent to the Penn Quarter one, but I don't know if that's true for sure. It's expensive and classy, and feels New York-y. Have not taken my parents there yet, not sure what they would think. I think, overall, we have very good higher end Indian food. We don't have the best lunch buffets and commonplace curry houses that you'd see in NYC (Jackson Heights/Murray Hill) or Chicago (Devon) or even Houston. S

It's why I like this a million times better than yelp. And trust it far more. I'm going to take a trip really soon. Just saw a restaurant I love get whacked with a 1 star review. The customer didn't even eat there. What happened was that the restaurant is tiny and has to halt carryout business when busy. The customer did that and lowered the star rating by a half star. Without tasting the food. The owner responded in a heartfelt way, explaining why they couldn't manage the business, that he'd be more than happy to serve them and take their money, but not at the risk of ruining the dining experience for the people eating there that night. He welcomed them back. No response from the customer. I hate yelp. And I don't particularly like that sound either. Either bark or shut the F up.

They were just on the Thrillist email today for best wings in America. That happened fast. Rent issues?

Because its cute and sly to say something like: "2oz of gin, olives, and point it towards France" or "2 shots of gin, olives, and surrender it to me, just like the French would" or "3/4 glass of chilled gin, olives and some juice, and then wave that French toast near it, but don't get any syrup on it" I find them to be delicious in either format, light or no vermouth. Heavy vermouth probably wouldn't be great, but I haven't had it that way. I despise that I had them with vodka as a youth. I didn't know!!!! I'm sorry!!!

"What kind of beans y'all got?" That is the question that I've heard from a fellow customer the last two times I've been in Blue and White, shouted from the end of the line. Today, they had black eyed peas, and that seemed to satisfy the customer, as he stayed in line. So, as above, it's a fried chicken shack with other fried and delicious southern style foods. The sign says "Open for Lunch and Dinner" but it's actually open for breakfast and lunch. I've only been in the morning, as they aren't open on weekends and they close at 3.30pm. The customers are security guards, police officers, factory workers, and some locals around the area (it's essentially at the border of North Old Town and Parker Gray, so it's definitely a mix of folks. The only thing I get there is a egg and cheese sandwich on white and a coffee. I crave those. Those are the best sandwiches and what I grew up eating. None of the Del Ray places or Old Town places make it so simply - no bagels, no frittatas, no biscuits, no vegetables. They always seem confused that I don't want meat. Maybe I'll try bacon one of these days. People in there order fried chicken and pork chops and beans at 7:30 in the AM. I mean, there is no real reason not to, it just doesn't occur to me to do it. It seems sort of heavy. Maybe they worked the night shift and this is dinner. It is really cheap. My sandwich and 8 oz coffee in a styrofoam cup cost me $1.96. It tastes great, especially on a crispish morning like today. It's strange - places like this that have been around for years, diners in general (especially if you look at reviews for Jack's) are notorious for surly or if not surly, than brusque, service. This place, it has the tenor of a sit down restaurant, "What may I help you with, sir?" "What else would you like, sir?" In the midst of people trying to get their orders in and pick them up (it's a very tight space), there is a level of politeness that I don't even get at a nice coffee shop these days, with their skinny jeans and skull caps and, for the love of god, their irony. This place is a gem. I don't know how they survive at those prices. I think everyone should skip Mischa's or St. Elmo's or Swings' one morning (I know, I know, the coffee at Blue and White is swill), and just come here for a breakfast sandwich, great service, and a chance to eat with locals. Yell out, "What kind of beans y'all got?" and maybe get some of those, too. S

Well - if nigiri is the same fish on top of sushi rice, why does it matter as far as oils/flavors? Salmon sashimi and salmon nigiri isn't all that different except for the rice? I'm just asking, not being difficult! Very interesting these peculiar things. In my head, I can't come up with a significant difference... S

At first, I didn't get it- I don't know sushi culture enough to know that was the case. Reaction was this visceral "damn food snobs" feeling. But, then I gave it a thought. I'm Gujarati, and we are the Indians that you probably most commonly meet - Patels, and what not - but you probably never eat our food. Well, our meal ends with daal-bhaat (rice and lentils). There is nothing inherently wrong with eating it first, but I would really think, "this is weird" if it was served before or during the main meal, rather than after. So, I'm guessing it's sort of like that - it's just not the right order, and may display that they don't really know the cuisine, or disregarding the culinary norms, or they are just trying something new.

I don't see Rasika as pure Indian cuisine or a curry house. Different experience altogether. It does surprise me that Sietsema and Eater call them number one overall, not just Indian restaurants. Will try London this weekend.

No posts on this place in a few years, but I want to say that it is as good as it was. The Hot Pot is great, quality remains high. This isn't a review of a meal, just the overall. The street foods are cooked almost exactly the way as HKP (same chef or recipes? I know ownership is same), mapo tofu is the same, dan dan noodles are the same. To me, it's a wonder that this place isn't super busy. It's authentic Chinese food and you don't have to go to Rockville or Falls Church or Fairfax. I live in Del Ray so this is a really easy drive, and now I go to HKP less. Though I love HKP, and it's what inspired my interest and love of Sichuan food, it's a little far and service can be a little grumpy. Plus, better beer selection at Mala Tang. There is still not a full bar license, just beer/wine/sake. I love the sauce bar, but I don't always know how to make it, so I have to ask the server to do it for me unless I'm feeling adventurous. In comparison to Uncle Liu's Hot Pot in Merrifield (I think that is also the same owner, too), I think the food is just as good and it's more ambient. I'd like to know how others compare it to HKP or Joe's. Has anyone had some inconsistency at Joe's? I've heard that recently. Haven't been in a while, but next time I hike at Sugarloaf, I think I'll stop by. S

Finally made it on Friday evening. My cardiologist friend wanted to do everything to clog his coronaries, so we were ready for a feast. He got in line at 515 and was told at 540 that we would be seated 2.5 to 3 hours from then. We ambled around The Hill and then made our way back to the upstairs bar. It is so vibrant and exciting and bustling. It's certainly a loud restaurant, but it's a good loud. We asked a guest to pass us the drink list, and the bartender caught this and said, "The person you want to make friends with is Me! I'm the one with the drinks, and I'll get you the list." He had a great smile. I got a beer and my friend got the bourbon butter cocktail. I had a sip. Was apple pie in a highball glass - delicious. We were seated right around 830-840 in the upstairs section behind that half-partition so it was a little bit less loud there, but still ambient. A nice couple was next to us, and they were celebrating her birthday. Everyone seems to want to share and talk with each other there about what they had or what they would recommend. We got: Pork sausage/habanero/lychee salad - it has this coconut foam and some peanuts. it's delicious, as many people have discussed. It had a kick to it, but not overly spicy. It reminded me a lot of larb. Charred broccoli with caeser dressing and anchovies - described to as a caeser salad with broccoli instead of lettuce. It was great. I don't know what else to say about it. We were discussing whether to get the jerk chicken and then didn't, so the waiter brought a half portion of that, on the house. A very nice touch. That was great - spicy, flavorful thigh meat. Full of flavor, one of my favorite dishes of the night. Then, the sfoglini rigatoni with heirloom tomatoes. I thought this was pretty good, but nothing inspiring. It's hand made pasta and tasty, the tomatoes tasted fresh, but it wasn't all that exciting. I got a glass of wine at this point, a really nice Pinot, I don't remember what it was called. Then, the caramelized cauliflower - this was awesome, it had a side of some raita/yogurt and was cooked really well. Finally, the lemongrass shellfish stew with garlic bread - it was sort of like a cioppino. Pretty good. For dessert, we got the English pea cake. It's really interesting, mashed peas, some greens. Cardiologist loved it, I didn't know what to make of it. Good texture. Then, they brought us smoked marscapone on the house. Tasted like bacon and marscapone, and I liked that better than the pea cake. Since I prefer mostly Asian food, and haven't been to a place like this in a while, I'm not sure what to say overall about the food. I wouldn't say I have enough experience to do that. But, it all tasted very good, it is a fantastic atmosphere, the service is impeccable. It's casual - you don't have to dress up, but you can if you want. The waiters won't join you, they gotta be comfortable with all the hustling. The staff moves fast, they are working very hard, but they stay at your table and talk you through things without appearing rushed. They are certainly engaged about the food. I love that they don't do the whole deal about where everything is sourced and what farm it's from and whether or not the chicken was happy before it was slaughtered (yes, Portlandia feels real these days at restaurants). They just tell you how it tastes and they make recommendations based on what they like. I like that. The little freebies are a wonderful touch, it definitely adds value to the meal. It's well paced, it was a 2 hour meal, and I really liked that I was at no point rushed and stuff didn't come out too fast. It was a $160 without tip. Not bad, at all. I enjoyed the place. I don't want to wait that long, though, so not sure how often I'll go back.

Had dinner at Estadio yesterday. Nobody said a word there. Ate at the bar, seemed like everything was normal. Seemed like a great person. Agree with bookluvingbabe. I'm trying to f--- cancer up every day I go to work...

Meant in Madrid. This place is amazing.

And other Madrid specialties... I know this is not dc related, but you guys know a lot. Any must go to places in Madrid for specialties like soap de oja or gallinejas or anything else? Thanks in advance! Simul

Yeah, good lord. You did this strictly so you could write a review? That is dedication. I can't say I've ever done that.

Sis and I got back from our east coast road trip, where we enjoyed Maine lobster in Bar Harbor, amazing Italian in Boston, Ramen in NYC, and a good burger outside of Hartford, CT. We were starving last night and were having great trouble coming up with an idea for dinner. I was driving and told to put the smart phone down (good call, sis!) so she worked on finding a place. She said, "there's a place with a 5 star average in old town but it only has 44 reviews, it looks Ethiopian". It's not a large number, but still, that's impressive and she had never had Ethiopian. So, before reading the rest, two points: 1) I don't really like Ethiopian food. Ive been to etete, dukem, zenebach, the fancy one on H, the one in Georgetown, eyo sports bar in Alexandria - probably ten total experiences. I liked Eyo best, didn't love the rest, and stopped going if I'm choosing. 2) I'm recovering from a terrible sinusitis and my taste wasn't perfect. It's on a quiet street in old town, away from King St's hustle and hustle. I think it used to be Caboose? Anyway, we were the only customers and they invited us in. We ordered quick - sister got a side salad and I got lentil soup. Dressing was more like yogurt sauce like tzatziki and sister liked it. Lentil soup was hearty, tasted like ... yellow lentils. Spiced but not heavily and I liked it. For our entrees we shared the lamb wot and the vegan sampler with injera and rice. Here's my thing with with wot. I just really think Indian lamb curries are a better version of wot. I do, and it may be show my overall primitiveness with food or an insensitive palate, but it's my opinion. Anyway, there's was good- spiced nicely with hints of cinnamon which I'd never had in wot before. The vegan plate was red lentils, potatoes, greens, a small salad with onions and jalapeí±os, and something else that wasn't memorable. We liked it. Small portion of lamb, even though it was most expensive thing on menu. Vegetables were good, but non lentils a little bland. For my sis, it has piqued her interest in Ethiopian, and for me, I'm going to give it another try. I'm curious for someone with a better palate for Ethiopian food will think. No booze here, btw, not sure if they are byob S

Pizza is so personal. For example, I think I've tasted pizza all over the DMV and think I have a feel for it, and I would never ever go to Two Amy's over Ghibellina or Puppatella, unless coerced. But, you could find hundreds of people that went to all 3 and completely disagree, and be right. The problem is that I think many knowledgable people would be biased toward one or the other, because of personal history and taste. I think pizza is one of the foods that is least amenable to objectivity. Depends on where you were raised, the environment, what style you prefer. More so than most foods, I think pizza is also highly contextual. There was a pizza place we got pizza from my intern year of my residency every Friday at lunch at the hospital. That year was 80+ hour weeks, 30 hour shifts, anxiety, sleep deprivation, and humiliation. No matter how good or bad it was, I will never eat at that place again. I.e. Ghibellina's finest pie made well vs Puppatella's - there are people that would disagree for whatever reason. I doubt it's that inconsistent, unless someone is really slipping at Ghibellina. What one person describes as too much char might be what another calls not enough. What one person thinks is soggy, another might say soft and mouthwatering. There is so little objectivity in pizza, especially in this region, where everyone is from different regions of the country, and decent pizza is a very new experience for the DMV. We are lucky to be finally having this discussion. Anyway, I'm not trying to do the Obama "there's not a red America or a blue America" bit.. I'm just saying there is probably more nuance and subjectivity involved in pizza than there is in discussing health care policy or the Middle East. S

Yeah - the beer/wine selection is no contest. And the atmosphere is better at LS. But, I think the food is almost equivalent. Really hard to do comparison because you don't get to make a selection at LS, which is fine, b/c the menu is always fantastic. LS last time I went (last month) was pretty spicy for the first few dishes and then it mellowed. That's how I tend to order at BG, b/c the hot is so hot, and then afterwards I need it medium/Thai. For food costs alone, a group of 4 would have $190 to spend at BG. You could have so many dishes there, and the quality is high... It's a tough call. S

Totally agree. The first time I went it was amazing, and then a few years later it didn't hold a candle to Little Serow. Which is actually equivalent to a little place in the burbs called Bangkok Golden at a lower price and you can pick the items you want... Sorry, I love both. But little Serow is talked about in mythic ways in the media and I don't know anyone that has tried both and felt that Bangkok golden wasn't equivalent ... --- [The following posts have been split into separate threads: Khao Soi (Issan-Style) (anhdeluxe)]

Something's amiss... They are dumping it for nothing and the lease price is really low. I'm not sure what's going on there. If someone built it out, they could really have a gem there.

Had a feast last night here. Interestingly, the Lao hot papaya salad was not at it's typical level of heat. I could eat it easily. Also, the mee kathi soup I raved about was not the same. It was way less broth, way more noodles. It was not a soup. Not sure what happened. Bummed, because I hyped it to my eating partners. Chicken orm, fish moak, nam khao were all at their typical high level. They have a separate Thai menu for Thai people. It has variations of many of the dishes. They have a noodle version of the papaya salad, a few intestine heavy dishes. They may or may not go through it with you. Yesterday they did.

I've lived in Del Ray for a couple years (yesterday was the 2 year anniversary) and I've heard the legend of Bombay Curry Company, but had never experienced it. So, tonight was supposed to be Smithsonian and then Little Serow, but due to circumstances unforeseen (We got to Little Serow at 525p, there was a line, and when we got in we were told 830pm; on a side note, last night I was seated at Toki Underground at 630p with no waiting) we headed back to Del Ray so I could finally try BCC. It was completely full. The wait was 20-25 minutes, said the adorable 'ladki' that greeted us. The place was visual entropy - hostesses, waiters/waitresses, chefs in constant, seemingly chaotic, but obviously purposeful motion. It's a small room, and I was told by my ladyfriend that the prior place was even smaller. The current iteration does not have a bar, and I'm not sure if there is a way to fit one in. They have a few beers and wine. About 15 minutes later, we were seated. It took a few minutes to get waters and drink orders, but once that started, the service really came together. The owner/chef was working his tail off, as was the rest of the staff. We started with papri chaat (fried crisps, topped with onions and chickpeas, yogurt sauce, tamarind sauce). There is Indian red chili powder at the table to add as you please. Along with this, we had onion bhaji with cilantro chutney. Home style, my friends, home style. Just like moms, both of them were. I loved the onion bhaji - chunks of onion, not the big round pieces, mixed in with the flour, and fried til crisp on the outside and brown (not that yellowy sort of color you see at most places). Papri chaat was as hoped for, light, tangy with yogurt. For entrees, my lovely date said she used to love the Lamb Vindaloo so we got one of those. Then, I tried to order the chicken curry and told the Boss (Balraj) that I wanted it spicy. He waved off my suggestion of the curry, and said, "No, you get the Chicken Kadai." Okay, then. Both came within an adequate amount of time, not super quick (which makes me think that it's pre made sauces and just adding meats and vegetables). So, one of the things you can tell if a place is quality or not is to take a look at the color of the curries/bases. Many places essentially change just the meat or add a few different vegetables, but the curry/base is the same. Not the case with what we ordered. The Vindaloo was vinegary, as it should be and also a deep brown. I didn't get another curry dish, but the tables are close together so I could see that they were using different curry/bases. It was spicy, I was sweating as was the lady. The Chicken Kadai is like the Pakistani 'karahi' dishes, made in our version of a wok. Damn spicy, very gingery and garlicky. This place is what Del Ray needed, thank god not another stylish sushi joint or other gimmicky thing (we have a burger place, a bbq place, a organicky sort of place, a farm to table place, so we're doing trendy to death). This is down home, good Indian cooking. Good price point (equal price to Shakthi, but bigger portions). Spicy. Homestyle. Balraj is a baller. I like him a lot - he sat down with us for a while and we got the back story. When we left, auntie said "Thank you so much for coming, Dr. Sahib". I really liked that, too. We're lucky. This place is great. -S

Don I don't mean to be disagreeable and I respect your caveats, but the above reviews mentioned string hoppers, kothu roti, and mutton curry as specialties of the house, and you didn't try one of them. Nor did you try the sambal (unless you didn't mention it), which is integral to Sri Lankan dishes ... So, I just think it's a little unfair. But, that's just an opinion. I think you should try some of the above and then if you feel the same way, that seems more reasonable.

Agreed! Lucky for us in Arlandria/Del Ray. And Bombay going to open up soon...

And ... Why refer out? We have our own perfectly good post on it on this website