Ghar-E-Kabab
Actual date: August 12, 2009
Flying, lunch, dragging stuff to Susie’s house, and crashing for a few hours–that’s all we managed for day 1 of our D.C. trip. After regaining some energy, we rolled out of bed and went to Ghar-E-Kabab for a super late dinner by our standards, getting to the restaurant around 9:30 p.m. There was only one other occupied table when we entered, which for Ghar-E-Kabab’s sake we hope is because we were so late getting there. It couldn’t have been because their food was lacking, because I can tell you right now that they serve some excellent Indian food there.
Crispy bread
As we were deciding what to order, they brought out this thin, crispy, spicy, bread. I’m assuming it’s some kind of bread but really don’t know. Since we didn’t order it and I forgot to ask, I don’t know what it’s called. Maybe Susie can weigh in once she sees this since she knows more about Indian food than me.
Dipping sauces
It came with this trio of dipping sauces. From right to left they tasted of cilantro, sweet and spicy, and lemon-y and spicy with chunks of vegetables. I remember this because I recorded an audio note on my E-P1 to that effect and attached it to this photo. Neat, eh? Yet another useful feature of the E-P1 you might not think is necessary until you actually need to use it.
Sheekh Kabab
We ordered Sheekh Kabab as an appetizer–barbecued lamb rolls. Really tasty stuff, despite the rather unappetizing form factor.
Chicken Tikka
Sofia had a Chicken Tikka appetizer–marinated, barbecued chicken–as her main meal. She ate most of the chopped up bits and Susie had the rest for lunch the next day with her leftovers. The chicken was mostly pretty tender although with some slightly chewier parts as you’d expect with barbecue chicken, and it had a good flavor to it. You can order it with varying levels of spiciness; we got it mild for Sofia.
Saag Paneer
Susie had the Saag Paneer, which is a spinach and curd cheese dish. You can’t see it in this picture, but there are chunks of cheese underneath that spinach. Curd cheese must be fairly heat-resistant, as the cubes of cheese maintained their form even surrounded by hot liquid and spinach with a heat flame beneath the dish as well.
Shrimp Biryani
Denise went with the Shrimp Biryani, which is a saffron rice dish with shrimp. They serve Biryani with other meat choices as well such as chicken and lamb, or you can order it vegetarian style.
Thali
Since I couldn’t make up my mind, I went with an item I initially didn’t notice on the menu but Susie pointed out to me, which immediately appealed to my indecisiveness. This is the Ghar-E-Kabab Thali, which is a sample platter of sorts. Let’s see if I can identify everything properly. From the bottom, clockwise: a piece of Samosa (deep fried, meat filled pastry) on top of some slices of Naan (flat bread), Dal (bean/lentil stew), vegetables, lamb curry, Saag Paneer, Chicken Tikka Masala (barbecue chicken in sauce?), a yogurt sauce, and Kheer (sweet rice dessert soup). Rice in the middle. This sampler was a really good choice for me, as I wanted to try many different dishes and sample a wider range of Indian flavors than I have in my limited Indian cuisine experience. Mission accomplished. I was particularly pleased with the lamb curry, but I enjoyed most all of the dishes, particularly the Dal and the Chicken Tikka Masala.
The service was terrific as well. They tended to our needs without being overbearing, and despite us being the last customers of the day we never felt rushed to leave before we were ready. Before our trip I had read a lot of reviewers on Yelp.com complain about the general level of service in D.C. restaurants (not Ghar-E-Kabab in particular), so I was expecting the worst. At this point the tally was 2 meals and 2 great service experiences. Lucky? Or maybe some Yelp-ers give off that I-expect-to-be-served-properly vibe that cause servers to do the exact opposite? Who knows.
If Singapore Bistro was a good solid start to our trip, Ghar-E-Kabab was a definite highlight and ended our first day on a high note. Susie had never been here despite living a Metro stop away, and now she’s a new fan of Ghar-E-Kabab, especially since they deliver! If only we could get Indian food this good delivered in our neck of the woods.
Ghar-E-Kabab
944 Wayne Avenue
Silver Spring, MD 20910
(301) 587-4427
Lunch Buffet Offered Daily
Lunch : 11:00 AM-3:00 PM (Monday-Sunday)
Dinner : 5:00 PM – 10:30 PM (Monday – Sunday)