Delhi Dhaba Punjabi Grill

Located between the nice part of Van Ness and the nice part of Connecticut Avenue exists “Calvert Woodley”, a proverbial “residential limbo”.

Indian food–we wanted it. Metro? Didn’t want to ride it. Sick of the same old stuff (chicken), we wanted to try somewhere new. Drew read somewhere online at some point in his life that the food at the Delhi Dhaba Punjabi Grill was good. So we decided to give this place a shot.

Next to Pier One, the half burned out sign for the restaurant glowed on the otherwise dark street. Checking over our shoulders for muggers, we went in and were greeted by brass statues of elephants and many-armed (Hindu?) goddesses.

Being 8:00 on a Sunday night, the restaurant was surprisingly 1/3 full with several additional people waiting to pick up take out orders. Definitely a good sign. Another good sign was the big table full of Indian people.

Feeling encouraged, we took a look at the menu and got immediately excited. There was goat. There was lamb. There was what they call “*SPICY SPICY*”. Perfect.

We started out with some sort of appetizer sampler platter, which for $7.95 was a great way to sample some new items. Our favorite was the chicken pakora, a big battered ball of Indian yumminess. Two delicious dipping sauces were served with the appetizer–a spicy cilantro-based sauce and a brown spicy sauce. I actually said that I would drink the brown sauce if we weren’t in public.

Our waiter, either the manager or older sibling of the other employees spent most of our meal yelling what seemed to be sarcastic and demeaning remarks to the rest of the staff. While perhaps not his intent it was hilarious and provided the night’s entertainment. Also entertaining was the 35″ flat screen TV playing an Indian movie about a romantic love triangle with lots of singing and dancing.

Drew had the boti kabab masala–lamb with peppers, onions, and tomatoes in a curry sauce. “Mild curry allowed for the taste of the vegetables and the lamb to stand out.” He’s looking forward to getting goat curry the next time we go. From the menu:

“A delicacy from North Indian juice of goat with bone prepared in special sauce.”

I had the lamb vandaloo, an Indian standard. It lived up to the menu’s description “*SPICY SPICY*”, so much so that I actually started sweating. The portion was more food than I could handle, which was OK with me–I’m looking forward to lunches of leftovers.

We shared a platter of rice, which came with our meal (or you can order it separately for just $2.50–a bargain for a huge platter). Littered with orange and lemon zest, it was fantastic.

We also enjoyed a generous portion of Naan for just $1.95. We thought it was great, and apparently apparently so does everyone else–during our meal, a group of girls came in and ordered 5 portions.

We didn’t order any liquor, but if you were in the drinking mood, there was a decent wine selection with several bottles for less than $15.

The quality of the food, combined with the big menu, cheap prices, and large portions make a trip to Vanness well worth the effort.

On the downside, the restaurant lacked any kind of ambiance, and the fact that patrons can see directly into the kitchen is more scary than theatrical. The decor is distinctly Indian, but also distinctly 1981. Maybe next time we’ll just order delivery.

Grade: B

Location: Vanness Square on Connecticut Ave., across from Gold’s Gym.