Dera

Some of the best Pakistani food I’ve ever had. EVERYTHING on the buffet is delightful. Don’t miss the butter chicken. (Seriously. Most places serve butter chicken, but Dera’s is exquisite.) Friendly staff and a lovely space. Eat here!

Tried Dera first time. Ordered butter chicken $ 16.99 with other items. Served a small portion with 4 – 5 small pcs.
Later I called the manager and told him the food was OK but you must know The Whole Food serves best quality butter chicken $ 8.99/ lb. I suggested to increase the quantity or reduce the price to be competitive. He responded that is our portion we can’t change it.
Another review says, some one ordered chicken biryani and just got a piece of chicken.
There are dozens of better similar restaurants in DMV, who will keep going there if the attitude of the manager is so stubborn.

Seeeeeeeeeeee need water its so spicy. Last time here. One of my guest was with me and I proudly said to him l take you best Pakistan food place so he was so excited. But when we reach there and tried food my friend look at me and said WTF. Cold, spicy and no taste. I really not recommended.
Chickpeas was dry looks like no one touched for hours.
Butter chicken tray was full with gravy but four pieces of chicken in there.
And price they said under 10 $ but they charged 11.50 $ each.
There is no problem to pay 12 $ for food when you having good food, but this buffet not worth for even 5 $

I really like this place. We go here for the lunch buffet and the options are great. I’m vegetarian, and have been really pleased with the options for lunch. The staff is friendly and accommodating, and the place is quiet and clean.

Worst customer service. The waitress could not care less about if the customer have glasses and spoons. Very hostile and judge mental environment. The food is decent but horrible service. Will not be going back.

About a 3.5: The hubs and I came here for lunch to partake in their weekday Pakistani lunch buffet. I was able to try some of their Vegetable Biryani, Butter Chicken, Chicken Curry, Beef Seekh Kabobs (ground beef, seasoned with spices and char-​grilled), Gosht Karahi, Daal Mash, Daal Masoor, Saag Paneer, ground beef with green bell peppers, and Channa Masala. I really enjoyed the Chicken Curry, as the chicken meat were all fork tender and juicy. The sauce, while not too thick, was flavorful and dressed the chicken well! I wasn’t surprised to learn that it was one of the restaurant’s specialties! I also enjoyed the ground beef entrée, packed with some flavorful spices and huge chunks of green bell peppers. We also received some hot thick naan bread to chow down with, as well as a bit pitcher of ice water. Besides the buffet, they offer an array of shuruaat (appetizers), salads, breads baked in the clay oven, BBQ, rice, vegetarian options, chef specials, as well as desserts (they had a bakery case). This restaurant seemed to have been recently remodeled, with the sparkling chandeliers and a larger area off to the right for larger parties/​banquets. A simple buffet featuring some flavorful Pakistani fare, if you’re in the neighborhood, check them out! The staff here were super friendly, and there were plenty of seatings.
+Chicken Curry!
+ground beef with green bell peppers!
+hot naan bread
+weekday lunch buffet
+friendly staff
+plenty of parking in shared lot

Food is great and the service OK, but what disappoints me is that their site and Unilocal site say they deliver but they do not. This causes me to rethink giving them business since they show that they deliver and when you call them they say that they might in a week, but they have been saying that for 2 months now…

I ordered pickup and the order took 40 – 45 min even though they told me 30. It was 7:30 on a weeknight and the place was less than ½ full. They were very nice but the tika masala and matter paneer were both swimming in oil. The samosas were good.

My rating of this place is based on food and value. I understand that it is not the most refined place on the planet but considering it’s in a strip mall in Springfield, they have done what they can to make it seem nicer.
The big draw is obviously the $ 10.95 buffet. For the price, the food is excellent. I had some of everything and it put many pricier Indian/​Pakistani places in which I have eaten to shame. The chick peas were surprisingly addictive and flavorful (possibly a hint of cinnamon?) and the fried chicken wings were really yummy.
Service was great and the place was clean and neatly decorated (I liked the tiled flooring– a nice touch) although it is a bit spartan. My only complaint was that the veggie option was basically salad. The food is a bit spicy (which I love) so if you are taking people afraid of spicy food, warn them ahead of time.

Our family just loves this place. Never been there, we’ve only had delivery. Amazingly cheerful delivery people!
We like to try all the appetizers. The samosa are great! They bring a bucket of green sauce if you ask for it. The boy loves the butter chicken. We usually get the Dera platter, three meats, good variety.
9÷12÷2015 Oh no! You guys don’t deliver anymore? I can’t get down there. I might never have Dera again? Please, reconsider!
Well, if I’m in the neighborhood I’ll surely drop by.

This was our first time at Dera today. They have been fixing the whole place up and it will be ready in about a week for events/​parties up to 150 ppl. Anyways the food is pakistani and not indian. We told the guy at the counter that we are looking fwd to hosting an event in 2 months and are considering you place for this. These are the following things we ordered
Papri chaat: wayy average. I ve had better chat at Ravi and even that was mediocre.
Chai: old chai re heated. probably the worst i ve been served in any restaurant. Had it like i would just gulp my medicine.
Biryani: initially i thought it was the better biryani out of all other places i ve eaten at but my husband pointed out that they have mixed qorma with biryani to make it spicy and indeed the whole thing was just like eating qorma with rice. chicken biryani had one chicken piece literally. Still if u want to experience what a good biryani MIGHT taste like, try their biryani and ask them to make it spicy. Btw qorma was not on their menu for tonight so either they use left over qorma oil for the taste and aroma or God knows what.
Bbq platter: consisted of kabobs and chicken boti etc. i dunt know where this trend of serving kabobs n boti on a hot platter came from, it either burns them or just absorbs all moisture. This is what happened to ours as well. also the spices in kabobs were not grinded properly at all and we could taste big pieces of chilli powder, cilantro, mint etc etc.
Channay and okra sabzi: these came complimentary for sampling. Channay were not bad but too much flavour of curry leaf and cumin seeds. Okra was not bad either.
Verdict: the food is not indian but pakistani. It is a plus point atleast for us. I dunt like the indian style sweet buttery curries which are commonly found everywhere. The food is super oily too BUT if you are not a picky eater like me and my husband are, you will like it. I will consider this place for an event only bcoz places like ravi or kabob palace etc do not have a banquet of their own.

The Goat Biryani was absolutely amazing! It’s a very generous portion, which I had to share, but it had just the right flavor and spice. Half of the restaurant is under construction, but once it’s done I have no doubt the place will be packed full of hungry and satisfied customers.

Just delicious. I never take home food… normally, I had to in this case and ate it all! Owner was so nice and catering to my every whim. Would definitely go again!

Came here for brunch on a Sunday because I was craving halwa puri. They have a pretty extensive brunch buffet (nihari, haleem, butter chicken, halwa, alu, and cholay). While everything was good, nothing was mind-​blowing. I give them credit for having an extensive menu. I know there are better places for halwa puri in the area that I need to try out so not sure if I would come back here or not.

This was an unexpected superb experience to be had.
We just stopped by one weekday night because we were in the area and couldn’t decide on a place and liked their name compared to the other eateries in the complex.
There were about 10 other people in the restaurant, who appeared to be regulars there. Instantly, we were greeted with warm welcome and seated.
TWO servers and THE manager attended to us during our meal.
I opted for the buffet and my wife ordered the malai kofta.
We were given fresh made naan, puri, and roti — all were very tasty — which was surprising. A good naan is relatively hard to come by at most south asian restaurants. Alas, this was not one of those.
The kofta in my wife’s dish was soft and smooth, fresh made, and the malai was sweet but not too sweet, spicy yet not over powering the sweetness. Just a perfect blend of goodness.
The vegetarian items in the buffet were forgettable and very bland. Not true for the non-​veg items, which there were quite a lot. The items were a tad bit oily, but expected for pakistani items — as experienced in other metro cities.
I’d definitely stop by when in the area next.

The buffets are better here than the surrounding restaurants in the area. Food off the menu is good, but can be a bit pricey.

This was our first time ordering from this fine eatery. We really like the portions (they give a lot) and the food itself.
We had no idea that oven baked round bread came with the order — so we were pleasantly surprised. I ordered one NAN any it was GREAT! Additionally there was no rice — it’s not INDIAN FOOD people lol! The dishes sound similar but its not.
The ONLY reason I have 4 stars opposed to 5 was the food was a bit oily, otherwise it’s a great find AND we will order from them again for sure no question!
We loved the food thanks again!!!

I first had food from Dera at a wedding a few months ago. It was some of the most delicious catered Indian food I ever had. I think it was more Pakistani/​Punjabi style (very spicy, oily, delicious).
So we came one Sunday to see if they had halwa puri. Oh they sure did! They have a great buffet with the typical Pakistani weekend specials of nihari, haleem, and paya. Halwa, alu, and cholay are also on the buffet so you just have to order fresh puri. The buffet is really tasty, and they serve you fresh naan as well. This naan is perfection! Super soft, yet with enough bite to sop up all the lovely gravy from nihari and paya. I didn’t love the haleem (may have been chicken haleem). But the other buffet items, including butter chicken and chicken biryani were on point.
I’d rate the halwa puri at 3.5, because the cholay was too runny and the halwa was yellow (usually is dyed orange). The puri was a little crumbly as well. Overall tasty, but I’ve had better in this area. The buffet more than makes up for whatever the halwa puri is lacking though, especially at $ 10.95.

–1 for the nonchalant attitude of the staff working the cash registers. They could honestly care less whatever i want to buy.
My uncle loves their channa mix so three boxes for $ 5 seems like a good deal.
I have yet to be disappointed in their sweets… Dera offers a great variety and I love the beautiful boxes they sell for special occasions. They are SO pretty!

I decided to take my lovely Pakistani friend here for lunch the other day after some shopping. I had been wanting to give her a break from cooking for me, which she always does when I come to visit. Being that I have no idea how to properly prepare Pakistani food, and that cuisine is her preference, I felt it would be best to go to a restaurant. After some helpful suggestions from Unilocal friends, I chose this place and begun to convince my friend to make the trip from her house in Reston.
I have to admit that the GPS directions were all but crap. It not only led me about a quarter of a mile away, but also took me to the wrong side of the road. If you feel you’ll need electronics to get there, just be prepared for them to lead you astray. Also, the front of the building l was under a little construction, which makes Dera hard to pick out among the other businesses. It’s in an older strip mall, so the facelift appears to be doing it some good, but for now it’s kind of inconvenient for first time visitors.
The staff is very friendly. My friend and I were treated wonderfully, and given extras of certain dishes, sauces, and even unordered desserts during our meal. The gestures were very kind, but when we were given an extra dessert and green tea at the end, I felt kind of like I might pop a button on my slacks. Haha!
We first ordered the small platter, which included barbequed chicken, veal, and ground beef. Each were moist, boldly, but not overwhelmingly, flavored with just the right about of heat. Pairing them with the cool yogurt sauce in the fresh roti kind of made me think of tacos. Come to think of it, many of the Pakistani flavors mesh well with Latin… hmm…idea for a new fusion food: Paxican. Come on! Think of how popular that cuisine would be served out of a food truck!
Our other entrée was a chicken curry. Although it was flavorful and very well cooked, it was a little oily for my taste. In fact the top of the dish had large puddles of orange, spice tinted oil all across it. Talk about a stomachache and heartburn. Jeesh! Worth it? Yes. Would I eat it again? Strong possibility.
If you all know anything about me, you know that I lloovvee gulab juman. It’s my new craving in the sweets department, and Dera has it in supply and hot. I won’t say their version was as decadent or yummy as Co Co Sala’s (not that I was really expecting that), but it did manage to put a big cheezer smile on my face, which, in terms of food enjoyment, puts it pretty high in my book. :D I loved how Dera added a little red food coloring to it as well. The slightly pink color made it look like a shiny, round jewel fit for any 10-​year-​old girl… or me.
I really enjoyed my trip to Dera, and I’m even more happy that the meal was up to my friend’s standard. Now I’ll have a place to take her when she wants a break from cooking for me.