Ravi Kabob House

Oh, Ravi. How do I miss thee?
I am so forlorn since you have left… and left again… and left again.
Now, I am certain that this Zaiqa kabob person is a sweet, nice person who provides a hearty lunch buffet for under nine US dollars, but Ravi — it’s just not the same.
No one made better kebobs… kabebs… kabobs than you, Ravi — no one!!!
It doesn’t help that this Zaiqa person has a King Kabob web site that pops up when you do an internet search for Pakistani restaurants in Springfield, Va.
How many people do I have to go through in order to replace you?
Oh, Ravi ~~~ please, come back. Let’s kick this Zaiga bitch to the curb.
We can make magic together, once again!
Oh, damn you, Ravi. Damn you!!!
[[[in case you don’t get it — Ravi’s sold the business and it is now Zaiqa Kabob & Sweets]]]

I read the reviews and decided that I would try this place out if I was nearby, and after dropping off some mail at the Post Office I decided to go in and order one of the Kabob plates for dinner.
I’d like to give this place a better review but I can’t, as the place just looked a little dirty. The dining room could have been cleaner and better kept. I had to search out a table that didn’t have crumbs or smudges from those who had eaten there before me. Most of the food for the sides is kept in a steam table buffet style and it clearly looked like the chef and the guy in front were more interested in watching Pakistani television rather than making sure that the food was fresh.
I ordered the one of the platters that contained chicken, lamb, rice and flat bread. It took about 15 to 20 mins for my order to get done while I endured the loud big screen tv in the dining room.
I will say that the chicken and lamb I got was really great. The chicken was perfectly done and it was spiced exactly as expected and the lamb was good but just a little dry. The side that I got came right off of the steam table and was clearly not up to par as it wasn’t that hot and it didn’t taste that fresh. The bread was really great, hot and freshly made.
I don’t think that I’ll be going back unless the place gets a bit cleaner.

We had the chicken kabob with rice and chickpeas. The chicken was great, incredibly juicy for white meat, the chickpeas and pita was very tasty. The place was almost empty and the food took a little longer to arrive then you would expect for an empty place but it was totally worth the wait. Very reasonably priced and a very modest friendly atmopshere. The gentleman at the counter was one of the most genuinely friendly people I’ve been served by in a long time. Definitely the choice of food if you are in this odd little stripmall.

Now called Karahi Kabob. The food is great. Good bread and the chickpeas were delicious. I would recommend getting carry-​out, since the inside is not the best for eating in and they only have disposable plates and silverware. Plus, in the winter, it’s really cold inside because they don’t have an interior door to the entryway.

I come all the way from Miami, FL to visit family and a visit to this kabob house is a MUST. This is probably my favorite in the lineup of indian/​paki restaurants in Virginia.
Yeah, sure it’s not the fanciest place around, but who cares, the food is amazing and I can sure as hell sacrifice comfort and cool air for yummy food. My family absolutely LOVES their Karahi Gosht. If you can handle spicy food, try it. Also try their Naan and Tandoori Chicken. It’s to die for.
Can’t wait to come back for my next family vacation! :)

Important Note: This place is now called Karahi Kabob House and is no longer a Ravi Kabob franchise. That being said, they still have the same menu, and the chick peas are still delicious.
This place is great. First, they offer an all-​you-​can-​eat buffet. This is the first time I’ve seen this at a kabob restaurant. Tonight, it featured two meat dishes: chicken with green and red peppers, and goat curry. There were also many non-​meat dishes including: chick peas (classic Ravi Kabob), rice, salad, samosas, lentils, potatoes with cauliflower, spinach with potatoes., and you get one large piece of bread. I tried a little bit of everything and it was all very good. The owner said the dishes featured in the buffet are rotated daily.
It was cheap, too! The buffet was only $ 7.99. They charge a mere $ 0.99 for a can of soda, which I think is very reasonable.
Also, as I said before, they have the entire Ravi Kabob menu in addition to the buffet.
We showed up and were immediately greeted by the owner. He was very nice, polite, and we felt very welcome. The place was clean. Apparently the central A/​C isn’t working as they have two stand-​alone A/​C units in the dining room, and I was a bit warm.
It was great and I’ll go again.

I didn’t even know that this location existed until a friend swore that it was real. What this Ravi lacks in organization, it makes up for in service. We were seated at a table and brought water and menus. Someone then took our order and brought the food to us. Standard Ravi fare: which is a very, very tasty kabob, excellent chick peas, and rice.
The samosa tasted a little dry, but it was decent. The second time a friend and I went to pick up some carry out, the guy working asked if we had tried something (the name escapes me now) and after we said we hadn’t, he threw a few in a bag for us on the house since they didn’t have the lamb kabob ready (and we had to order the chicken instead).
A good choice for those of us that aren’t willing to make a trek to Arlington.

This little hole in the wall was a real delight.
I followed my fellow Unilocalers suggestions and went with the chicken kabob, chick peas, and a samosa. The kabob and chick peas were amazingly good. I was amazed at the color and juiciness of the chicken (awesome red color). Sadly, the samosa wasn’t quite as good as I had expected (maybe my expectations were too high). I also had some bites of their beef curry (a weekend special), and it was really good… just enough kick and plenty of flavor.
I should also point out that the service was as friendly and helpful as the kabobs were good. At one point, we had three different folks checking on us and taking care of us… everyone was so nice and wanting to make sure we had everything we needed and were enjoying our meal. You could tell that these guys took pride in their place!
Maybe a better samosa and a little more A/​C (it was a little too warm in there), and I’ll bump this place up to a 5 star.
I’m looking forward to trying the other two Ravis that are a little closer to home.

this place doesnt even need to be reviewed because everyone knows its legit. i wanted to Unilocal this particular location because I actually like this ravi kabob better than the the other other two for a couple of very simple reasons
1. not a long wait
2. its quiet
3. the people here are actually nice (compared to the arlington locations)… they say things like «thank you,» and «youre welcome.»
lamb kirahi (sp?) makes me salivate.
(completely unrelated and left field) conclusion: great place to take a first date. if shes not down with ravi kabob than shes not down with me.

We went over to grab some kebabs to go. Got the chicken, the minced lamb, and as an afterthought bought a deep-​fried whole fish just to try. I liked the chicken and the chickpeas the best. The minced lamb had a spicy bite to it, overall, I liked it ok. The fish was not good. It was on display fried, I thought they would just take it from the case and put it into a container for me, but no, surprise, they told me it has to be fried a second time. Well, needless to say after the second frying the fish was darn dry. I did have a samosa while we waited for the take out food. It was good, but not spectacular. I would give 4 stars on the chicken kabob and the chickpeas, but not anything else, so it’s a 3 for now. I will go back again.

This is the newest of the Ravi Kabob locations. They are still getting up to speed. I have eaten here four times and each time does get better but they haven’t matched the Arlington locations yet. That said, they still have the best chick peas in D.C. I will stick with the boneless chicken kabob for an entrée. I tried the Sheekh kabob (ground beef) but the flavor was so-​so.
It’s nice to know I don’t have to drive all the way to Arlington for a great kabob. I have tried no fewer than 8 kabob places around the Annandale/​mixing bowl area. Ravi wins hands down. They will probably soon be up to five stars but just aren’t there yet.