Delhi Dhaba

This place has closed. And it hasn’t moved to another location. I am sad about the lost of a semi-​decent indian place. :(

The food here is simply okay — nothing special. The main problem is the gross condition of the restaurant.
We ordered a few dishes that we usually order at Indian restaurants. The chicken tikka masala wasn’t spicy in the least. Plus, it had many almonds in it. That was a surprise! Luckily, we aren’t allergic, but the sauce and overall dish simply wasn’t any kind of tikka masala that we have had at other restaurants.
The reason why I am giving this place one star is the lack of cleanliness! The glasses were filthy and «stuff» was floating in the water glasses. The tablecloths were stained and even had dried food/​sauces on them. Gross! Simply gross! Where is the DC Health Commission?
Plus, some others we talked to afterwards claimed the same experience. So this wasn’t a rare «bad night.»

Walked passed this dive last night and it seems to be closed down. I’m sure the heath and safety board got to it. Yay! Nothing makes me happier than seeing bad restaurants close.
Now I can only hope that the three disgusting Indian ‘restaurants’ in the Woodley Park area will very quickly follow suit!

After complaining about styrofoam plates at the original location in Courthouse, VA I was totally put off by the fancy crockery. The food was pretty bland — to say the least.
But, don’t discount their Bethesda location — not bad at all — which is a far cry from the disappointing food at this particular location.

Tonight a friend and I came for a late dinner at 9 pm. I had to go pickup something at the Giant before it closed so we ordered our appetizers (vegetable samosas) and said we would be back. In less than 10 minutes when we came back our samosas were ready and served with the coriander chutney. I ordered the tandoori mixed grill and my friend ordered the palak paneer. They both came out about the same time with rice and our order of naan bread. The meats on the tandoori mixed grill platter were tasty and juicy just the right spices. I had a taste of the palak paneer and it too was good. The naan was nice, soft and fresh. The service was great — water glasses filled, empty dishes taken away swiftly, asked if we wanted dessert.

I’ve only ordered from here a couple of times and have never been there. I kinda wish I hadn’t looked it up on Unilocal just now and read the reviews about slimy things in drinks. Anyway, I think the food is good but not amazing. I like it though and continue to order from there (especially because it’s on seamless web and my company will pay for it). The one thing I will say is that they lack consistency. I’m pretty much a wuss when it comes to spiciness, but the first time I ordered from here the mild was extremely not spicy, almost flavorless. So the second time I ordered medium and it was good. This time I ordered the same thing, medium, and it was unpleasantly spicy. Forgive me for sounding like Goldilocks, but now next time I don’t know what to order, mild or medium.

why are people hating on this place? i loved it!
the price for the lunch buffet was great!
im taking a star off because the lunch buffet catered to mass taste buds, ie. it definitely wasn’t spicy enough!

I was impressed by Delhi Dhaba! We came here for lunch on a Saturday around noon, and the place wasn’t packed yet. We were quickly seated and told to help ourselves at the lunch buffet. Yum!
So my dining partner and I gorged ourselves on the food … the Butter Chicken was especially yummy, as was the Curry Chicken and the Vegetable Korma with Rice. We helped ourselves to two servings and were so stuffed we couldn’t move.
There wasn’t a whole lot of selection, but it was definitely enough to keep us full and satisfied … and the taste was pretty darn good. We also thought their naan was excellent, although they only gave us a couple of pieces.
The only part that wasn’t excellent was the service — we weren’t even asked what we wanted to drink… We had to go up to the waiter and ask him ourselves. Then, it took forever for our drinks to come out and for us to get refills.
However, people obviously like this place for a reason… good food and reasonable buffet prices. By the time we were leaving, the place was FULL of people enjoying their meals!

This happened a few months ago but seems worth sharing still: My boyfriend ordered a Mai Tai from the specials list… it wasn’t very tasty to begin with, but then he noticed a big glob of something black and slimy in it… we decided it was either mold, or a decayed slug, neither of which are appetizing! The waiter basically just shrugged and gave him a new drink. Food was mediocre. Not even a discount on the bill for the drink disaster. Wow.

I have only ever picked up food here on my way home but it is always wonderful. Now if you’re a picky Indian food eater – I can’t really vouch for the quality. I love Indian food and make it at home as well as take-​out. Delhi Dhaba always satisfies my craving and the staff is incredibly nice. The prices are also really reasonable – a chicken dish and samosas is usually about $ 14 or less for me. If you live in the Van Ness area you should key their number in your phone and call-​in a pick-​up or for free delivery.

Used to go here occasionally when I worked in the area. It was always so-​so, until one time we went & the service was just poor.
Our waiter just couldn’t keep things straight (this is at lunch, during buffet) & our lassi arrived after we were done with our lunch.
When it came time to pay, we didn’t tip anything other than the leftover change cuz the service sucked. The waiter actually came running after us as we were walking down the street and told us that it was DC law that you should leave a tip of a certain percentage. When asked which law, he just turned around and went back.
This experience was pretty much the one that has caused me never to go back here.

Food is pretty lousy/​flavorless and it’s a shame cause it would be really nice to be able to have a nice Indian dinner in that location before you hit Landmark for a foreign film. Basically the Sirius S. review somes it up and no more is needed from me.

Serviceable Indian cuisine. The chicken curry is right on par with what I was looking for, as was the naan. The décor inside is abysmal, complete with Punjab MTV videos on the TVs. The service is good and the owner is really friendly (remembered us from our first visit, which was nearly two months prior)…

Went here last night for a last-​minute dinner. I thought it was pretty good. The samosas were decent, but I wouldn’t order them there again. I had the chole Punjabi, which is chick peas in tomato/​onion curry. I thought it was good. The rice was good. My friend got salmon goan, which was in a really tasty curry of ginger and coconut milk. The garlic naan was ok… didn’t blow me away. The most noteworthy thing was the beer. I can’t believe I waited this long to try Taj Mahal! I love it!

Average Indian food that hits the spot.
God bless
. Any time I get a craving for something but am too lazy to go out and get it, I head straight to that website and see which places deliver. Today’s target was Indian food, and the first restaurant listed was 1 Delhi Dhaba. It was fate.
I ordered two vegetable samosas, garlic naan, and the Chicken Saag entrée. The food arrived in less than 40 minutes, and when the delivery man handed me my bag of food, I got a nose full of the garlicky naan. Mmmmmmmm, garlic.
My roommate hates all take-​out Indian food. As an Indian person who grew up eating delicious home-​cooked Indian meals, she has a right to discriminate against Americanized Indian food. Myself, I’m not so picky. I don’t eat it often, and my palate for Indian cuisine is not so refined that I can tell the difference either way. I acknowledge that the food from Delhi Dhaba would probably be rejected by purists, but it really hit the spot for me.
The veggie samosas were huge, and filled with potatoes, peas, carrots, and spices. I’m a total wimp when it comes to spices/​spicy things, so these samosas were actually almost too much for me. But, tasty nonetheless — not too oily or too dense. The naan that smelled so strongly of garlic didn’t actually taste all that garlicky, but was still really good (I’ve never met a piece of naan I didn’t like.). My Chicken Saag was also yummy: the chicken was tender and juicy, the herbed spinach was savory and mushy and perfect for mixing with the accompanying rice.
+3 for decent, reasonably priced Indian take out. I would give more, but I think my roommate reads these, and she would never let me hear the end of it.

At approximately $ 10 an entrée and $ 4 an appetizer, Delhi Dhaba offers a wide selection of flavors at a reasonable cost. The food holds up 40 minutes after cooking. The Chicken Vandaloo and Chicken Korma were quite pleasant. Although I’m sure the naan is ordinarily tasty when you dine-​in, I’d avoid ordering any breads for delivery as it becomes dried and crispy upon arrival (warm naan continues to cook itself when wrapped in foil). If anything, order an extra side of rice.
Delivery food is always a risky proposition. Will the food get here in time? Will my meal still be hot? Will it still be edible? These are serious questions that any sensible stay-​at-​home diner must consider when selecting the proper delivery-​service restaurant. After all, with the added cost of delivery fees, on-​line charges, and gratuities these days … ordering out just isn’t as cheap as it used to be.
There’s a reason why pizza, fried chicken wings, and Chinese food are number one picks for any delivery order. They’re fast and easy to transport without leaving you with soggy food 30+ minutes after its cooked (see my review on Philadelphia Cheesesteak Factory). Alas, Indian food is fast becoming another popular delivery choice because of its speed and fool-​proof transit system. Delhi Dhaba is among my favorite places when all other dining options fail (i.e. nothing left in the pantry, nothing left in the freezer, and too lazy to put my shoes on).
Much like Chinese food, Indian food can be easily prepared within minutes. You take pre-​cooked ingredients of meat, vegetables, and sauce. Sauté them all together and — BAM — you have a real-​to-​eat dish within minutes. Scoop a healthy portion of long grain rice in a separate container and you have a complete meal within minutes. Its a pretty simple process that’s hard to screw up.
3 Stars — I’d order again if I’m considering delivery food and I would recommend it to other people as well.

I had a really awful experience here last Friday night. The service was miserable, they messed up our drink order (after it took a good 20 minutes to make), and they forgot some of our food order. All of these things would have been forgivable, had it been extremely busy, but instead there were only a few other patrons. The worst, however, was the piece of metal in the rice platter. We ended up walking out of the restaurant (with the manager’s ok of course). I really really wanted to like this place, as I live next door and love indian food, but I just couldn’t. The truly unfortunate thing is, is that the food was pretty good. Some of my friends noted that it was very good. I’m sure it was just a bad day, but after that night, there won’t be a second chance.

Excellent food. Reasonable prices. Comfortable ambiance. Great service. Large menu – something for everyone!
The five of us had a feast here. We had the bread platter with different kinds of naan-​mmmmmmmm!
We had the Dal soup and veggie samosas; very tasty – spiced perfectly; not too hot, not too mild.
We shared several veggie entrees and one of our friends had a lamb dish. Everyone was stuffed and happy. I think we spent about $ 100 for 3 soups, 2 appetizers, one bread platter, five entrees, 3 beers,
1 lassi, 1 soda and 20% tip for 5 people,
We would definitely make this one of our regular spots if we lived in DC or on a return vacation.

Delhi Dhaba is one of the few places in my neighborhood where I can get some great food and great booze at the same time. The bar here is actually really big, considering it has been described as a «hole in the wall» type place. I love that DD has so many vegetarian options, but also makes the food ridiculously spicy if that’s how you want it. I’m all about some good Indian food, coupled with crazy cocktails on a lazy weekend evening.
I don’t know what the parking situation is like over here, because I walk, but there is a lot next to the restaurant. It’s right next to the Office Depot and mattress store.