Cheap Eats 2007: Ravi Kabob House

Reviewed by Todd Kliman , Ann Limpert , Cynthia Hacinli , Don Rockwell , Michele Kayal

Ravi Kabob

305 N. Glebe Rd.
Arlington, VA 22203
Phone: 703-522-6666

Cuisines:
Middle Eastern

Opening Hours:

Wheelchair Accessible:
Yes

Nearby Metro Stops:
Virginia Square-GMU
Ballston-MU

Price Range:
Inexpensive

Dress:
Informal

Noise Level:
Chatty

Reservations:
Not needed

Special Features:
Cash Only, Kid Friendly

Best Dishes
Lamb and lamb brains karahi; kebabs, including lamb chops, bone-in chicken, kubideh, and seekh kebab; chana masala; mango lassi.

Price Details:
Appetizers $1.25 to $2.50, entrées $9 to $17.


 

Reader's Rating:
2 out of 5

A Starbucks across the street from another Starbucks is no longer a strange sight. But one Ravi Kabob across from another? Owner Haji Iqbal says it’s his way of accommodating all the diners who overran the cramped Ravi Kabob I. Fair enough—even if the new place, like its sibling, is flooded with fluorescent light and doesn’t serve alcohol.

Still, there’s no better Northern Virginia place for kebabs than this Pakistani wonder. The bone-in chicken kebab, slathered with tandoori paste, and the kebab karahi, assertively spiced beef molded around a metal skewer, are extraordinary. And that’s just the beginning. From the hot breads fresh out of the clay oven to a terrific lamb karahi—the Pakistan-border dish cooked in a hammered steel wok and shot through with ginger, garlic, and chilies—to the gently spiced chickpea stew called channa and the excellent gulab jamun, two puffy fried balls of dough doused in a clear, sticky syrup, Ravi Kabob is as consistent and good as they come.

For the intrepid, there’s a wonderful dish of lamb’s brains, its texture of soft, curdled eggs set in relief by currylike spicing.

Open daily for lunch and dinner.

Reader ReviewsWrite your own review
 
Terrible Disgusting
nativewashingtonian — June 6, 2009 7:10 PM
If there is any restaurant in the Washington Metro area to avoid it would be the filthy Ravi Kabob. The bone-in and boneless chicken kabobs are overspiced (and I adore well spiced foods) and as dry as Ravi's day old Naan-type bread. The vegetables More ...
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Average Strictly carry out
Bartollah — March 3, 2009 3:00 PM
We went to the one by the CVS. The kabobs are up there with the best in the area. We were taken aback by how dirty the resturaunt was. Which leads me to question the cleanliest of the kitchen. Taking my family was a mistake. We would rather go to More ...
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