The coriander, tamarind, and onion chutneys on the table draw your eye with their electric colors. The dishes that follow at this curry house, with its blue sconces and soft Indian music, are equally vivid. There’s outstanding paneer pakora, house-made cheese stuffed with fresh mint sauce and deep-fried. Curries range from the mildly zesty Dum Aloo Banarasi—potatoes stuffed with cheese and spices—to the fiery lamb vindaloo, and they might be the area’s best.
Tandoori dishes are excellent; cubes of salmon are marinated overnight in spices and roasted until the flavor is locked in. And don’t miss the biryanis. The Bombay Biryani ranks as one of the great dishes in Washington: a big portion of basmati rice flavored with saffron, raisins, and nuts and loaded with chicken, lamb, and shrimp.
The nan, once a weak point, has gotten better, leaving Bombay as one of the area’s few great Indian restaurants.
Open Sunday through Thursday for lunch and dinner, Friday and Saturday for dinner.
Ann Limpert joined Washingtonian in late 2003. She was previously an editorial assistant at Entertainment Weekly and a cook in New York restaurant kitchens, and she is a graduate of the Institute of Culinary Education. She lives in Petworth.
