Our good friends were celebrating their 4 year wedding anniversary yesterday and asked us if we wanted to join them for dinner. I can't pass up a dinner invitation, especially if it's to a place I haven't been before, but have heard really amazing things about. So we were all set, dinner for a party of 4 at Rasika Restaurant in Penn Quarter.
As soon as you walk in through the glass doors, your senses get enveloped in the tantalizing smells of the various spices and curry combinations. And since I like to do my research in advance before going to a new place, most of the reviews about the decor were spot on. The atmosphere is very chic and hip, and definitely a good combo of upscale and modern. As we were seated at our table, looking around, the place was buzzing, and we had a pretty late dinner reservation. So I was pleasantly surprised at how packed it was for a Thursday night. Our waiter was super friendly and gave us some amazing appetizer and dinner recommendations. And since none of us had dined here before, we ordered based of his suggestions.
First up were the calamari and deep fried baby spinach. The calamari was cooked in a concoction of onions, garlic, ginger, green chillies and the perfect amount of lemon juice. I think the sauce was what made this appetizer so appealing to all of us. It was a great mixture of mildly tangy, herby and spiciness. And what really impressed me was how clean and really fresh the dish tasted. Our waiter had also said that their baby spinach dish -- palak chaat -- was a sure crowd favorite, and he was not kidding! The dish was baby spinach coated in a light cornmeal type batter, deep fried and served with a sweet yogurt sauce, tomato and date chutney over top. Let me tell you, it did not taste like any ordinary spinach! The combination of the fried spinach and sauce made it taste completely different, but oh so savory and delicious! We enjoyed it so much that we had to order another serving for the table!
For the entrees, I wanted to go with a dish that I've always loved, lamb masala. And then we also ordered the chicken green masala. The lamb masala had all the familiar flavors I have come to enjoy when eating Indian cuisine, it was the perfect balance of smoky and hint of sweet from the caramelized onions and tomatoes in the broth. But I think the sure fire winner from dinner was the chicken green masala. It was an amazingly new flavor that I don't think I've come across before. The sauce was super spicy, but worked really well with the undertones of really fresh mint, coriander, and a few other spices that tasted familiar but I couldn't figure out the combination. It reminded me of a typical Indian dish, but somehow just seemed different, but in a good way.
And since we were celebrating an anniversary after all, we had to order dessert! So we ended an absolutely amazing dinner with the chai creme brulee. Now, I've had creme brulee before with some interesting flavors -- green tea and black bean are two combinations that come to mind-- so I was a little hesitant to try another fusion type dessert. However, somehow, the chai combination worked! The flavors were very rich yet the spices were subtle at the same time, so there was nothing overpowering the traditional creme taste.
I am definitely coming back, there were so many things that looked like winners on the menu. If I were to pick one thing that I did not enjoy, it had to be the serving size of the naan. Each order only came with two pieces of naan. How could I enjoy my savory sauces with just two pieces? Luckily our waiter told us we would need extra orders. And I have to concur with the many reviews I read before my visit, this one was of the best Indian dining experiences I've had. The food was amazing, the wait staff were really friendly and completely helpful and overall, it was a great culinary adventure.
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