Nirvana
$$ - average
Indian
Indian Vegetarian Cuisine
The entire menu is vegetarian, in accordance with the religious beliefs of the owners, who are Jains. Most of the vegetarian dishes can be made vegan. The menu notes those items, as well as gluten free dishes. There is also a full service bar. Lunch buffet available.
A few blocks from both Farragut North and Farragut West metro stops. At 18th and K Streets.
- Buffet
- Large Group-Friendly
- Romantic
Added by Kathleen Lippard on Jul 4 06 (updated Jul 4 06)
Reviews
We were back in DC for our annual visit, and high on our list was eating at Nirvana. I know my expectations were high based on our last visit, but we were quite disappointed this time. Hopefully, it was an off night. First, their credit card connection was not working, so it was cash only - no real problem since there are ATMs on every corner. We ordered the Khasta Kachori as an appetizer since it was fantastic last time. This time, not so much - the pastry was rather hard and the filling was not the explosion of flavors I expected. It was tasty, but not exceptional. We also got a Vegetable Dosa and the Vindaloo. The Vindaloo was good, not great, and very spicy. The Vegetable Dosa was good, but was SO obviously made with frozen mixed vegetables - the kind with corn, peas, carrots, lima beans, and green beans!!!
Service was good. And although not a vegan, I appreciated that they note which wines are vegan on their wine list. It was not a bad meal, but I had high hopes - and was put off by the use of frozen veggies. Again, hopefully, this was an off night.
Very good food, elegant atmosphere, pretty good service, and reasonable prices.
I tried this place yesterday and was very happy.
First, I found out that Indian Delight, a cafeteria style all-veg Indian restaurant in the Post Office Pavilion food court is run by the same people. That's a good place to go for lunch if you don't have time to get to Nirvana.
I had an order of samosas - $3 for 2 very large samosas, bigger than my fist. They were the best samosas I've had in a while - crispy crust, fluffy potatoes, and spiced just right, as opposed to some restaurants where they're pretty flavorless. The mint chutney here was great too - it actually had flavor, instead of being pure "hot" like elsewhere.
For an entrée, I tried the Chole Masala (chickpea curry) and some poori (puffy wheat bread). Both were served hot and delicious, and the portions were decent.
$17, including tax and tip, which I think is about par for the course.
They also told me every day they have a lunch buffet, each day representing a different region.
Nirvana has a good-sized menu with all of their numerous vegan options marked, which I greatly appreciated. They also have numerous vegan wines. The atmosphere is nice and fairly romantic. We were pleased by all of our food, including the Undhio (a Gujarati soulfood dish that you don't see in restaurants often). I was surprised that they don't substitute tofu for paneer in some of their dishes; instead they just drop the protein portion all together. While the food was good on a whole, the portion sizes were really small, so you might want to order appetizers to fill yourself up. The menu says they have daily vegan desserts, but our waiter said they were out. What bothered me most was that the waiter hurried us out of the restaurant after we paid the bill; it was still 15 minutes to closing time, and he told us to move along. So, they lose a star for service, though their food is solid.