I ate there last night... It was a mock service. They open tonight. First impressions: the design is amazing. Like nothing else in DC. They clearly spent LOTS of $ on the decor. Not the surface style like some other places (paint, curtains, low sofas) real modern design here. It is sleek and modern, but with a warm edge to it. There's soft curtains in the main DR that warm up what could be a stark modern space. The lounge/bar area is away from the dining room. No restaurant by day/move the tables at night type of thing. The lounge area is especially unique with warm colors (browns, reds and oranges and curves all over). The food was not as Indian as I expected. More like modern American/French with Indian spices. We had 4 courses each. I had scallops w/aged prociutto(sp) with spices, shrimp w/goat cheese and for an entree: tamarind (I think) duck breast with morell risotto. My GF had crab/lobster, escargots, and salmon w shrimp crust. For desert we split the profiteroles. I'd describe the dishes better, but I was busy enjoying them rather than critiquing them. The escargots were too sweet for my GF, but I liked them--she expected garlic and butter, I appreciated the different presentation and flavor--the texture was perfect. She loved the salmon, but I liked the duck with risotto the best followed closely by the scallops. Desert was a big hit too; the profiteroles were like creme puffs with a caramel crust and filled with a fresh oreo style ice cream and served with RICH hot cocoa. Not your typical creme brulee or cheesecake. Service was friendly and casual, so was the menu. Maybe a little too friendly. I think they are going for a no-pretensions type of atmosphere. Waiters wore dark jeans and black jackets, backstaff wore untucked black shirts with their dark jeans. The service was very accommodating. We never once had an empty glass of water, and the bread (Indian style flatbread with foccacia flavored seasonings-served 1 peice at a time) was replaced as soon as we ate a piece. There were tons of servers and backwaiters. I'm not sure if this will be typical, but there were a lot. I would go back in a second. I think this place will be a big success, based on the food coming out of the kitchen. The decor and service nonwithstanding, I think the innovative and high quality food that is being turned out is what will set this place apart.
