Jalon Z.'s Profile
DateThe service is always excellent, the staff is happy to chat and explore the menu with us.
The Naan is home-style, which means it is stretched and thinner than many people are used to. The round, thick Naan is fast-food kabob style.
The food quality is pretty amazing, and the side salads are super-fresh, tasty and an integral part of the meal, not an after-thought.
The specialty here is definitely the Chicken Tandoori. Order a whole chicken, a couple of Naan and you'll get some spicy lentils on the side as well as a nice big salad and rice for people to share. There will (hopefully) be chicken left to take home.
1 Previous Review:
-
11/8/2009
Tandoori Village is definitely a hidden gem of Manassas!
I have driven by the restaurant on the way to work for quite a long time, wondered about it, and didn't stop by until seeing Neal's review.
The interior is beautifully decorated, the staff is very nice and talkative. Service can be a little slow when the restaurant is busy, but that gives more time for relaxation!
The most important thing though is the food! I wanted to show my wife the traditional Pakistani food I have experienced in Saudi Arabia, so I ordered a variety of things to share.
To start, we shared some piping hot, flaky crust vegetable and ground beef Samosas and a unleavened seasoned flatbread called Missi Roti. The Samosas were excellent, though find that I like the thicker, puffy Naan bread, rather than the thin, harder Roti.
Next, we had Tandoori Murgh, which is half a chicken, on the bone, barbecued as only a tandoor can. The chicken arrived on a cast-iron platter, sizzling with onions and spices! The onions alone are delicious. To accompany the chicken and offset the natural dryness of the chicken, you are served a side of chickpea-based gravy for dipping the Naan or eating with the chicken.
We also had Aloo Ki Bhujia, which is a delicious potato curry masala. The server asked for mild, medium or spicy - I got medium and it was comfortably hot, yet my son was able to eat it.
Salad accompanied the dinner and was fresh and tasty.
After dinner, stuffed to the limit, we tried the two kinds of tea they offered. One is a unique pink tea with pistachio, I think it's Kashmir, and the other is a more popular black tea and milk chai. The pink tea was interesting, once you wrapped your head around drinking pink tea. The black tea chai is what I am used to. My son tried the Mango Lassi and declared it, "the best thing ever!"
I really wonder why we did not try coming here before, since we constantly search for good food in Manassas. Tandoori Village will be a regular stop from now on.
Manassas, VA 20112
(703) 791-2300
Shrimp Connection
Categories:
Seafood Markets,
Seafood
The owner lived in Japan and Hawaii, and the shrimp breading is Japanese Panko based, which gives a thick, crispy breading with steaming hot shrimp inside. Most importantly, the breading is NOT greasy at all! Our shrimp was even served on a piece of brown bread to absorb any grease that might be left from the fryer.
The interior is tiny, the menu is small, but really, the shrimp and fries are fried to perfection!
I think a lot of people get confused and go to the seafood place across the road cause it is what you see first. The owner of that place was pretty peeved when I asked about fried shrimp. I eventually awkwardly found my way across the street to the right place and was greeted and cared for like I was a close family friend.
My wife and I tried the fried shrimp platter (amazing) and I had the fried fish (double amazing and a LOT). The fried fish was easily as good or better (gasp) than what I had in London. I'm not that much into fried food, and even a small amount of grease will make me queasy. This is the first time I can remember where I had fried fish/shrimp and was not hurting afterwards. Now when I have a craving I know where to go!
The only thing missing with the fried fish and chips is a beer.
The store has hot and cold sandwiches made to order, a variety of Italian specialties and delicacies, wine, cheese, meats, pastas, fresh homemade cannolis, and more.
The interior has a few tables to sit at and things can get crowded fast. However, chatting with the owner and other customers is part of the experience while you wait for your sandwich.
The sandwiches are large, excellent and come in a wide variety. The Italian subs seem to the the core specialty.
Manassas Park, VA 20111
(703) 365-0708
Naru Asian Cuisine
Categories:
Japanese,
Sushi Bars
Today, the interior is spotlessly clean and beautiful. When sitting at your table it is hard to imagine the cars rushing by on Centerville Rd. Lunch is very quiet, until more people find out what they are missing.
There are excellent lunch Bento boxes with fresh, tasty sushi, lightly fried Tempura and well-marinated Teriyaki. Bento boxes are around $9. The green tea is hot, lightly flavored and excellent.
And, for something really special, the couple makes their Ramen and Udon noodles and soup from scratch on-site! That's right, fresh noodles! The Ramen broth is authentic and miso-based. The Udon is served in a clay pot that is too hot to eat from. You have to ladle the Udon into a small bowl to cool it off.
Service is attentive and personable, but can be a little slow. Relax, that is part of the charm. After all you are at a small, intimate family-run operation.
I cannot rate a sushi restaurant in Manassas on the same level as one on the West Coast. But in a far outer suburb, this restaurant easily holds its own and is fast becoming a regular spot, next to Pho 234 and Tandoori Village.
1 Previous Review:
-
7/7/2007
Bamboo is the only dedicated sushi restaurant that I know of in Manassas. The staff is very friendly and the sushi good for the area.
Minus one star for dirty, food-encrusted menus. My pet peeve!
A word of caution about non-sushi entrees... The Yakisoba and Teriyaki dishes tasted quite bland when I tried them. The chicken in the Teriyaki was un-marinated and there was really no Teriyaki sauce at all. The dishes were overwhelmed with cheap filler vegetables like bean sprouts and bell pepper, again which had no flavor.
Having changed ownership recently (the staff said around December 2006), this restaurant seems to be right on the edge of going downhill. Faded signs, dirty menus and shortcuts in the cooking do not a good review make. However, I'm going to try it out a few more times and hope that things improve. This place could be great!
The food is excellent, with the rotisserie and pineapple marinated pork Al Pastor being my favorite! The tacos and any daily special is where its at! Enchiladas are a little thin for my preference and the burritos are not comparable to the amazing, excellent tacos!
One night a special was make your own tacos from fried fish, piping hot corn tortillas and slaw. Amazing!
The other great experience here is the homemade salsa bar. There is everything here from salsa to picked veggies, to chiles. A veritable mine-field of flavor!
Also, the best Guacamole I can remember having. And for the local specialty, try the deep-fried cheesecake in a tortilla!
The atmosphere is hole-in-the-wall "minimal", ordering can be an experience, and there are a lot of regulars. That means the food is good! This is not a place to worry about appearances, and service is food placed on your table. There is nothing to interfere with your dumpling experience!
if I lived here I would raid the freezer for the hand-made frozen dumplings that you can steam at home.
Some of the dishes can be a bit on the oily side, or very spicy, but that is how they are supposed to be made. If you aren't crying from the spicy broth, you aren't eating! There is quite a variety of food, from a fatty brisket beef stew, to more healthy steamed dumplings. Everyone can find something on the menu to like, but it will be an adventure to find it.
Don't forget, Katy's is cash only and closed on Wednesday.
Westmont, IL 60559
(630) 810-0022
Yokohama Japanese Restaurant
Categories:
Japanese,
Sushi Bars
The daily specials are amazing, though some co-workers have said that some of the gnocchi varieties do not have as much flavor as they would like.
This restaurant is quite busy, and has grown through word-of-mouth recommendations. It is hidden in the back of an outdoor mall, making the search a challenge, but the food is worth the effort!
There are a couple of specialties which are not often found such as the Lamb Chops or the Chicken, Lamb or Goat Kadai (curry) which is prepared in large 2-person meals and I am wanting to try.
I tried the bone-in Chicken Tikka with rice, lentils, Butter Chicken and bread for $8.99. The orders take at least 15 minutes to prepare as the food needs to be cooked, bread baked, etc. upon ordering.
The Chicken Tikka was amazing with overwhelming flavors and clearly the winner of the meal! The rice was good and the lentils had a complex flavor as proper Indian lentils should.
The Naan was disappointing as it was overbaked, slightly burned and hard. The Butter Chicken was good, however the bone-in chicken had been chopped with a dull cleaver resulting in more bone fragments to pick out of each bite than was worth the work of eating it.
The owner was happy to talk about the restaurant and clearly involved in everything going on behind the counter. This place is special as it is open until 10pm or 11pm in the evening and plans to be open until 1:30am later on. That will make it one of the very few late-night food options in Manassas.
So, minus a star for the Dangerous Butter Chicken and hard bread, plus a star for the late night hours and good prices. I'll revise this review after eating here a few more times.
1 List
|
- 21 Friends
- 70 Reviews
- 6 Review Updates
- 25 Firsts
- 36 Quick Tips
- 1 Fan
- 76 Local Photos
- 1 List
-
Rating Distribution
Loading...
- View more graphs »
Review votes:
142 Useful, 21 Funny, and 97 Cool
Manassas, VA
Yelping SinceApril 2007
My Blog Or Website The Last Great Book I ReadAsk The Dust by John Fante
My Favorite MovieTampopo, In the Mood for Love, Ikiru, Hard Boiled
Don't Tell Anyone Else But...I listen to the XM Kids channel.
Current CrushTaipei
It's great to see someone start up a local business in Manassas old town and help bring back the sense of community.
You'll need to get there early to get the best cupcakes, they go fast!
The cupcakes were excellent, with plenty of flavor, moist inside and little touches like the piece of lemon candy on top of the lemon cupcake showing the extra effort. I hope that they start to make fruit tarts and other Patisserie fare,
The owner was happy to chat about his business and they are working to expand to meet demand.