Monthly Archives: February 2005

Many thanks to Matt and Tamiko for suggesting the Annapurna Cafe during my “Oh, woe is me, where are all the good Indian restaurants on Capitol hill?“ phase. I had walked by the Annapurna Cafe before and had been curious because they advertise Nepali, Tibetan & Indian cuisine.

The Annapurna Cafe is a basement restaurant, so there is no natural light, but all in all it’s fairly cozy for being in a basement. Per Tamiko’s suggestion we started out with the Goan Style Mussels, “Fresh mussels sautéed in a white wine based coconut curry sauce with roasted garlic, fresh herbs and tomatoes served with naan” ($11.95). They were FANTASTIC; the mussels were plump and juicy and the broth was incredible. It was sweet yet spicy, and rich from the coconut milk but not overly-so. The naan that came with the mussels was crisp and dry, which at first I didn’t think I’d like, but it had such a nice texture and crunch that I enjoyed it—especially when dipped in the curry broth. There was a good three inches of broth in the bowl and we managed to eat it all. It was so good that once we ran out of naan I just started drinking it straight, like soup.

We also ordered the Crispy Lamb Rolls, “Crispy lamb rolls stuffed with ground lamb, onions, cabbage, carrots, yam noodles, garlic, ginger, basil and freshly ground masala and served with mango pineapple chutney” ($4.95). The rolls were an awful lot like a Taco Time crispy burrito. I’m not sure why my brain made this connection, and I’m not even saying that it’s a bad thing either. The rolls were a bit greasy and chewy on the outside and just a touch dry on the inside, but I liked the taste of the ground lamb mixture. I think if the frying oil had been slightly hotter, the rolls would have been perfect. The accompanying pineapple and mango chutney tasted like a slightly spicy sweet and sour sauce and was a perfect complement to the lamb.

The last thing we tried was the Himalayan Curry, “Sherpa’s favorite curry sauce cooked with Szechwan pepper, tomatoes, onions, sweet peas, potatoes and Tibetan herbs” ($8.95, with chicken). The waitress had told us that it was fairly tangy and tried to steer us towards the sweeter curries, but Zach was really curious about the Sherpa’s favorite. I didn’t like this curry very much, but not because it wasn’t prepared well—I just found the tangy flavor odd and not satisfying, but Zach enjoyed it. Next time I want to try some of the more Indian inspired curries because I’m betting they’re fantastic.

Thank you Matt and Tamiko! Your recommendations were right on.

Tonight Zach and I made plans to check out the Art of Modern Rock poster show at Elliott Bay Books, grab dinner at Takohachi and then do some grocery shopping at Uwajimaya.

The “exhibit” at Elliott Bay turned out to be a few laminated posters tacked up on the walls, but we still had fun browsing through all the books. I managed to make it out, buying only one book. We headed to Takohachi, only to find that they had closed at 8pm. I knew they closed early, but 8pm on a Saturday night? Come on! I was being moody and refused to eat anywhere else in Chinatown, but since we were in the area, we stopped at Uwajimaya to buy meats, noodles and veggies for our hot-pot party on Sunday.

After leaving Uwajimaya, Zach suggested we eat at Jones Barbeque in the new location we spotted last weekend (Second Avenue and Lander, near Sears). Of course, when we arrived it was closed as well. Then I suggested Kolbeh, a nearby Persian restaurant on First Avenue. I used to go there quite a bit, but that was about five years ago. As we approached the building, something looked different.

What used to be a cute and cozy space has now been transformed into a sprawling restaurant with an enormous stage and walls that appeared to be covered with velvet paintings. When we entered we were asked if we were there for the show. We shrugged and said we were hungry, so they seated us in the back area, away from the dance floor.

I remembered the Lamb Kabob from prior visits, so I ordered that to share: “One lb. of Lamb Tenderloin Marinated in Lemon, Saffron & Onion” ($21.99). Zach loves okra so he ordered a side of Khoresht Bomeyeh “Stewed Okra in Spicy Tomato Sauce” ($5 ala carte). I’m not a huge okra fan but the menu said “Maybe the Best Way of Cooking Okra”, so I was naturally curious.

We started off with a bad dinner salad, which was iceberg lettuce, a few carrot shreds and way too much red vinegar dressing. Next came our lamb; a beautiful, foot and half long shish kabob that had some of the most flavorful and tender lamb I’ve ever eaten. I have no idea what they do to it that makes it so good, but I want the recipe. It was garnished simply with basil leaves and chunks of raw onions. The basmati that came with the lamb was luscious, fragrant and sweet—it had been simmered in coconut milk. True to the menu, the okra was the best I’ve ever had. It was stewed in a rich tomato sauce, which lent itself well to the normally slimy texture of okra. We finished with a perfect triangle of honeyed baklava.

It was an unexpected and fantastic meal. Plus I was really enthralled with the other diners. There were tables of families who all seemed to know each other and the staff. They were eating apricot paste and drinking a beautiful cinnamon tea. People of all ages were taking turns smoking from the hookah while waiting for the show to begin. The belly dancers were getting ready for the show, walking by our table with their rolling suitcases.

We didn’t stay for the performance because we were both dead-tired, but we agreed that we’d come back soon with a group of friends to check it out. As we were leaving, we walked by the largest bouncer I’ve ever seen. He was about the size of four of me, maybe even five. We left wondering if the crowd gets rowdy later in the evening, as it seemed like overkill for the family-oriented and blue-haired, tiara-wearing crowd we saw inside.