Afghan Bistro — Restaurant in Lorton

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I have enjoyed Afghan restaurants beginning with the wonderful Khyber Pass Restaurant, now closed, that was on King Street near the river in Old Town Alexandria and was very popular in the 1980’s. It is my benchmark for rating other Afghan restaurants. Reason for closing was untimely death of the owner. Panjshir in Vienna was good, in my opinion better than Falls Church companion restaurant in Falls Church. Vienna Panjshir closed long ago. The original Bamian in Falls Church was good in the 1980’s. I stopped going when they expanded, opening big restaurants in DC and Tysons. Quality, in my opinion, degraded.

I especially enjoy Qubuli Palou Sambosa, Lentil Soup, Naan and Ferni. Afghan Bistro Qubili Palou is made with beef shank. Other Afghan restaurants I have dined at prepared qabuli palaw with morsels of lamb.

AB’s menu has wide offering of vegetarian dishes but they lose me at their menu heading Burgers and Wraps. Odd to my eye also is menu item Risotto and Beef. Menu description is beef shank slowly braised with lentils, chick peas and fresh dill. Sorry, I am only having risotto with sea food. Risotto paired with lentils, chick peas and dill does not register on my flavor map. I think too that powdered sugar should not be sprinkled on top of Samosas.

AB’s atmosphere is subdued, tables are close, furnishings - tables and chairs are dark wood and heavy. Tables are covered with light brown vinylcloth with a backliner of cotton or polyester. Service on the two dinner visits I made pre dine-in shutdown was adequate, not-great-not-bad. I plan to try their McLean location when dine-in is restored. I think AB’s menu prices are...

This place is a hidden gem. The strip mall location is underwhelming, but walking into the Afghan Bistro you find a cozy well decorated restaurant. We arrived at 5pm on a Tuesday and by looking at the other reviews, it appears this may be the only time you can get a seat without a reservation!

Cozy is an understatement. The only reason I didn't give 5 stars is that our tiny 2-person table was elbow to elbow with the couple at the next table and it appeared every table was just as close to their neighbors. The elderly gentlemen in the corner was talking so loud, we felt like joining into his argument about the "good old days".

We were met quickly by our server who was polite and informative. Our drinks arrived very promptly with a basket of fresh bread and four delicious sauces.

I had the Frenched Rack of Lamb. It was devine! The lamb was tender, seasoned to perfection, and had a crispy char from the grill. The rice and squash paired perfectly. The four sauces served with the bread were also great on the sides - I found the yogurt and avocado sauce went best with the rice.

My wife had the beef tenderloin served with the same sides. Her beef was equally as tender, well seasoned, and cooked to perfection.

The owner visited the tables a couple of times during our dinner, and our server never let our drinks or sides get empty.

We chose two of the priciest dinners at $25 per plate. There are several less expensive options if cost is a concern.

Overall, the I can't recommend the Afghan Bistro enough unless you are claustrophobic and enjoy dining in privacy. I strongly recommend making...

Wow! This is incredible Afghan cuisine… fabulous! This Afghan Halal restaurant in an obscure strip mall just south of Springfield proper, is incredibly deceiving when arriving to their parking lot. Look hard and you’ll find it. But once there you’ll experience some of finest Afghan Cuisine ever – it’s no wonder Afghan Bistro has received numerous awards. The moment you walk in you are warmly greeted by this family-owned and operated homey and relaxed establishment. You immediately feel the vibe of the family surroundings. As for the food, Wow! Afghan Cuisine unifies much of the Indian, Central Asian, and Persian foodways and cultural characteristics. Every item of the many we experienced were exceptional! We enjoyed some of the best Sambosas ever. This minced meat stuffed pastry chalk full of tasty lentil gorma fried perfectly with slight toppings of powdered sugar and cardamom were yummy. My Wife’s fave, Pumpkin Dumplings, were superb. These delicately steamed with a magnificent stuffing of minced meat, lentil, tender and flavorsome butternut squash, seasoned with mint and cayenne were superb. My selection and I am tremendously pleased with it was the Veal and Mushroom Sabzi Lawaan. Marvelous taste, stupendous preparation, and an amazing presentation of this veal fillet in a yogurt-based stew of greens, mushrooms with cilantro. Everything was served with an amazing saffron-infused basmati rice like I’ve never had before! If you love Afghan Cuisine or if you’re new to it, this is the...