Masala Story — Restaurant in Washington

If you like individualized, pampered attention…oh and great food, lol, then this is the place for you! I LOVE Masala Story. If I lived in the Brookland/CUA area, then this would be my “Cheers” because I’d frequent it often…first the environment is so cozy and inviting. (Someone was eating and chilling on their laptop when we were there). The staff is amazing. This time Kushmal attended to us, very professional and courteous; if I had to sum up the vibe here I’d say: the feel of fine dining, wrapped in a casual meal with an old friend. Simply because the atmosphere is very cozy, but you’re treated with respect and care.

Ok so now let’s talk about the food. I ordered the Lamb Keema Samosas which were delicious. The lamb was seasoned great and the dough was fried perfectly. My only wish was that they were larger. These were the smallest samosas I’ve eaten and it was $9.50 for the pair, which I think was too expensive for what you receive. I also ordered the Punjabi chicken: curried bone-in chicken with rice and chickpeas…also delish! There was a bit too much of one spice though. It was seedy, like Cardamom maybe, every three or four bites into the rice and I would bite one…it kinda overpowers your taste buds until you scoop in something else, lol. Not a deal breaker for me so I could easily get past it….it also comes with an optional spicy sauce ($.50) which was really spicy so I’ll skip next time. I got a creamy and fruity Mango Lassi to wash it all down and it instantly cools your mouth after a few sips.

Let’s break down the cost and make this more affordable (so we can go here more often)…my Husband ordered the Vegetable Samosa, Chicken Curry and a Mango Lassi. We paid $72 total, which leaves us at $36 per person. At this rate, we’d be broke eating here regularly…but the food/environment is amazing, so let’s work this out.

We both had leftovers so, next time, if we wanted to spend less, we could choose between skipping the samosas and ordering one meal each… or getting two samosas and sharing one meal. Either way will save us $20 and still have us stuffed walking out. We could also opt for water and save another $10, bringing us down to $20 per/person by not purchasing the Mango Lassi.

Overall, I’m in love with Masala Story and am looking forward to my next visit. They have a full bar, tables to accommodate large parties and a cool outdoor eating area. It was raining when I checked it out. If it was warmer, you could eat outside even in the rain. You won’t be disappointed or unsatisfied eating here!🥰😋

They have another location in Downtown DC called the Goat Room. Kushmal said that they have a nice clay oven there and makes excellent kabobs!!!…my Hubbie and I love Chicken Kabobs so we’ll definitely be...

Expensive prices (50 dollars for 2 ppl) with cheap plastic silverware and paper cups. The screen in front prompts you to tip 20 percent but you have to get up and get your own water, soda and thin fast food paper napkins. No plates are provided so we had to eat like dogs from the cafeteria tray to split the samosa appetizer. Each meal is served with some horrible, bland overly spicy channa inside of the rice so I had to keep leaving my table to refill the water. Please don't serve spicy channa when the person has ordered mild food. It's not separated out but dumped right on top of the rice. The rice is so oily that they put a piece of paper underneath to collect the oil and stick it in a plastic styrofoam tray to add to the cheap experience. Instead of garnishing with dhaniya leaves, the garnish is wilted spinach. The butter chicken sauce was good but the chicken is too dry as the other reviewers mentioned. The chicken was white meat which I liked, but this type of meat dries out very quickly. Samosas were good and not too spicy. We did not get green chutney. Korma sauce was OK but not the cashew royal creaminess one would expect from korma. Also the portions are small and any takeaway items quickly disintegrate the paper cup in which it's served. Next time I will search for a more authentic Indian restaurant where I can get some refills of water and be treated properly as a guest instead of a server for the people...

I recently ordered Masala Story and was quite disappointed with the overall experience. While the food itself was reasonably tasty, the portion sizes were shockingly small, given the prices they were charging.

I ordered the Punjabi Chicken & Goat Vindaloo, which is listed on the menu for $19 & $21. When the order arrived, I was taken aback by how little food was actually in the tiny container. It was barely enough to constitute a single serving, let alone a full meal. The protein was a tiny 3-4 ounce portion, accompanied by a small side chana daal.

I would have expected a much more substantial filling dish at those prices. Instead, I was left feeling hungry and regretting spending so much money on such a meager meal.

The delivery arrived quickly enough, but the value just wasn't there. I understand that restaurants need to price items to make a profit, but there's a line where the portion sizes become unacceptably small. Masala Story has crossed that line, in my opinion.

I won't be ordering anytime soon, and I would caution others to carefully consider the portion sizes and prices before ordering from here. It seems they are more concerned with maximizing their margins than providing a satisfying culinary experience for their customers.

I forgot to take photos; otherwise, I would have shared those to...