Tamashaa - Luxury Indian Dining & Cocktail Bar — Restaurant in Washington

Tamashaa is not your regular Indian restaurant — it’s an experience! Located in DC, this place offers a refreshing take on Indian cuisine with a perfect blend of tradition and creativity.

We started off with their mocktails, and each one was a showstopper:

Draupadi - came in a unique cone-shaped glass with a mini flame on the bottom — a fiery tribute to the Draupadi of Mahabharat and an absolute visual delight. Gandhari - had a lovely lychee flavor — smooth, fragrant, and refreshing. Pandavas - was a tropical fusion of five ingredients as the name suggests - spicy guava, mango, basil, mint and cardamom that hit all the right notes. And of course, the classic mango lassi was thick, creamy, and just the way it should be.

For starters, we tried:

Crispy Okra Sweet Potato Chaat – a genius combination of roasted sweet potatoes topped with crunchy okra chips. Ghevar Chaat – a unique twist featuring ghevar as the base, layered with spicy chole and chutneys. It was unexpected and delicious. Sev Puri – beautifully plated, clean and bursting with flavor.

The main course was equally impressive:

Paneer Makhani – creamy, rich, and comforting. Lotus Stem Kofta – tried it for the first time and we were blown away! Delicate, flavorful, and unlike anything we’ve had before. Kadhai Paneer – bold and perfectly spiced.

And just when we thought it couldn't get any better, we had the Chocolate Dome for dessert — a rich chocolate shell encasing rabri inside. You get to break the dome open to reveal the creamy goodness hidden within. Fun, dramatic, and absolutely delicious!

The presentation of every single dish was outstanding — clearly curated with passion and attention to detail.

Parking tip: Street parking is tricky, so we opted for the underground public garage right across from the restaurant — super convenient and worth it.

Highly recommend Tamashaa for anyone looking to explore Indian food in a fresh, modern, and truly memorable way. A...

We recently visited Tamasha Restaurant after seeing so many good reviews and being impressed by the ambience. Yes, the ambience is beautiful — that’s probably the only thing that truly feels premium here. ✨

The service was decent but definitely not exceptional. However, the biggest disappointment was the food quality. We ordered veg dishes, chicken biryani, and naan, but the naan came burnt, and overall the food was nowhere near worth the price. The only thing we genuinely enjoyed was the dessert, which was quite good and a bit unique 🍨.

Despite the average food, we were too hungry (especially with our two kids) and ended up eating what was served. But the real shock came with the bill — around $250 for just three of us! 😳 That’s unbelievable for what we ordered. On top of that, a 20% service charge was added — never mentioned or highlighted before ordering.

To top it off, they mentioned it was their 1-year anniversary and gave a complimentary dish. Lol… honestly, no words to explain that gesture when the rest of the experience was so disappointing. 🙄🎂

Honestly, it feels like we just paid for the ambience and not for the food or service. The value for money is terrible, and this experience left us completely disappointed and regretful. I’ve been thinking about it ever since — feeling like we were totally fooled by the looks and the online hype.

Now I’m genuinely suspicious how this restaurant managed to get a 4.8 rating 🤔. It really makes me wonder if all those glowing reviews are from real diners, because our experience was nowhere close to that rating.

Lesson learned: Never go just by good reviews — always check the detailed and critical ones too. We will never visit again, and I sincerely hope the restaurant reconsiders its pricing, food quality, and transparency with customers.

😞 Very disappointed with my choice and the...

My husband and I live in the neighborhood and was delighted to see a new Indian restaurant pop up a couple of blocks from us. We first visited on the way to our local grocery store to say hi and grab a drink. The staff was extremely welcoming and easy to talk to - we knew we had to come back for a meal. We brought my aunt and cousin to Tamashaa for dinner to celebrate my cousin’s graduation. I honestly can’t say enough positive things about this restaurant. From the moment we arrived everyone was so nice and friendly. Our server took special attention to talk through the menu when we notified them of my cousin’s tree nut/peanut allergy. The drink menu is absolutely beautiful - each page was thoughtful illustrated with stunning imagery and colors. For drinks we had, Kunti (with Tito’s), Nazariya, and Sukoon. We ordered a bunch of food - everything was SO TASTY! From small plates we got Crispy Cauliflower (perfect fry), Kerala Fried Chicken (true to Kerala spice rub), Spareribs (fall off the bone). From Tandoor & Grills we got Jama Masjid Seekh Lamb (great flavors) and Lemongrass Shrimp Tikka (great flavor with a smokey cook / this was a table favorite). From Classics we got two orders Old Delhi Butter Chicken and paired it with the Black Garlic Naan. I love butter chicken so I’m a huge critic when it comes to this particular dish. It was DELICIOUS! The curry consistency was spot on, the flavors were savory and had right amount of spice, the chicken pieces were tender and a great portion. The only note I have on this was that I wished there was a little more curry. But other than that it was superb. We were absolutely stuffed so we didn’t order dessert. This isn’t your mom/pop Indian restaurant - so expect great visuals and presentation. Although pricy it was well worth it! My husband and I plan to be back and will be...