Columbia Heights Hit Bombay Street Food Expands to Capitol Hill This Week

Bombay Street Food will open its second location this week, rapidly expanding from the original that opened last fall in Columbia Heights to a new venue that will bring its buzz-building potato patty sandwiches, Indo-Chinese chicken, and thali platters to Capitol Hill.

Bombay Street Food 2 will welcome its first customers for lunch Friday, June 21, at 524 Eight Street SE, the Barracks Row building that housed Garrison before it closed in January.

Owner Asad Sheikh tells Eater that his new restaurant will serve a menu that’s “90 percent” the same as the one in Northwest D.C. The exceptions will be found in a “Bipartisan on the Hill” section with dishes that will be made with a choice of lamb, chicken, or goat. The name is an obvious nod to the political power players working nearby.

“We have a lot of problems going on with Democrats and Republicans. They’re not doing anything,” Sheikh says, adding that he hopes they can agree on the quality of the food.

Bombay Street Food [official]

One dish exclusive to the Capitol Hill location will be lal mirch, a spicy curry made with dried chiles, ginger, garlic, cilantro, and roasted red peppers.

“It’s a little similar to vindaloo,” Sheikh says. “This is spicy also, but this has more of a flavor of ginger-garlic with the roasted red pepper.”

A spicy biryani will come onto the menu in Southeast. Another new dish for Bombay Street Food will be a “monsoon wedding” curry studded with black peppercorns, red chiles, and coriander seeds. Bombay Street Food in Columbia Heights introduced D.C. to a monsoon menu with pakora fritters, spicy chicken chicken masala, and glasses of hot chai, all traditional comforts during the rainy season in Mumbai.

Bombay Street Food [official]

Sheikh and chef-partner Pradip Shrestha are also adding two brunch dishes that will run on weekends. Anda bhurji features eggs scrambled with cumin, coriander, tomatoes, and onions. Anda keema bhurji includes minced chicken in the mix. Both will come with a hard-boiled egg, Indian-spiced home fries, and a drink. Sheikh says the $12 price includes a choice of a bloody mary or a mimosa, and he expects to bring the dishes over to Columbia Heights soon.

Congressional staffers can take advantage of their own lunch special: $12 individual thali platters (vegetarian or non-vegetarian). Other deals are geared towards military members, who will receive discounts of about 25 percent on select dishes such as butter chicken, chicken tikka masala, and goat curry.

Considering the number of families in the neighborhood, Sheikh is adding a kids menu cheesy naan, chicken tenders, and small portions of butter chicken.

The 75-seat space includes two more firsts for Bombay Street Food: an outdoor patio and an open kitchen.

“People can come and talk to the chef,” Sheikh says. “People can come and see how we cook. People can even come and try to cook a naan bread.”

Sheikh, who sold his stake in the Curry Mantra restaurants he founded in Northern Virginia, says he’d eventually like to put a Bombay Street Food in every quadrant of the District. Although he already has one in Northwest, he says he’s evaluating several properties while searching for a lease in Dupont Circle.

Bombay Street Food 2, 524 Eight Street SE; Lunch from from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on Monday through Friday and 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday; Dinner from 4:30 to 10 p.m. on Sunday through Thursday and 4:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.

• Bombay Street Food Is Adding a Second Location in Capitol Hill [EDC]
• How Snacks From Mumbai’s Streets Come to Life in Columbia Heights [EDC]
• Garrison Chef Says His Business Tanked After Trump Took Office [EDC]