About a month ago, you might have noticed that I wrote a post about how I ate three Indian Meals in 36 hours. One of those meals, you might remember was at Passage to India. You will also remember that I said that I had a great meal there. Well, Amy and I went again last Monday, and it was yet again...wonderful.

This time, we went for Brunch...Well, I guess it doesn't really count as "going for brunch" when you only intend to go out for lunch, and when you get there, they happen to be serving brunch. None the less, we were happy to see that Passage to India was serving brunch and we decided to order it (just a side note, the brunch is not normally avaialable on Monday, but since it was Labor Day, they were serving it again). As we were ordering, the couple at the table near us was finishing up and raving about how good their meal was. There were about 10 people in the restaurant, and everyone looked very satisfied.

The brunch offering at Passage to India starts with an appetizer sampler with mini samosas, Indian chicken salad, and those onion fritter things (I'm forgetting the exact name for them right this minute). They also give you two sauces to eat them with - One a plum sauce and the other a raita. The raita went especially well with the chicken salad. In the picture on the right, you can see the chicken salad on the left and the samosas and onion fritters on the right. Nothing's really new or different here. These are your typical Indian restaurant appetizers, and they would probably be safe just serving the samosas, since they are probably our favorite samosas around. Honestly though, I would rather see some of the chaat that we saw at the Indian Street Food event, but I understand why they serve the appetizers they do.

For the entree, you have a choice of chicken tikka masala or lamb korma. On top of that, they bring out  daal and saag. Mix them all together, and you get a pretty good combination. The lamb korma here is one of my favorite around as far as kormas go. The sauce the lamb is in is very creamy and spicy. It is very similar to that of Heritage India (which makes sense since Passage to India used to be a Heritage India), except it is spicier and hence - better. I had the lamb korma the last time we went to Passage to India, and it was a little better, if I remember correctly. On the left you can see what my plate looked like. From left to right, you see the korma, daal and saag. Amy ordered the chicken tikka masala, and it was good as well. We also love the saag dishes here. Last time, Amy ordered the saag paneer and absolutely loved it.

There was no bread included in the brunch, so we ordered some paratha, which I have to say is right on as far as I think paratha is supposed to be made (at least as far as my limited knowedge of Indian food goes).  For dessert, Passage to India includes two dishes of rice pudding. Once again this was very good as well. I could taste the strong cardamon flavor and it was very creamy. Mixed in with it were pistachios and raisins - A very nice touch I have to say.

One thing about Passage to India - They charge you for rice. This is the same practice that Heritage India follows and it drives me nuts. Update: Passage to India not longer charges for rice on their new menu.

The brunch cost $24.95 for two people, plus the cost of the bread and coffee we ordered. The coffee, I have to say, was very strong which we appreciated very much. Not a bad deal for a Sunday (or Monday) brunch for two. I also shouldn't forget to mention how good the service is at Passage to India. The servers are very attentive, timely and gracious.

Passage to India
4931 Cordell Ave
Bethesda, MD
Map
(301) 656-3373
Dress Code: Business Casual (Although I have worn jeans and fit right in)
Hours:
Mon-Fri: 11:30am-2:30pm
Sun: noon-3 pm
Sun-Thu: 5:30-10:30pm
Fri-Sat: 5:30-11pm

See what Monica Bhide wrote about Passage to India at the Washingtonian.