A few times in our culinary journey together, a restaurant that my wife Jun and I visited and really liked mysteriously fell off our radar. We visited Daru with another couple back in 2021, and I remember really liking the inventive Indian cuisine there. The restaurant had quickly become a fan favorite among DC diners, too. So why did it take us until 2024 to come back to the restaurant? I suspect distance (the restaurant is located in the H Street corridor of Northeast DC) played a big role; if we can get decent Indian fix just from ordering on DoorDash, why drive 40+ minutes from our home in Maryland? Our recent visit, however, changed my mind in a big way and Daru really deserves to be a top DC dining destination.

While the dishes coming from Daru, helmed by vets from DC’s trailblazer Rasika, are unmistakably Indian, the kitchen’s approach to the cuisine was quite novel, often with fantastic results. Start with the awesome paneer bhurji, a scrambled Indian cottage cheese with eggplant and chaat malasa spice, with wonderfully spicy kick and addictive texture. We tried the spicy duck kebab with caramelized onion and green chili last time we visited Daru, and it was just as delicious this time, too. The kitchen was delayed in bringing us the third starter dish – portobello mushroom choila with grilled tomato – until the main dishes came out, and we were actually glad they hadn’t forgotten about it, with a distinct flavor from a blend of red chili, Sichuan peppercorn and labneh that you wouldn’t easily forget. For the main dishes, if you are a fan of Indian chicken curry dishes, don’t skip the murgh makhani (the restaurant’s take on butter chicken consisting of tandoori chicken with spiced tomato and white pepper) that we quickly finished in no time thanks to its soulful flavor. Another dish that we both enjoyed greatly was the lamb chops that were grilled just spot-on and came with black garlic and pink peppercorn to add addictive spicy flavor. We finished the meal with the traditional gulab jamun dish whose warm, soft texture worked quite beautifully with cardamom gelato.

Getting a reservation at Daru is still somewhat challenging even after the restaurant’s opening three years ago; advance booking is always recommended, especially for prime-time tables on the weekends. There is also outdoor dining space during the warmer season. The restaurant has a full bar and I would definitely suggest trying one or two cocktails that are thoughtfully crafted with Indian ingredients and flavor for inspiration. One of the high points in my time with Jun dining at restaurants is when we re-discover a forgotten place and visit it over and over again. I have high confidence Daru will be that kind of restaurant for us going forward despite the distance factor. We can’t wait to visit the restaurant again to try other dishes, and hope it becomes our go-to Indian dining destination in the city when we don’t feel too lazy at home.

Address: 1451 Maryland Avenue NE, Washington, DC 20002

KenScale: 8.25/10 (Jun’s Score: 8.0/10)

Website: https://www.darudc.com/

Reservation via Resy