RSS FeedMerzi Brings Fast Indian To The Quarter (415 7th St NW)
In the PQ Living newsroom, there seems to be no end in sight to the new restaurants to try in the neighborhood. We said good bye to the Zenith Gallery on 7th St NW, watched the space get split into two, and then saw the last half gestate into Merzi (415 7th St NW) over the last seven months. Was it worth the wait? We think so.
It is hard to stand out in the fast casual dining space as it’s crowded with tacos, burritos, hot dogs, yogurt, salads, sandwiches, and even European sandwiches but there was no Indian until now. Merzi combines the speed of Chiptole with the zestiness and tastiness of Indian food. Assembly line style, you pick a base (naan, rice, chaat, or salad), a protein/veggie (chicken, beef, shrimp, lamb, tandessirie chicken, or veggies), extra toppings (such as a chopped cucumber/tomato/onion mix), a warm sauce, and a chutney to comprise your meal as you slide towards the register. Samosas and potato tikkas are also available as extra sides with available drinks including a home brewed mango drink and the standard issue soda.
We tried both the Tandissirie chicken, a combination of tandoori and rotisserie chicken, and lamb structured meals separately with hot and medium sauces enjoying the tastes in both. The full palate of Indian flavors clearly manifests itself in one plate and the tandisserie chicken was appropriately moist with a nice spicy edge to it (you won’t find it being the typical bright red color in regular tandoori chicken). The hot sauce was hot and the medium sauce was medium in hotness as advertised. The samosas had a nice earthy, loamy, slightly spicy taste brought on by the potato and chick pea mixture inside. We also liked the potato tikka. Nothing is fried – it’s either grilled or steamed – so there isn’t a heavy feeling to the food which we liked and the entrees range from the low $6 to high $7 range [PDF menu]. There are approximately fifteen tables (mostly two tops with a few four top booths) where patrons can sit and two longer stand up community tables.
A few gripes are that the plasticware was too flexy to use easily and we recommend sitting away from the front entrance’s draft which is noticeable in cold weather. Our biggest culinary gripe is that everything gets glopped together by design. Maybe we’re used to having the option of having the naan or rice separated from the tasty goods so if you want the flavors to stay separate on the plate, be sure to instruct the preparer behind the counter to not put every ingredient on top of each other accordingly. We wouldn’t mind seeing a dessert or two also but then again the fast casual Mexican place up the street doesn’t serve sopapillas or Tres Leches so maybe we’re being too complicated.
In talking to the owner, Qaiser “Kaz” Kazmi, it is clear that he is excited about bringing the concept to life and has both a culinary and social mission for the restaurant. He did his market research by refining the flavors and menu at a test location in Maryland. Why did he pick the Penn Quarter as the first location? He said he wanted a high degree of visibility for the first incarnation which he views as a springboard for other locations opening up.
In Hindi, “merzi” means choice and the Penn Quarter indeed now has another culinary choice for its denizens.
Merzi
415 7th St, NW
202-65-MERZI (202-656-3794)
Washington, DC 20001
11 am to 10 pm – Mon to Sat
11 am to 9 pm – Sun
Website: www.merzi.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/merzi
Facebook: www.facebook.com/merzi
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Comments
@PQ worker – thanks for your comment. we were commenting on the fact that Merzi is the first Indian fast casual restaurant similar to Chipotle, Chop’t and Potbelly’s being fast casual. true enough that Mehak is another Indian restaurant in the PQ though. Naan and Beyond might fall into the fast casual category also (L St and Penn Ave).
L Street and Pa. Ave. is in the West End near Trader Joe’s; a bit of a way to go when not stocking up at TJ’s — or going to the GW Hospital.
I’ve eaten at Merzi a lot over the last few weeks, and I really like it. I just wish they would stop changing things. Some days there are no pinto beans, others there are potatoes, then they changed the veggie mix. I want predictability, so while I understand that they’re still adjusting to consumer demand, the selection is a bit schizophrenic.
@Urbaniste: I believe pqresident was saying there are Naan and Beyond locations at L Street NW (near 17th) and Pennsylvania Ave NW (in the food court with the entrance near 13th and F). The latter is certainly close to PQ proper. N&B has always been my go-to place for fast food indian, so I’m excited to try out Merzi!
The food is decent enough for the price and you get plenty for your money. The only thing that bugged me was that the worker behind the counter didn’t know what raita was! I asked him if the yogurty looking topping was raita, and he looked at me like I was crazy, and said it was yogurt. Recommend training your employees up on basic Indian cuisine, Merzi!
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“…there was no Indian food until now.” Actually, the
wonderful Mehak is on 7th between H and I:
http://www.mehak.com/index.html . Be sure to check it out if you
haven’t already!