Amma Vegetarian Kitchen

"No one goes to this south Indian outpost in Northern Virginia for the attention or the ambiance. Honestly, I’ve had sunnier service encounters at the DMV, and the sole splash of color in the square, low-ceilinged dining room is a screen above the counter displaying photos of meatless dishes. Give it a whirl anyway. Amma Vegetarian Kitchen is all about the food — crepelike dosas, made from a batter of fermented rice and lentils, and pancake-esque uttapam — whose taste testers include the mother of owner Saku Nair. Amma translates from Malayalam, the official language of the state of Kerala in India, as “mother,” he says. “Mother is where everything starts.” For quality control, Nair says, he brings dishes to his own amma, 87-year-old Rajamma Devakiamma, for her input, although he’s quick to credit his wife, Sridevi Nair, as “an excellent cook, too.” You can roam in many directions on the menu. My routine is the Amma feast, which lives up to its description and is priced to please at $13. Picture warm-spiced chickpeas, cooling raita, the lentil stew sambar and the coconut-refreshed vegetable medley known as aviyal — everything partnered with steamed rice and breads including chapati and papadum. The spread also includes rasam, tomato soup ignited with black pepper and tangy with tamarind, and a little cup of semiya payasam, a loose pudding flavored with cardamom and threaded with vermicelli. If I’m not getting the feast, I’m requesting uttapam, crisped on the griddle and best laced with onions and chiles, or one of the many dosas, maybe a golden scroll with a filling of potato, onion and green peas, the owner’s favorite. (Ask for “extra crispy” dosa, achieved by leaving the crepe on the griddle longer and brushing it with ghee.) There’s no dishwashing machine at the restaurant, so everything is served in paper or plastic on trays. The food, and environment, deserve better. The flavors might inspire you to cook Indian at home. Nair has you covered. Aditi Spice Depot, the restaurateur’s supermarket, beckons from across the street. https://www.washingtonpost.com/food/2022/11/21/best-restaurants-tom-sietsema-favorites-november-2022/"