New Heights

Yesterday in the chat, somebody wrote in asking where to find a passion fruit martini. Fritz mentioned the one at Ceiba, and I noticed last night that a new spot in town is also concocting some mighty delicious cocktails.

Open since Wednesday, Indique Heights, the sister to Cleveland Park's Indique, is a sprawling space with several smaller dining rooms (including one with a fountain), a private room, and a lounge and bar with a lengthy cocktail menu and small plates-style dishes. I stopped in for dinner last night and tested a few cocktails. One offers passion fruit juice mixed with tequila and jalapeno, but you should be able to sweet talk the bartender into mixing that passion into a martini. If not, settle down to a martini with pomegranate, Campari or curry leaves instead.

After being accustomed to the higher prices of several popular Indian spots, I was thrilled to see that most dishes fell under $8. With prices like that, you'll be able to try a number of the menu's enticing dishes. Crab tikki, Indique's popular take on crab cakes, are also on this menu. The gingery cakes are the perfect start to a meal; the great flavors don't detract from the crab. I was pleasantly surprised by the chicken chettinad, one of the dishes that's unique to the Heights. Though the restaurant warns that this one is not for the faint-hearted, the chicken's deep spice is subtler than typical burn-your-mouth dishes. The duck varatha curry would be a good choice for those who don't like spicy curries if the duck weren't so tough. I had anticipated that the stewed meat would be more succulent, and I hope that the tough consistency was just a fluke from the new kitchen as it gets warmed up. The restaurant also has tons of tandoori fish options and items from the tawa grill that I will try next time and report back on.

With its proximity to the Mazza Gallery theater, Indique Heights should make a fine destination for both dining and lounging. Do you have a favorite new martini? Spill!

-- Erin