Cusbah

Washington, DC, United States

4.2

20 reviews

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Telephone:
+1 202-506-1504
Website:
cusbah.com
Address:
1128 H St NE, Washington, DC, DC, 20002
b/t N 11th St & N 12th St
H Street Corridor/Atlas District/Near Northeast
Nearby public transportation stops & stations:
670 ft13th St/H St
0.3 mi8th St/H St
0.4 mi90/92 bus: 8th & Florida NE
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Today

Today –
Local time (Washington, DC) 11:32 PM Saturday, May 31, 2025

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Tuesday –
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Description

Specialties

Cusbah literally translates to «little village.» With that translation, we hope to bring that sense of a «little village» or neighborhood bar and restaurant where there’s something for everyone. Located in the heart of Washington, DC, on the ever changing H Street Corridor, we have many ideas and concepts that will keep us one-​step ahead of the game.

The Cusbah concept was created on the premise that a hybrid American South Asian restaurant experience did not exist, at least not in Washington DC. We wanted to create a building block based on authentic Pakistani and North Indian cuisine, while providing an atmosphere rooted in multi-​cultural America. We envision our restaurant to be the place where you grab a damn good Kebab, Curry or Naan, and wash it down with a nice cold quality beer or cocktail. Our food is authentic, the ambiance is amazing, and you can enjoy it all in our chic lounge or outdoor patio while listening to great music.

Planning an office luncheon, a dinner party, or a birthday celebration? Cusbah is there for all of your private party and catering needs. From all of us here at Cusbah, we look forward to seeing you, your family and friends very soon!

History

Established in 2012.

Cusbah opened its doors on August 3rd 2012. A family owned and operated restaurant, we wanted to bring the delicious flavors of Pakistani food to the up and coming H Street area. Our exposed-​brick setting, lounge-​style restaurant and extensive cocktail list have made us a favorite place to hang out for the past three years. We look forward to adding you to our history of satisfied customers who have joined us at Cusbah.

Meet the Business Owner

Soophia H.

Business Owner

Along with her father and cousin, Soophia has a true passion for sharing the Pakistani food and atmosphere with residents and visitors to the DC area. In addition to outstanding food and drinks, our entire staff also strives for an excellent customer service experience. If you ever have any questions or comments for us, don’t hesitate to let Soophia know. We welcome your feedback and hope to hear from you soon.

Vicinity

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20 reviews of Cusbah

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Place rating: 3
Silver Spring, MD
Good food, terrible service. Early on a Sunday night and not crowded. Front of the house service was comically bad. It took 15 minutes to order a drink and another 15 minutes to get them. The food came surprisingly fast and was tasty. Upon completing our meal, we sat with our dirty dishes and empty cups for a good 20 minutes while overhearing them tell another table that they were short of glasses and couldn’t bring them another drink.
Place rating: 5
Bellevue, WA
Great Indian/​Pakistan food. Loved it. Tried the vegetarian food as well as their meat. Everything was great!
Place rating: 5
Newbury Park, CA
WOW! This place is awesome! We are visiting DC from Portland OR. Off the beaten path. Wonderful food and service!!! Allister, the waiter was incredible! Definitely go to Cusbàh!
Place rating: 5
Washington, DC
Nice food and service here :)
My first time with my friends, and we never try south asian food before but here was so great :)
Place rating: 5
Portland, OR
This place has quickly become my favorite restaurant in DC for Indian/​Pakistani food (aka «South Asian» food as the sign outside says). They have lovely cocktails — try the boozy mango lassie one! The bar tenders and servers are all super nice and the food is divine. I personally prefer the tomato based dishes (i.e chicken tikka masala or the dal/​lentil makhani cooked «medium».) Medium has a bit of a kick to it, but if you love things spicy, you can get your dish «authentic» style. The neighborhood is fun, funky, a tad hipster and just a little gritty. Reminds me a lot of DC’s version of Portland, OR or maybe even parts of Brooklyn. You get the picture. If you are in the mood for a bit of fun bar hopping, come early, put your name in and saddle up to the bar. Enjoy a cardamom infused whiskey drink as you salivate at all the amazing dishes coming out of the kitchen.
Place rating: 4
Washington, DC
Walked in at 7:30pm and there was no wait. Score!
Here’s what we ordered for 2:
Roti: mediocre, order the naan instead
Achar: delicious
Palak Paneer: Tasty and not too heavy
Shrimp Curry: order it extra spicy if you want an actual kick. the «authentic» was child’s play
and a bottle of what they call «Namaste»
makes for a rainy day in DC
Place rating: 5
MELROSE, PA
The only Indian good I’ll touch! Amazing food, great service. I travel from Philly just to eat here!
Place rating: 3
Brooklyn, NY
I used to come to this place when the first opened. It was AMAZING! The bartenders were friendly and so were the waiters. The last time I ordered I could tell the difference in service. The bartender must be the owner because he could care less if you have a glass of wine or while you wait. I waited on my food for 30 minutes. I asked for an update on my food 3 times. This is unacceptable. I used to love this place! The original people knew my order that is how often I came here. No more!
The food is good but the service is HORRIBLE!
I then spoke to said bartender who is the manager and he was rather condescending. I am a business owner in the area and would NEVER speak to a patron in this manner.
**** update ***
My order was WRONG!!!
The young lady was very apologetic
I had a candid conversation with the manager Niko and he apologized for not offering me water or anything. He was cool and was cool. Service redeemed!
I will need to come when they are not crowded.
My order came and was STILL wrong!
The folks in the back need to do better!
This is unacceptable!!!
Stars we low because of the folks in the back!
Niko is cool. I will keep my service here but the cooks need some help!
Place rating: 5
Washington, DC
I’m a big fan of this place. Whenever I’m coming home from work this if my go to place — the staff remembers me, the dishes are delicious, and the drinks are reviving. As a devotee of South Asian cuisine I’ve really been impressed with this place. The korma is some of the best you’ll ever have (especially the lamb) while the palak paneer is a gift that keeps on giving (buttery, a little sweet, a little nutty, and just delicately balanced. If you can save any leftovers, put it on your eggs the next morning). The pakora is amazing, one of my favorite foods ever, and the Sikh kebabs are dope too. Oh yeah, don’t miss on the naan either, the Kashmiri naan is a treat worthy of being eaten all by itself. And if you’re into sweets the gulab jamon, kulfi, and kheer are all on par.
I like bringing friend here — the décor is warm, there’s a beautiful white marble bar, and a patio to people watch from. The staff is attentive and have an attention to detail — I’ve never had bad service here. And the options are generous. All told, every time I go it feels like a feast.
Place rating: 4
Washington, DC
Love this place
Place rating: 1
Washington, DC
Called in a take out order to this restaurant the lady said that they did not have the H Street sampler. So, I waited 20 minutes then walk down to the restaurant.
As soon as I walked in the gentleman behind the bar ask me can I help you. I asked him did they have take out he said yes he just looked at me he never handed me a menu. His attitude was deplorable maybe I was not the right skin color to be accepted at this restaurant. Anyway that does not matter I’m ordering takeout but I will let you know how the food is hopefully it’s better than the people’s attitudes that work here.
Place rating: 3
Penn Quarter, Washington, DC
My BF and I went to eat here on a Sunday evening. It was pretty quiet, not crowded, no wait. It’s rather small on the inside first floor.
The service was decent. However the server seemed to have a lot of tasks. With being the bartender and waiter. Getting our check after dinner was a little delayed, but nothing worth making a fuss over.
Our food came pretty fast. We got the H street bread basket, definitely more than enough bread for 2 people. We had a lot leftover. The naan with the nuts was delicious! It wasn’t hard or grainy.
I had the Mixed Grill dish. I felt it was a decent amount of food for $ 20. Which came with rice and salad. The meats were cooked perfectly and seasoned well.
I thought the salad was missing something, very bland. I didn’t care for the Riata sauce that came with my meal either.
All in all, decent experience, food, and price. Not a must-​have.
I would visit again if in the area.
Place rating: 4
Washington, DC
Surprisingly good. Why is that a surprise? I don’t know… kind of looks dinky from the outside. But on the inside it’s this small, hip restaurant and the food was GREAT. I got the chicken tikka kabob (tandoori), and my husband got lamb akbarai korma and the kashmir naan. I LOVED my chicken – large, high-​quality chunks of boneless meat, impeccably spiced, with a big salad on the side (lettuce, cucumber, tomato). The only disappointment was the raita, which just tasted a little off. The naan didn’t have the puffiness I love in naan, but was the best-​tasting I think I’ve ever had. And the lamb korma’s sauce was dreamy. So, really good food.
Also: nice portions, nice music in the background, and – from the looks of the meals on tables around us – nice lunch plates.
Place rating: 5
Arlington, VA
Cusbah has been an H Street staple of mine for several months now. I’ve never been to India, but I have been to Pakistan, and I can say by Islamabad standards, the food is legit. The staff is super friendly, but I’m biased because I always sit at the bar. Nico (the General Manager) and Dawn (his back-​up other) are always there with a smile and great service. I must admit, at this point, I don’t even order off the menu, I just give them a description of my day and they do the rest. I invite more people to do that — the chef is a master, you can’t get subcontinent food like this in most of DC, and they know what they are doing.
Also, for all those working stiffs like me in the capital, they do take-​out and delivery. Trust — some paneer to your door at the end of a long day is a fresh maker.
Place rating: 4
Miami, FL
I was gladly introduced to this place on my recent visit to DC and couldn’t be happier.
The ambiance is relaxed and inviting, staff is friendly, prices are very reasonable .
I tried their veggie samosas, naan bread, shrimp curry and it was delish! So much so that I’m still craving it today! If u are in the DC area I highly recommend u try this place.
Place rating: 4
Washington, DC
I scoured Unilocal for a good new place for delivery… and I figured… why not a place on H that I hadn’t tried? Cusbah was the winner!
I ordered the Goat Vindaloo (authentic) and vegetable pakoras, with the plan of saving half for lunch tomorrow. If you don’t like very spicy food, don’t order the «authentic“rating. For me, I loved it, so it was all good!
I only gave 4 stars because I haven’t been for sit down service yet. Based off tonight’s meal, I’ll make it happen soon!
Place rating: 5
Miami, FL
Celebrated my birthday at this restaurant during my visit in DC. Its not a big place but didn’t feel cramped at all. They also have an outdoor seating that wrapped around the bar. Great for people watching at this busy corner location. Indoor dining had tasteful rustic décor with dim lighting from the cool light fixtures.
Loved the beer selections and house specialty cocktails. We tried the Silk Road
(Bombay Sapphire, St. Germain, freshly muddled cucumber, lavender lemon
simple syrup, and fresh lemon juice). So refreshing and potent so we had about couple of rounds or so :) I left the entrée selections to my friends cause although I’m a big fan of Pakistani food, I’m not familiar with the names of the dishes. All I can say that they were deliciously spicy & hot… just the way I like it! I expected authentic hot and this place didn’t kid around. Our server was very attentive as well. Will definitely pay a visit again.
Place rating: 4
Washington, DC
Any place that has biryani is usually a winner in my book, especially if I can get it with lamb or goat. Brownie points for you already, Cusbah!
However as far as garlic naan, not the best I’ve had but it’ll do.
The place isn’t big and can accommodate ~20−25 people inside.
FYI: On the spice meter medium is mild and authentic is hawt.
Place rating: 5
Washington, DC
I didn’t have high hopes for this place based on the reviews— so maybe that’s why I ended up being really impressed!
We ordered the H appetizer platter to share and hands down I loved the tikka masala kati roll the best. It was super flavorful and I only wish it was a bigger portion. I asked for extra spicy and they gave me a side of vindaloo which was indeed SPICY. I loved it and asked for it to go and the bartender laughed b/​c I guess not most people do that! :)
Anyway, we also ordered the mango mojito and silk road which we both enjoyed drinking sitting in the outside patio. Great atmosphere with friendly staff– will def be back!
Place rating: 4
Hyattsville, MD
On our walk along to the H St. Country Club, we stopped here for a quick dinner (Nick was completely sold by the turret!). We ate outside in their patio area which was great for people watching and chic vibe, despite the seats being completely uncomfortable.
However, for me, it’s more about the food — which we greatly enjoyed. I got the Chicken Tikka with garlic naan. Despite it’s BRIGHT orange color (seriously WHAT are you putting in that?!), it was DELICIOUS — with a great spice level and bursting flavor. The garlic naan came out hot and was light and fluffy — just the way it should be.
Nick ordered the Palak Paneer — which is some weird cheese dish. He had had it before this and said it was great in comparison, but I couldn’t get past the NEON green color and mushy texture. His only regret was not choosing the «authentic» spice level (which is what I ordered with my meal). Finally, he Baingan Bhurta — I didn’t try it, but again, it got his highest recommendation.
Friendly wait staff + great food + ambiance = a win! Try it.