Hidden in plain sight along the Downtown Mall, Lazeez Modern Indian Flair provides a calm, slick, and sophisticated retreat against the usual throngs of people during lunch and dinner hours—open daily from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and again from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. What it may lack when it comes to flair, it more than compensates with quiet confidence—and what it is is a casual Indian restaurant with classic cuisine, tandoori, and a modern look and feel which is more “city wine bar” than takeout. Wooden paneling, wine bottles lining an entire wall, and smooth house music are enough to cleanse Lazeez of any tackiness and imbue it with a very modern and warm ambience.
I went along with another member of the writing staff, Seraphine Lam, and we were placed by the open window section right away, where we got to enjoy the ambience and atmosphere of the mall around us. As an appetizer, we shared the Chaz Fry Oyster ($9), which consisted of buttermilk-marinated oysters of the White City variety fried to a crunchy light and served alongside a remoulade sauce infused with peppers. The crunch on the fried oysters had to be admired, not having the density and fattiness of most fried foods but more of a fragile, shattering sensation with each mouthful. Meanwhile, the oysters themselves were yielding and packed full of seawater flavor, and the remoulade sauce offered a warm, pleasant aftertaste.
Moving on to the main course, we decided to share it family-style. First to arrive was the Chicken Tikka Masala ($18), which came billed as chicken bits topped with sautéed onions and peppers and finished with a “luxurious gravy”—and, if anything, the description did not do it justice. The gravy is rich and creamy, and the peppers and onions add a burst of flavor to prevent it from feeling too rich. The best part is that it is completely gluten-free, which was a blessing to Seraphine, who has to follow such dietary restrictions.
We also ordered the Braised Lamb Rogan Josh ($20) to share which featured slow-braised Australian lamb leg cooked with robust spices, and, not surprisingly, is also gluten-free. The lamb literally fell apart at the tender touch of a fork, and it offered rich, nuanced flavors of cardamom, chilies, and cloves, which developed incrementally, rather than simultaneously. This is the kind of dish which gives you license to actually take the time to pay attention to it, noticing first the warmth, then the burn, and finally a drying, smoky sensation. With individual servings of rice ($3 each), each component of each sauce had the opportunity to take center stage. Despite the somewhat plain presentation, the portion sizes proved to be deceptively filling. After working our way through the dishes, we were stuffed.
I just couldn’t pass up on the garlic naan, either, which came out to $5 and proved to have an incredibly plentiful serving size. While the naan featured a light garlickiness and a nice, charred crunch on the edges, it also managed to avoid becoming too greasy or damp. Removing bits of it and using it to swoop up the tikka masala and rogan josh sauce is best described as not so much an appetizer but more of an integrated part of the meal. Meals came out on cooled clay plates, which, although a very minor detail, provided a surprising contrast to the warm dishes. As for drink, we opted to stick with the cold bottled water offered by the restaurant—simple, chic, and very much on-label. These bottles, which we were free to take with us when we left, were another element of Lazeez which supported the modern utilitarian aesthetic of the restaurant.
While Lazeez did not have enough patrons to go along with the number of tables, the feeling of emptiness actually quite supported the already comfortable atmosphere in the restaurant. The soft music, dim but not dark lighting, and visibility of the mall beyond the windows gave it an oasis sensation. Lazeez may not yet be as old or as frequented as some of the more established Downtown Charlottesville eateries, but it certainly doesn’t act like it’s trying to keep up with the times. Instead, it provides well-thought-out, gluten-conscious, and classic fare, served up generously and presented with a sleek, updated sensibility and aesthetic that is well-suited to either an extended lunch or an unstructured dinner. This is a spot which could very easily establish itself as a “let’s grab dinner in town” destination—a hidden gem on what often feels, to say the least, a somewhat commercialized Downtown Mall.
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