Great Afghani Food and Classy Atmosphere
We go regularly to the Afghani restaurants in Sunnyvale, and I think Afghani House is the top pick for ambience and elegance. The food is traditional and consistently excellent, although there are no seasonal specials. White walls are decorated with Afghani textiles and artifacts; partitioning walls with arched openings provide more display space for the restaurant's lovely collection of smaller objects, and also serve to break up the space into more imtimate sections. Even at its most crowded, Afghani House is quiet--something about the clean white linens, the deep red carpet, and the tasteful decor gives it an air of serenity.

In the winter especially, diners will want to try the aush, an aromatic vegetable, noodle and yogurt soup. The sambosas, crisp-fried turnovers filled with beef, are also excellent as appetizers. Fans of Indian or Persian food might wish to begin with a pakawra dish (pakoras), the battered and fried vegetables familiar from Indian restaurants.

The small green salad served before the entree is just a mix of the usual iceberg lettuce and bits of cucumber and so on--but it has a delicious dressing, light but creamy, with a sprinkling of finely powdered dill.

I am always torn between one of the succulent lamb kabob entrees (top quality, though the chef tends to cook a smidge more well done than I'd prefer) and the two dumpling dishes. Mantu, steamed dumplings filled with onion and beef, are a bit more zesty than the leek and scallion Aushak; both are served with a mix of stewed vegetables, green beans, tomato, turnip and the like.

If you are new to Afghani food: get the lamb. Any of the lamb kabob dishes will give a taste of this restaurant's fine touch with the traditional, lightly-spiced grilling that is the most famous aspect of Afghani cuisine. Not a fan of lamb? The menu still has plenty to offer; there are a host of kabobs and dinners, as well as three combination plates.

The vegetable accompaniment is probably the only place where Afghani House *could* improve at all. Entrees are preceded by a fairly small green salad, and served with a surfeit of rice and delicious aromatic Afghani bread--but the stewed vegetables tend to err on the plain, overcooked side. The grilled vegetables accompanying kabobs are good, but not necessarily generous compared to the large portions of rice. There are plenty of side dishes available, though, and these help to vary flavors a bit. For vegetarian diners there are a number of traditional vegetable selections, but I would also order a side dish, or the vegetarian platter, to get a taste of several dishes.

An absolute must: "buranee-e-kadu," a simple but intriguing dish of butternut squash served with yogurt sauce and an optional spicy meat sauce. The combination of flavors may seem strange to anyone unfamiliar with Afghani food, but I always press this dish on anyone we bring... it's fantastic. It's an excellent choice for a side dish, the right size to be shared by two people. Gulpi (caulifower with tomato and ginger) or Katchalu (potatoes cooked with tomato, onions, cilantro and garlic) are the other more interesting selections among the "usual suspects" of side vegetables.

I highly recommend the spice tea, which is a lovely light black tea with cardamom. If you like it strong, you may want to tell them so; the choi here is served light enough to drink without sugar. Desserts include a good baghlava, a lovely firnee (a light custard served with slivers of pistachio and almonds), and goush-e-feel, a fried pastry with sugar, cardamom, and pistachios.

I have never experienced anything less than top-notch food and service at this restaurant, and have been a loyal patron for years. This is the sort of place where the waiters notice your half-empty water glass before you do... and although the prices reflect the usual for a Silicon Valley restaurant of this type, the quality of food, atmosphere and service combine for a top-notch dining experience worthy of San Francisco's finer establishments.    [29 Jan 2004 01:58:34]

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Recommended Dishes: buranee-e-kadu, aush, kabob-e-chupan, kabob-e-dupiaza, kabob-e-gousfand, mantu, aushak

     ­Caredhel   

Afghan food and kids
I went to Afghani house with my daughters - 2 & 4. It would be a formal place at dinner, but at lunch it was just right. They got to learn about eating with style, and Afghan food. Unlike many Afghan places this had some curry dishes so my four year old was happy, and of course my two year old loved the kabobs. I would recommend this over any other Afghan place in town.    [03 Nov 2005 00:58:47]

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     ­Happy Dad   

Atrocious customer service
The restaurant came highly recommended by a friend and our first impressions on entering was good. However, customer service was non-existent and made for a horrible experience overall. Firstly, we called at 8:15pm to make reservations for 9pm. The gentleman who answered the phone told us that it was on a walk-in basis. We got to the restaurant just before 9pm and waited for a good 5 minutes before any of the staff acknowledged us. Finally, a gentleman told us that we would have to wait 10-15 minutes for a table. So we waited patiently, upon receiving our table, it was another 5 minutes before anyone came to check on us. Our server, came to our table and initially she was distracted by other guests as she was tending to our order. When we asked her about recommendations, she was very vague and unwilling to help out. In fact, she told us that we needed to place our dinner orders right away as the kitchen was closing. She wasn't interested in getting us appetizers or drinks to begin with. If the kitchen were to close, then the gentleman on the phone could have let us know then so we would not bother driving out there or he could have let us know while we stood and waited for our table. Not once during our dinner, did anyone come to refill our water glasses or to see if we required anything else. This kind of customer service is not acceptable and I certainly will be weary of recommending this place to family, friends and coworkers.    [04 Jun 2006 14:18:52]

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     ­Anonymous