Rasa, a fast-casual Indian restaurant based in D.C., is coming to Arlington with a new location in Crystal City.
“Rasa National Landing,” is expected to open at 2200 Crystal Drive this coming spring, near the existing Sweetgreen and Chick-fil-A restaurants. The row of restaurants is popular with the lunchtime office crowd, which these days includes employees of Amazon’s growing HQ2.
The location will mirror Rasa’s D.C. location’s colorful interior with basket swing seats, bookshelves stocked with South Asian authors, and paintings from local artist Nandita Madan, the company said in a press release.
The bowl-based menu will also stay the same, featuring popular dishes such as “Tikka Chance of Me” with chicken, pickled onions, and toasted cumin yogurt, along with “Caul Me Maybe” made with cauliflower, peanut sesame sauce, and lemon turmeric rice.
Owners Rahul Vinod and Sahil Rahmam, who have long worked as a duo, have introduced one more to their team: Washington Redskins tight end Vernon Davis, who is now an investor and brand ambassador.
“Once I tried the food, I immediately fell in love,” said Davis in a press release. “I loved Sahil and Rahul’s energy and passion. I could tell they were driven to succeed and most importantly their humility was few and far between.”
Rahman and Vinod opened Rasa in December 2017 in D.C.’s Navy Yard area, with the goal of making Indian cuisine more accessible, at a $10 price point. Davis, who also attended Dunbar High School in D.C., also owns several area Jamba Juice franchises.
Rasa also recently announced a second D.C. location, in the Mt. Vernon Triangle neighborhood.