I have been to both and thought Shanik was amazing. Not quite the same "hole in the wall" feel that Vij's has, but a feel all it's own. And while the lamb popsicles were the clear highlight at Vij's, they were just one of many amazing dishes at Shanik. Dare I say it's better? Let the hailstorm begin...

I don't remember Vij's well enough to say better or worse than Shanik (I typically go to Rangoli because you can get a seat). I just know I was underwhelmed, which is typical when I have too many items ("bites"). And the location, in the middle of Amazontown, isn't that much fun.

I'm going back next month so we'll see.

PS - there's a private room you can reserve.

I went to Shanik a few weeks ago and it was a big disappointment. Very weird vibe and service and the food itself is a huge letdown. Had the Brussels sprouts (textures and flavors just thrown on the plate without rhyme or reason, sprouts overcooked and mushy), beef tenderloin (cooked well but one-dimensional flavor, sauce very thin) and chicken (too charred on the outside, again one-dimensional and with a thin, watery sauce.) Even the naan was not great: doughy, flat and without char marks, really seemed more like chapati cooked on a skillet (makes sense after reading Bethany's explanation but WTF they call it naan?)

It could have been one night off but reading reviews online doesn’t seem like my experience is that uncommon.

And to contrast the experience to another modern twist on ethnic food, last week I visited the relaunched Joule. In-your-face and surprising flavors and textures, unusual ingredient combinations, well priced considering portion size and a casual and professional service. It felt like a well oiled creative machine which is what Shanik should be, but currently is miles away from.

I went to Vij's once and was disappointed. Not by the food, though -- by the time we'd waited for two hours in near-fainting hunger, we were so exhausted and famished and overwhelmed by the crowd and noise that we just couldn't enjoy ourselves. I'm sure the food was good, but but we just couldn't tell any more.

On the other hand, Vij's cookbook is excellent.

No, Bethany, I'm too poor these days to eat out. My big restaurant adventures now mostly involve hot dogs from the gas station.

They have a lunch pickup window. It's great to try it on the cheap.

I think popular places refuse to take reservations just to create buzz, but I for one refuse to fall for it.

No place - not Shanik, not Walrus & Carpenter, no place - is so good that they should demand that their customers stand in the cold wet Seattle weather waiting for the honor of giving them business.

If a restaurant so popular that they regularly have a waiting list for a table, they should offer reservations.

If I'm going to 'put my name on a list and check back in an hour' I'll end up 'waiting' at another bar or restaurant around the corner and having dinner there - which is what happened when I tried to eat at Walrus & Carpenter at 6pm and told they might have a spot for me around 10pm. By then I'd finished a fabulous meal at another Ballard restaurant instead of waiting cold, wet and hungry for the 'privilege' of saying I'd eaten at a place that clearly takes its customers for granted.

Apologies if I've missed this (I did a quick look, but not a research-project-look) but I would really love it if Bethany would cover SuperSteve's issue stated above. Why DO restaurants do that, aside from (likely) creating a buzz or (less likely) the joy of torturing customers? Does it cut down on their infrastructure/process costs somehow? How much does a reservation book cost, after all? Are there good and bad ways to take reservations? (Answer: YES. I hate calling a voicemail and then waiting hours, hoping I got the table).

I know it's not as fun as writing about food, but I would love to see you take your pen to this as it something this hungry Cornball has always wondered when waiting in line at Walrus for two hours...and vowing never to go back. But going back. Wait...is THAT why they do it? Thank you.

I went there on the first day, never been to Vij's. I did note the lighter sauces mentioned by others, but I enjoyed myself.

FWIW, I don't have a problem with places that don't take reservations, I just go wherever right when they open.

I've never waited more than 25 minutes in the line-up before opening at Vij's. (Have cut it too close a few times and ended up at West around the corner, not the worst consolation prize.) I think if you are there by 5:05 you are all but guaranteed to get in for the first seating.

I'd like to see some gas station hot dog reviews here.

Tired of the 'freezing Canadian winter' comments. As a regular traveller b/w the 2 cities I find the weather pretty much the same. Dined numerous time at Vij's, always great food. Looking forward to going to Shanik, suggest diners forgo the comparisons and just enjoy what they have to offer. They don't take reservations for a very good reason, if you don't want to wait then go early.

we make great palack paneer at home now and then we get these indian sauce things and throw them in the pressure cooker with some chicken and then make rice. we usually have to go buy the naan separate though. we get that at the restaurant that we get our paneer cheese at downtown.

Not taking reservations allows the place to fit more people in during the evening. When you have reservations, there will always be spaces of time when tables are not being used. No reservations means tables are used as soon as they are ready.

I am very happy that the no reservations system is becoming more popular among good restaurants (Walrus, Whale Wins, Canon, Cantinetta, Shanik, Vij's). My favorite restaurant in DC is a little hole in the wall that serves Ramen, Toki Underground. I was only in town for a limited time and never would have been able to get in if I had to book a reservation a great deal in advance. (They also had the brilliantly good sense to take your # and text you when your table was about to be ready.) 'No reservations' lowers the restaurant's cost, so that they can ostensibly pass the value on to the customer. It's basically a way for them to serve the same amount of tables in one night as they could if they operated in a bigger more expensive space. This rewards those who really want to go, versus those say they want to go, but are in reality offended that someone might ask that they wait their turn.

I have not yet been to Shanik, but am greatly looking forward to it, as I've been to Vij's a half dozen times. (Can anyone honestly say they've only been there once? Not if they've had the lamb popsicles.) I really admire Vikram Vij sticking to his guns on this. *Everyone* waits. John Legend was turned down one night when we were up there. Allegedly (according to Vikram Vij) Obama and the king of Saudi Arabia have both been told they would have to wait.

Go early. Put your name on the list. Go grab a drink somewhere else. Come back and enjoy some chai or drinks and apps while waiting a last little bit. OR, don't go. I don't care. That'll make it less of a wait for me.

My boyfriend and I went over the weekend, and it was underwhelming. I'm actually really sad to say it, because an Indian restaurant in the States that uses fresh ingredients and doesn't overload the dishes with grease and salt is a rare prize indeed, but Shanik's faults are too serious to ignore.

First, it's bad enough for Indian restaurants to serve meat but beef? How do they manage to recruit Indian cooks? Are they all Christian?

Second, the food was bland. Ridiculously bland. It's not just that there wasn't any heat, the spices were so subtle as to be unnoticeable. The strongest spiced item I had that night was the chai, and even that was relatively bland.

Third, the price point combined with the tiny portions and the bland food was really just too much.

My best guess for why Shanik gets above average reviews is that Seattlites really don't know good Indian food, not that that should surprise anyone.