Spice Mantra

“Had an amazing experience at Spice Mantra! The food was absolutely delicious with authentic flavors and beautifully presented dishes. Every bite was full of rich spices and tasted fresh. The ambiance was warm and inviting, making it a perfect spot for dinner with friends or family. The staff was friendly, attentive, and made sure we had a great dining experience. Definitely a place I would come back to again. Highly recommend if you’re looking for great Indian food in New York! 🌟🍽️”

“I visited this restaurant today and absolutely loved the experience. The ambiance, seating area, and overall vibe were wonderful, and the staff was incredibly welcoming. A special mention to Pratik at the front—he was extremely kind and guided us so well, which made our visit even more pleasant. We ordered the Malai Kofta, which was rich, flavorful, and absolutely delicious. The butter naan was perfectly soft and paired beautifully with the dish. To end the meal, we were served rice pudding (kheer), and oh my goodness—it was amazing! I’m quite selective when it comes to food, and this place truly impressed me. I will definitely be visiting again 🦋”

“TL;DR Version- Good Indian place with a particularly good lunch special. Open for a few years now, Spice Manta is a pretty popular Indian restaurant serving above-average fare. From what I can tell online, I believe the place is halal, but I'm not positive. The service was friendly both times, and the place is medium-sized with a casual atmosphere. I have been here twice, once for dinner and once for their excellent lunch special, which is notable as this has now become one of the few Indian places in the area with an actual lunch special, with many spots closing and the fancier Chola no longer having a buffet. As for my other meal here, I honestly don't remember much about the dinner we had. This is very rare as I tend to remember most meals I've had, but I can't give any details. The special is very reasonably priced, especially for Midtown East, and comes with your choice of entree, rice, bread, and dal, which reminds me more of Indian places from several years ago, as well as the various spots that are Indian or from the surrounding areas frequented by taxi drivers, which offer similar specials but are of worse quality. The price depends on the protein, ranging from $11.95 for vegetables to $16.95 for shrimp, with a $14.95 option for lamb in between. While the menu has a few less common dishes, including some from southern India, the specials mostly focus on the standard British curries you find at most NYC spots, or rather, Portuguese curries if it's vindaloo. I went with the Lamb Roganjosh (or rogan josh,) which was tasty. It was a pretty standard version with pretty tender lamb and a mild masala. The portion was pretty generous for lunch, with many pieces of lamb. Along with a pretty solid version of the daily dal, which was basically the same Dal Makhani as on the vegetarian menu, it was flavorful and filling. This was especially true when combined with the naan and rice. As for said naan, it was fresh and standard. I also tried someone else's Chicken Madras, which was tasty, with the protein tasting a bit better. Next time, I would probably get the Mattar Paneer or some chicken dish. This is a pretty standard Indian place that is notable for their outstanding lunch special. In terms of dinner quality, I prefer to pay for the much better Chola, which has a much more varied menu and better proteins and curries, but comparing these places is a bit unfair, as the latter spot is much more expensive. If you're looking for a good Indian lunch special and are in this area, I would highly recommend this place.”

“The malai kofta was good, but not quite great. The koftas were soft and fresh, and the creamy gravy had a pleasant texture. However, the sauce leaned a bit too sweet for my taste and lacked the rich, balanced spices that make this dish truly memorable. The portion size was reasonable, and the presentation was nice, but the overall flavor didn’t stand out. It was enjoyable enough, just not something I’d go out of my way to order again.”

“Impressive portion for lunch @ $14, included some roti which isn’t in my photo! Overall the food was alright - dal was way over salted which made me not finish it but the saag paneer was not too heavy & rice and roti were well made! I would go back, potentially ask for something other than the dal though bc I ended up not really being able to handle the saltiness”