Indian fare with flair in Jersey City

Originally appeared in the Star Ledger on Star-Ledger

Mango featured on Amiya menu in drinks, appetizers and more

Friday, November 10, 2006

BY S.J. GINTZLER

EATING OUT

A classy restaurant located on the ground floor of a corporate building in Jersey City's booming financial district, Amiya claims to serve "contemporary" North Indian cuisine.

The two-year-old eatery actually offers polished presentations of traditional fare, mixed with just a handful of updated dishes. But that worked for us.

Ambiance: Sleek and smart. The Eastern influence is implied: Oversized tasseled lanterns hang from high ceilings and gossamer curtains cloak floor-to-ceiling windows. An elaborate candelabra and recorded music add the final flourish.

Staff: Kind and accommodat ing, though somewhat overwhelmed by the full house on a recent weekend. Service improved as the crowd thinned out.

Food: The restaurant's namesake ingredient -- amiya is Hindi for "green mango" -- is mixed into both drinks and dishes, including a mango spritzer (with rum, mango juice, orange juice and Sprite) and crab cakes topped with a mango salsa (a starter, $8.95). Entrees and ap petizers are expertly executed and attractively presented.

Crisp, house-made pappadam (lentil crackers) came with sweet/tangy tamarind and feisty mint chutneys. The Amiya tandoori starter platter ($16.95) was a showy assortment of skewered, smoked minced lamb seasoned with coriander, ginger and garlic; zesty chili-rubbed tandoori shrimp; succulent yogurt-marinated chicken smoked in the tandoor, and fish tikka -- fleshy, flaky white fish marinated in minced spinach and spices. Vegetable samosas ($4.95), two fried pastries filled with assertively seasoned cubed potatoes and peas, were delicious. So was the tangy-sweet mango shrimp ($8.95; $17.95, entree), a stew of jumbo prawns and thinly sliced mango in a suitably fruity sauce.

A basket of three breads ($8.95) -- garlic naan, paratha pudina (whole wheat with fresh mint) and kulcha (stuffed with chickpeas and potatoes) comple mented entrees.

Sarson saag paneer ($10.95), a fiery blend of creamy, rib-sticking mustard greens and mild cubed cheese, ruled. A lavish lamb bi ryani ($13.95) mingled aromatic, slow-cooked basmati rice with tender cubed meat and sliced hard-boiled egg. Shrimp kadai ($17.95) -- a mildly spicy melange of jumbos, chopped peppers and onion stewed in a thick red chili sauce -- was particularly toothsome. Our meal was tempered by cooling swigs of India's King Fisher beer ($5; $8).

If you choose only one dessert, make it kulfi ($4.45), kitchen- made pistachio ice cream topped with a tousle of orange-tinted vermicelli. Now that's what we call a contemporary combo.

Food:

***

Ambience: ***

Service: ** 1/2

Overall: ***