TS Recommendation: if you want to feel like you're living the fabulous SF lifestyle, but can't be bothered to make the drive, throw your wallet to the wind and linger here over delicious eats with friends or a lover. (Tip: Dress up, so you're in the frame of mind for a schmancy meal.)
This is what my brother would call a "big plate, small food" restaurant, so maybe walking in famished wasn't the best approach. As Ace and I were heading to our table, we were passed by a waiter carrying a 15 inch-diameter white plate with a single stalk of asparagus in it. I smirked at the poor sucker who ordered that one. The menu lists a scallop appetiser that sounded delicious, but, credit to them, at least they alert you to the fact that the dish contains all of two scallops.
Other menu thoughts: I hate to use the term "tries too hard," because, after all, don't we want our fancy pants restaurants to try really hard to impress us? I guess I just found menu items such as "Paneer Cuboid" to sound a little silly. Cuboid?
Ace was impressed with their flatware, which felt very substantial and actually had a nice but functional curve to it.
I had the "Mantra," ($10) which is their house martini. Absolut Citron and pear schnapps of some kind, with a sugar rim. Maybe the pear softened the Citron but I couldn't really taste it. I was looking for something special and different, but it was kind of a plain drink.
Looking to maximize food per dollar, we started off by sharing an order of "Lamb Naan" ($4) and of "Dal" ($6). I was thoroughly impressed by the Dal: it immediately transported me to a certain vegetarian restaurant in Little India in Singapore (shout out to Komala Vila's!). The Lamb Naan was weird, it was regular naan with kind of a ground lamb patty baked into it. Tasty on its own - but too mild to break through the dal flavor, if you intended it for a dipper, as we did.
I was skeptical of the "Roasted Summer Vegetable Timbale" ($16), a stack of zucchini, eggplant and cottage cheese (everything on the menu seems to come with cottage cheese - it's a pleasant, plain cheese with the soft, crumbly texture of blue cheese) but it was DELICIOUS. Ace kept leaving his "Roulade of Chicken with Chili Peaches" ($19) to bum tastes. (His was good - smooth and full-flavored, slightly sweet.) The timbale was also very pretty, as Ace points out in the picture.
Downside is the the pool of oil that remained. Geesh. Did they figure we wouldn't get full otherwise?
To my surprise and satisfaction, we did not leave hungry.
Other reviews of this place wax enthusiastic about the friendliness of service. Our guy just gave the impression of being new to the job, which was indeed disarming, but made me feel like the restaurant management was a little amateur. It was like they were struggling to reconcile hoity-toity with chummy friendliness. (They need to take the staff to Quattro at the Four Seasons. The food there is okay, but nobody does service - impeccable, attentive, and yes, friendly - like the Four Seasons.)
Maybe they were just short staffed at 10 pm on a Friday night (ahem). Drinks had Ace and me wondering whether we'd been forgotten. And this was the view from the throne.
Nam sayin'?
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Useful details: Kitchen closes at 11:00. Good to know when you're looking for dinner at 10 pm on a Friday Night in Palo Alto. (I KNOW, right?) Other late night spots in PA include Madison & Fifth (really great for higher end), Plutos (really great for lower end), and Pizza My Heart (you know what, sometimes you just want a slice).
Bottom line: If you want to spend a lot of money on scrumptious, rich Indian food - go to Amber India in Mountain View. If you want to spend a lot of money and want an excuse to dress up and want to feel totally hip, and also have a delicious semi-Indian meal - go to Mantra. I'd definitely go here for a workplace-subsidised interview lunch or similar.
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