Spicy Mina

Enjoy some quiet dinner conversation in a homey setting.

Quiet and homey, on the evening I visited, because our table of six were the only customers, if you discounted two teenage girls who settled in to do their schoolwork. Though a subway exit is across the avenue, Spicy Mina seems isolated from much walk-in business; marching to that same drummer, the service is attentive enough but better described as unhurried.

All the appetizers — vegetable pakoras, the goat-and-lentil stew called halim, and a yogurt-drenched samosa chat — were excellent; the egg-and-meat-stuffed mughlai paratha was very substantial. The achar gosht, with goat, was very good in small bites, though the saltiness of the mango pickle was intense; the spinach-and-cheese dish called palak panir was also quite salty. Of the lentil-based vegetarian dishes, the dal fry was overshadowed by the more flavorful aam dal (enhanced but not overwhelmed by that mango, is my guess). A whole fish with mustard was very good; so was boti kebab with chicken (beef, would you believe, was unavailable that evening). A bowl of thin rice pudding set a few overtaxed bellies at ease.

Shown below: samosa chat ($4.95); mughlai paratha ($4.50); halim ($4.95); vegetable pakoras ($4.50); aam dal ($8.95); dal fry ($8.95); palak panir ($9.95); achar gosht ($14.95).

Spicy Mina
64-23 Broadway (at 65th St.), Woodside, Queens
718-205-2340

Comments

[Eric R.]

I must say that I have been enjoying Spicy Mina since it opened. Still, any dish can be somewhat unpredictable - very much as if you were dining at the home of some wonderful home cook. I raise this because I have never had the Palak Paneer ever be anything than terrific - bright green and deep spinach flavor. So, consistency can be an issue.