Mantra-Jersey City,NJ, Jersey City

The chefs at Mantra are known for their creative takes on Indian cuisine—including chaat, or snack food, garnished with tender lobster meat and their careful, Indian-inspired cooking leaves its mark on the menu’s traditional entrees. "Each ingredient seemed to have bathed for just the right number of hours in its yogurt marinade; each was precisely cooked; and each carried a heady overtone of spices," a New York Times food writer recalled of a tandoori dish in 2008. In contrast to these subtle flavors, Mantra’s presentation often has theatrical flair; chefs chop chaat dishes table-side and set a banana flambé dessert ablaze with rum.