Mantra is an Indian restaurant in Katy, across from Einstein's Pub.
My husband is British and was hankering for something from home so we decided to give Mantra a shot. We weren't in the mood to eat in so we got a take-away.
There's a menu on their website. We ordered the Chicken Chat to start. It was BRILLIANT. Absolutely wonderful - so full of flavor. For our main course we had Chicken Tikka Masala (of course! - you can always gauge a place by how good its CTM is!) and that too was very good. It wasn't as flavorful as what we are used to from back home, but it was good in a pinch and worth every penny we paid for it. The Chicken Tikka Masala was accompanied by their plain Basmati Rice which was beautiful - I liked the shaved almond on top especially. We also had Naan bread and they gave us Poppadoms and some dipping sauces to go with. The Poppadoms were so flavorful but the Naans were a bit soggy. Not bad though.
There was so much food that it lasted us 2 nights. I didn't hear my husband complaining!! It was just as good on the second night. It was especially nice to get a second meal out of it because the cost was so high - $47.00 to pick-up. If we'd eaten in we would have had drinks and tip which would have driven it up to $60 or more, depending on what drinks we had. Even so, it was very worth the cost - especially if you're craving something from home (England / India).
The service over the phone was very polite and despite my fears, we had no trouble understanding each other. Actually I think the guy was British or British-Indian. Sometimes when you call ethnic restaurants you have a terrible time making the order, but not the case with Mantra. When I went in to pick up the other I was very surprised to see white table linen over all the tables, candles, and a piano player sitting at a baby grand. All of the wait staff were in white shirts and black slacks and the women were in beautiful blue and purple saris. The people I came in contact with we very nice. I paid by VISA.
While I was inside I noticed a buffet off to one side. I bet they have a lunch buffet which is probably fantastic.
This is not the kind of place my husband and I can make a habit, unfortunately. It just costs too much for that. But if you want a special meal or you're really in the mood, I cant speak more highly of Mantra. They have excellent food and its worth the expense. We will be going back for sure.
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