From The New Orleans Menu Daily By Tom Fitzmorris Revised August 2009 India 4 U Indian. Mandeville: 1703 N Causeway Blvd . 985-626-5657. Map. Lunch and dinner seven days. Casual. AE DC DS MC V www.indiafood4u.com   WHY IT'S ESSENTIAL   The only Indian restaurant on the North Shore, and one of only five in the entire New Orleans area, India 4 U inevitably attracts anyone with a taste for the incomparable cuisine of the subcontinent. Its menu is larger than most, with a wider range of ingredients--goat, for example. At the same time, it includes a few dishes designed to grab the uninitiated. Would you believe an Indian spinach dip?   WHY IT'S GOOD   The range of flavors in Indian cooking is matched by few cuisines in the world. The original masters of spices, Indian chefs make dishes bursting with flavor and complexity. India 4 U surveys the range reasonably well, using good ingredients and cooking everything on the dinner menu to order. The food is served from a cart, and place atop candle-fired warmers to keep it vivid throughout the meal. (Indian food is best eaten as Chinese food is: several entrees circulate around the table, and every person gets a variety.)   BACKSTORY   Akarsh Kolaprath opened not one but two North Shore locations of India 4 U in 2007. The well-hidden Covington restaurant closed after a few months, but the more visible Mandeville place struggles on, trying to woo local Indians away from their own home cooking and persuade Northshorinians to try these big-time distinctive flavors. Akarsh has the drive, though; he instituted an annual Indian Festival this year, with a band and dancing and food.   DINING ROOM   A pleasant, dark dining room is walled with what look like gigantic, polished boulders. Most of the tables are in booths; two very long tables are in the center, often hosting enough people to fill them. (Indians like to dine with many others.) The video screens around the room show the amazingly choreographed Bollywood productions, which can rivet your attention to the striking good looks of the actors and actresses. Ignore signs at the entrance that tell of the bands that appear on the weekend, when the place becomes a kind of Indian nightclub.   ESSENTIAL DISHES   Samosas (vegetable- or lamb-stuffed turnovers). Pakoras (vegetable fritters). Saffron chicken (an almost French dish, rich with cream). Tandoori chicken. Seenk kebab (a lamb sausage roasted in the tandoor). Tandoori salmon (wild-caught, served on a sizzling platter). Kashmiri jhinga (shrimp in a spicy sauce of coconut milk and tomato). Biryani (a mostly-rice dish, available with chicken, lamb, seafood, or vegetables). Lamb rogan josh (a spicy curry). Chicken tikka masala (the classic curry). Butter chicken. Malabar, Madras, or Korma curries (different flavors all, with a choice of meats). Naan (tandoori-baked bread). Garlic or onion naan.   FOR BEST RESULTS   If you haven't already, get past the two widespread misapprehensions about Indian cooking: a) that it all tastes like curry powder (almost none of it does), and b) that it's all highly spiced (you may specify how hot you want it). Problem: Indian food is a very hard sell on the North Shore. Don't be distressed if, on a weeknight, the dining room is sparse. If you order the goat, know that it is served on the bone and is not the easiest thing to eat.   OPPORTUNITIES FOR IMPROVEMENT   As in Indian restaurants the world over, the desserts are terrible. Go out for ice cream afterwards.   FACTORS OTHER THAN FOOD   Up to three points, positive or negative, for these characteristics. Absence of points denotes average performance in the matter. Dining Environment +1 Consistency +1 Service +1 Value +2 Attitude +2 Wine and Bar Hipness Local Color -3   SPECIAL ATTRIBUTES    Open Sunday lunch and dinner Open Monday lunch and dinner Open most holidays Vegetarian dishes Unusually large servings Quick, good meal Easy, nearby parking Reservations honored promptly Click here for an index to current reviews of the 200 Essential Restaurants, and others. Click here for an index to current reviews of the 200 Essential Restaurants, and others. © 2009 Tom Fitzmorris. All rights reserved. news@nomenu.com.