Mela Indian Restaurant

Recommends

riechers

Joined 6 years ago

Excellent Indian food in an charming atmosphere. The food is authentic and tasty, the service attentive and the decor is great. I've been here with groups twice and though the space is a bit small, they always work to accommodate us.

Doesn't Recommend

wils8840

Joined 6 years ago

Great food, not so great space.. Really great Indian food, and I love Indian food. Our party had a veggie dish, 2 chicken dishes, and a lamb dish - all excellent. Our problem was the space. They have tried to cram too many tables into a very small space. The gentleman behind me (at a different table) and I kept bumping elbows, friends on the other side of our table had to watch that her hair didn't hang over the table behind her and into their food. It was very uncomfortable. Also adding to the cramped feeling was the fact that they had about 2 waiters for each table, and with too many tables - that equals too many waiters. They were litterally bumping into each other.

Recommends

rl727

Joined 6 years ago

Warm service, great food. A long-overdue addition to the neighborhood. Everyone on the staff, from management to hosts to wait staff, is very friendly, willing to help, and welcoming. The menu has a lot of variety, and the food--including the breads--is delicious with a clean and crisp taste. The lunch buffet is inexpensive, and is a good place for a quick or leisurely meal. It is conducive to business meals as well. At night the atmosphere is festive, without the extent of noise so common in other new restaurants. We had experienced some minor service glitches when it first opened, but we sensed that that was attributable only to some staff inexperience, and not to attitude. Our friends and we have adopted this as our neighborhood restaurant, and are delighted.

Recommends

westendfoodie

Joined 6 years ago

Amazing Indian Food!!!!. The place is wonderful! The wait-staff are attentive and friendly. The food is simply delicious. I was so impressed with the dinner that I returned for the lunch buffet - SUPERB! The food is as authentic as you can get. Not greasy, not gross - but heavenly Indian cuisine. The dal is amazing, as are the lassi and tandoori dishes. We tried the mixed tandoori grill - wow! Succulent shrimp, lamb and salmon all grilled to perfection! The garlic naan is the best we have tasted. Rich and flaky with just an amazing amount of garlic! Finger licking goodness!

The first reviewer is out of his mind. Is there a rule against Arabic music? What if they played hip-hop or R&B or blue-grass, would that be a problem? This is a MODERN Indian restaurant - they can play whatever they want! I walk into a modern Chinese restaurant and they place dance music. Who the heck cares! It's the food and service that patrons come in for and it's wonderful! I will go back again and again unless they start raising their prices and cutting their portions like most other South End eateries do. Then that's when they fail and leave.

Doesn't Recommend

missythang

Joined 6 years ago

Beautiful decor, decent food, awful service.. As an american-born south-asian I have yet to find an indian restaurant in Boston that holds a candle to the authentic cuisine of my mother's kitchen. I thought Mela might offer a bright light of hope. Whatever light it held was extinguished immediately. The decor is beautiful but the arabic music bothered me. Why wouldn't you play indian music in an indian restaurant??? However, the music didn't sour our trip. It was the service.

Our waiter barely spoke English and didn't understand my Hindi (I had to explain the problem with our appetizer 3 times before he got a waitress who could understand me), we were served the wrong appetizer, we didn't get one of our orders and were charged for it, and the mango creme brulee was simply god awful (it tasted mroe like frozen sweet scrambled eggs).

On the plus side, their Machali (fish) Tikka and one of the Bindhi (okra) dishes were wonderful. My mother was even impressed by the quality of food but still pointed out that the non-indian patrons in the restaurant were given more attentive care than us. At the end of the night, I vowed to never return to Mela and after some explaining to the manager, the offending charges were taken off our bill.

Recommends

kmehta1

Joined 6 years ago

Friendly Service, Nicely decorated, Great Location but Average Vegetarian Food. I compliment the decor and the service is wonderful. If you want the best Indian vegetarian food however, Mela has some work to do. Given all the fine attributes and high price point expectations are high however....the black dal has no taste and the curries are bland. If Mela brings in a decent chef the place has all the attributes to be sucessful.

Recommends

hockiemack

Joined 7 years ago

Best Indian Food. When it comes to Indian food outside of the home Mela is the best I've had to date. J.A.M. and I went on a busy Friday night, waiting about 50 minutes for our table. We both thought the wait was worth it. Our appetizers and entrees were flavorable without being overwhelmening. The food came out quickly too. I loved the decor, and our server was polished, extremely polite and attentive. The only bad thing about the night was that I forgot to take my leftovers when leaving.

Recommends

swhooper

Joined 10 years ago

Friendly Indian Food. Mela ranks high on my list of South-end favorites after only one visit. The wait staff was prompt and friendly. Upon walking in, I was encouraged to see that about 30% of the patrons were themselves Indian - a good sign of the authenticity of the food. The wait wasn't too bad on a Friday, but I'm guessing that as this place becomes discovered, that will change. They also do carry out, which we intend to try at some point. The prices are a little higher than you'd expect, but it's on Tremont St and the food is worth the price.