MyWorldReviews.com

Ariana Afghan Restaurant

New York, New York, United States

Ariana is an Afghan restaurant located on 9th Avenue in New York City. It's a pretty small restaurant, with a very personable waiter. I got the impression that the waiter was also the owner. He was very friendly with everyone who came into the restaurant, and he knew many of his customers by name. He encouraged us to come back. I get the impression that if we came back again, he would start to call us by name, too.

Although I've never been to Afghanistan, I thought the restaurant had a bit of a foreign feel - it was decorated with lots of red carpets. The food tasted pretty similar to Mediterranean food.

Dress

Very casual

Cost

I felt that the restaurant was a bit more expensive than it should have been. The food was all pretty reasonable, but there wasn't much to it. Ninth Avenue is usually known for more affordable restaurants. Ariana wasn't expensive, but for what we received, I thought it should have been cheaper.

Service

The waiter/owner was very social. He was never offensive, and never unnecessarily interrupted our meal - he was just friendly and conversational.

Reservations

Probably not needed - I don't know if they accept them or not.

Items Ordered

Bread

Most of the entrees come included with with bread. Since we ordered four entrees, we received four pieces of bread. The bread wasn't anything special - it was thicker than a pita, but similar in texture.

Spinach Samusa

Afghan homemade dumpling filled with steamed fresh spinach, Afghan cheese and other spices, served with yogurt.

The spinach samusa was similar to a greek spanakopita, except that it had a fried outer doughy shell like a perogi. We all thought they were ok, but not that great. There were four of them included in this appetizer.

Chicken Shish Kebab

Boneless chicken marinated on grated seasonings broiled with onion and peppers, served with brown rice and salad.

The chicken shish kebab was a pretty typical chicken shish kebab. I liked how they removed all the pieces of meat from the stick so we didn't have to fight with it. It came with some rice, salad, and a couple grilled veggies. I really liked the salad dressing.

Lamb Shish Kebab

Chunks of tender leg of lamb marinated on grated seasonings broiled with onion and peppers, served with brown rice and salad.

The lamb kebab was similar to the chicken kebab, except it had lamb. The lamb was quite good - it was more tender than the chicken, and probably a bit more flavorful, as well. The inner part of the onion wasn't grilled for long enough, so it was still very spicy.

Potato Curry

Served with brown basmati rice, salad, and bread

The potato curry was more like a potato that had been baked in a spiced tomato sauce than a typical Indian curry. I was a bit disappointed in it - it wasn't what I have come to expect as a good curry. It was served with rice and salad.

Pumpkin Curry

Served with brown basmati rice, salad, and bread

The pumpkin curry was like the potato curry, but with pumpkin. I'm not sure if it was actually pumpkin, or some other gourd-type vegetable. I thought this curry was slightly tastier than the potato curry. The pumpkin or squash is similar to a sweet potato.