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| - Given Sana's cheap sign and tacky décor, you wouldn't necessarily expect quality food from this halal, Punjabi/Pakistani restaurant. But when I first arrived at Sana the feeling that I struck gold hit as soon as I looked around and noticed the place bustling with other Indian people. Indians who would choose to eat out over eating at home?? Dang, this place must be good.
Sana was recommended to me by "Bob," a Pakistani green grocer who's a bit of a legend on the city's Parc Avenue. Basically, locals know to trust his wise opinion, me included. When I go out for Indian, my expectations are usually low because the best Indian food is home-cooked. For a cuisine that is traditionally healthy and flavorful, even the recommended Indian restaurants are often junk food style'y, cutting corners wherever they can i.e.) substituting oil for butter, reducing cooking time, sacrificing flavor for portion size, etc. But Sana is home-cookery at its best: simple recipes, made with fresh ingredients.
The pakoras and samosas have the right ratio of potato to herbs and spice. I always get the dahl - perfect for sharing. The saag-paneer is the bomb - I recommend having it with naan rather than rice. The naan isn't as quite pillowy-thick and chewy as it often is elsewhere, so you're able to eat more of it without getting full too fast. I usually don't do butter chicken but Sana's is cooked just right. The only dish I don't love is the biryani - it's a tad bit on the bland side. Order a side of raiita (yogurt with cucumber) to cleanse the palette. The mango lassi's good; the chai tea isn't robust enough (but that may be a regional way of brewing it), and the gulab juman and barfi dessert are yummy town if you don't mind embracing cavities!
People complain about the service, but I come here for an awesome meal under $10, not affection. If anything, the lack of care from the staff is kind of entertaining because it seems unintentional rather than deliberately rude.
After having tried all the other listed Indian restaurants in the city, Sana is the only one I would recommend, and I recommend it highly.
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