Profile

The fragrance that rises from Jhinuk's plain rice pilau belies its name: Perfumed with jasmine and cinnamon, swollen with plump golden raisins and laced through with julienned carrots, cardamom pods, and green chili, it's about as far from Uncle Ben's as you can find on this side of the Atlantic. This restaurant, fluorescent-lit and crowded with men eating and chatting, feels like it's been airlifted from another continent, with ambient sounds of Pakistani television, music and conversation swirling around the room. Nevermind the Styrofoam and plastic dishware. An aromatic vegetable samosa, seasoned with peanuts, opens the way to the entrees that surpass similar dishes on Sixth Street. The palak paneer is a buttery yet delicate spinach dish, with cheese, onion and hot red peppers, and tandoori red snapper has a fresh, concentrated flavor, layered with fresh vegetables, lemon and parsley. For the adventurous, breakfast brings halwa, a buttery, nutty porridge, as well as the rather intimidating paya (boiled, spiced goat feet) and liver-heart-kidney mix cooked with onions and tomatoes. — Helen Zelon

Even the dessert is an experience: there's pudding and, for a more adult treat, there are tobacco-like paan leaves to chew.

Vegetable samosa, $1; tandoori fish, $10; palak paneer, $3