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Among New York’s ethnic restaurants, upscale ambitions are rarely rewarded. Purists kvetch that old world flavors have been sacrificed, while luxury-lovers may experiment with these fancified feasts, then return to Western reliability. Yuva, which bills itself somewhat cryptically as a “Frontier Indian Grill,” makes a game effort to please all sensibilities. In a banquetted room as cozy and subdued as any midtown brasserie, owners Ramesh and Kedar Shah put forward highlights of the subcontinent, from Punjabi tandoori to Kerala-style fish curries. And when it comes to cocktails and appetizers, they achieve some striking flavors: the Yuva Masti, a mix of mango, vodka and Cointreau, stints neither on fruit nor on punch; a creamy-yet-crunchy crab cake sits on a bed of baby mung-bean salad; yogurt-slathered tandoori lamb chops are tender beyond imagination. Main courses, alas, fail to surprise—on this frontier, a curry is a curry is a curry. But with service this warm, earth tones so soothing, and cocktails so deftly mixed, you may find yourself hoping ambition is contagious. — Matt Gross

Golu crabs, $11; samundri bhent, $12; rack of lamb, $32