The young man who greeted us and showed us to the lunch buffet at Curry Mantra, a new Indian restaurant, seemed genuinely interested in making sure my lunch guest and I were pleased with the food.

Unfortunately, we weren’t. With the exception of a spicy lentil soup, everything was quite modest and mundane. And even worse, much of it was tepid or, like the mixed pakora, downright cold.

The naan was flimsy. There were no containers other than soup bowls for the chutneys. And the items on the buffet weren’t all identifiable. Those that were had makeshift placards that looked cheesy.

And compared to the selections at other local Indian restaurants, Curry Mantra’s was pretty paltry.

But like I said, seemingly earnest people who attentively kept our glasses filled and offered to remove plates.

I hope they get things straightened out. Perhaps if they visit some other local restaurants to see what standards need to achieve. They might want to start at Southern Spice.

Until then, however, I cannot recommend Curry Mantra.

Curry Mantra is at 6127 Westwood Blvd., Orlando. It is open for lunch and dinner daily. The phone number is 407-233-4636.