To me, a bistro is just a small restaurant with pretensions. If the pretension is that the restaurant has the best Indian food I’ve ever eaten, then Mint Indian Bistro rises above any pretensions and can call itself anything it wishes. I was there for a weekday lunch, which is a buffet at $9.99 per person. No kidding, I’ve had Indian food in quite a few cities, including Stamford in the UK, but Mint served up the best ever. Not to sound too much like a mid-century general, but I shall return.

Mint includes a pretty wide selection of vegan friendly dishes, which I guess is reasonable given that a large number of Indians eat no meat. However, a meat lover need not fear starvation because the buffet also features some standard Indian meat dishes. My personal preference in food generally incorporates anything that is edible, so I started with the vegan selections and worked my way along to the bone-in goat at the start of the “meaty” end of the counter. My first choice was Mix Vegetable Pakoda, which turned out to be spiced wonderfully. I moved on to Basmati Rice and Peas Pulav. It was the first time I’d every tasted Peas Pulav, which is basically baby peas in rice, but I’ll certainly get more if it’s available on my next visit.

Besides the bone-in goat, which was delicious, I also tried Vegetarian Korma, Chicken Tandoori, and something that was a lot like standard chicken fingers, but more delicately prepared and more thinly sliced. This last dish is not listed on Mint’s online buffet menu, so I’m afraid I shall have to leave it nameless. But it was very tasty. For dessert, Mint offers hot and cold selections, but by the time I got that far I only had room left for some fresh fruit. Maybe next time I’ll remember to leave room to taste the Khir or Gajar Halwa.

On weekends and holidays the buffet is $2.00 more, but they add additional items. Mint serves a wide variety of entrees at dinner at prices that seem to range from $8.99 to $17.99, but most things seem to cost right around $12.00, more or less. Technically, I can’t say anything about the dinners, but if the lunch cook is that good, the dinners have to be outstanding.

Mint is new, and Mint is worth checking out. It’s on the North side of Flamingo, just West of Palos Verdes.