Bites Nearby: Royal Tangra Masala

You could stand on a corner and look around until a restaurant sign draws you in. But we've got a better idea. Each week, New Hyde Park Patch picks a great restaurant either in town or nearby that is worth checking out. Here's this week's choice:

Royal Tangra Masala

 Similar to the style of décor inside the Hillside Avenue eatery, the cuisine at Royal Tangra Masala is a unique mix of Chinese and Indian flavor accents.

“The food is very different than your regular Chinese,” says Owner Kenneth Chen of their specialty culinary union.

The pairing is best explained on their website as an incorporation of Chinese wok cooking with traditional Indian ingredients.

Plenty of Indian-spiced dishes featuring curries, spicy batters and sauces make the over seven-year-old restaurant a haven for fiery food lovers, but the mild price range is something that everyone can take a liking to.

While you will find familiar favorites on the menu like sesame chicken, sweet and sour chicken and General Tso’s chicken, you will also come across a number of selections that Chen describes as “Indian Chinese fusion.”

Start off your meal with crispy paneer cheese, masala-spiced French fries, spicy vegetable pakora fritters or aromatic-marinated chicken lollipops served lightly battered and fried. Chen recommends trying the momo or dumplings; steamed or pan fried, the Nepali snack comes filled with either chicken or vegetable.

Entrees include Chicken Royal Tangra Delight with shredded chicken cooked in a spicy ginger sauce, Tangra Masala chicken, beef/goat, fish or prawn made with a house blend of Indian spices, Manchurian chicken and Mongolian tofu.

Also offered is a full vegetarian menu as well as a number of noodle and rice dishes. And with American, Chinese and Tangra Masala chop suey to choose from, there is a different variety of the tasty mixture for each of the restaurant’s most represented countries.

Royal Tangra Masala’s lunch special is offered Tuesday through Friday with a concise menu made up of some of their most popular selections. All meals come served with choice of their popular sweet and sour soup, sweet corn or coconut soup and rice.

Takeout and party menus are available.

Royal Tangra Masala, 2207 Hillside Avenue, New Hyde Park, (516) 746-4898. Tuesday-Thursday, 12:00 p.m. - 10:30 p.m.; Friday, 12:00 p.m.- 11:30 p.m.; Saturday, 1:00 p.m.- 11;30 p.m.; Sunday, 1:00 p.m.- 10:30 p.m. http://royaltangramasala.com/.