India Sweets & Spices — Restaurant in Los Angeles

This review may be a little long but I can't help it. :-)

India Sweets & Spices is absolutely the best. It deserves more than 5 stars with the totally incredible staff, goods and restaurant. One side of the store has the supermarket, the other side is the restaurant. While the decor of the place is simple and food is very affordable, the consistently excellent service and attitude of the staff  towards the customers is that of a fine dining restaurant. India Sweets & Spices constantly have a flow of tourists, locals and people of all backgrounds flowing in and out of their establishiment. They also support charities by allowing them to showcase their cause in the store and selling items which provide funding. The most recent empowering under-priviledged women in rural India. Sanisa / Chaakri Roasted Crispies.

Throughout the last  few years I have been going there for Indian groceries, fresh vegetables and fruit (their fresh spinach and mangoes are the best for some reason ), as well as Indian gourmet products. They also carry gourmet European goods as well. The restaurant serves vegetarian food with both North and South Indian dishes. The best Chai! The sweets are to die for. I do not know who the chefs are in the back, all I know is that everything is delicious and very much like my grandmother's cooking. It is a win, win each time I go there.

As for the staff, I can not say enough about them. From the manager (or one of the owners, I am not sure)...anyway, I call him Uncle (an Indian custom to show respect), who is incredible all the years I have been going there.. One time I had gotten a few groceries then ordered some chai and samosa to eat there, I was not feeling well, he himself went to the restaurant side and placed the chai and food on a tray for me to take to a table.

Then there is (not sure of correct spellings of names), Sachin who works all over the store who helps me with everything with a smile on his face and never says no to any customer. He makes sure you leave with what you were looking for a perfect substitute and happy. Mekha, always with a beautiful smile  to everyone and makes sure I am comfortable when eating in the restaurant area. Lovely Jameeta always makes sure the dishes she serves me are not spicy due to my not being able to eat too much pepper. The others whose names I do not know are of similar dispositions. The entire staff are exemplary and  "sincerely" and "genuinely" kind to everyone and go out of their way to make their customers happy, Thumbs up to the brilliant person who hired them .

Throughout the years I have been going to India Sweets and Spices I have observed very commendable things by the staff which deserves mention: One time there was an old man outside of the store asking for some water, I was going to buy him a water. Sachin and Mekha on their own gave him cold water and samosa but would not take my money. Another time,  this mentally unbalanced man came in the restaurant side, he started to argue with one of the male customers. Mekha and Jameeta noticed they stepped between the customer and mentally unbalanced man telling him to leave the customer alone and to please leave the store. Now, these 2 women are petite. I was surprised and impressed at their bravery while looking out for the customer. Then Sachin came to escort the unbalanced man out.

As of recently, I take my laptop and sit in the restaurant side, drink chai, eat samosas and get some work done. The other day, Uncle and Sachin handed out delicious samples of Indian rice pudding made by the chef. My kind of day at the office.

Ending my long winded review ;-), if you want to spend your money in an establishment that sincerely provides excellent service to their customers and are in support of the community. This...

Everyone at this store is extremely helpful and kind. My wife and I had the pleasure of working with Sachin leading up to our wedding at the end of July. We are regulars at the store and on one of our grocery trips we spoke with Sachin if knew anyone who could help us with supplies for our Mehndi and wedding ceremony at the temple. To our surprise Sachin disclosed that he can take care of anything we need, including the more difficult things that was on the list given to us by the priest at the temple. Sachin was there every step of the way and making time for us with any questions or concerns. Not only was he able to get all the supplies we need, him along with every staff was able to provide catering for our Mehndi ready to go early in the morning. They took the time to start their day earlier for us and cook a massive amount of food fresh for us. We cannot express the gratitude we have for Sachin and all staff for making our celebration easier by not only having a one stop shop for all the supplies, delicious fresh food, but also creating a friendship that would last a lifetime. Sachin opened his arms and invited my wife and I into his life and we cannot be thankful enough, feel free to reach out to me if you have any questions about the perfect process we experienced with Sachin and India...

Love this place! The owners are so super friendly. It really gives you the neighborhood vibe, they know you by first name. You can basically get all you need for groceries and spices. Great variety of Indian spices, vegetables, pickles, and chutneys. They have a good frozen section with pre-made stuff as well as tofu, yogurt, paneer, rotis, snacks. They have a warm food bar, the prices are beyond reasonable and a real bang of for your buck! $5.30 with tax for two curries and a rice, idk where you get a better deal than that! They generally always have, aloo tikki, super spicy but very delicious, samosa, paneer kabob, and a desert, my fave (halva on Saturdays. Also on Saturdays they have Malia kofta which is not very spicy, vegan with coconut milk and just delish! We go here regularly for groceries, toilet paper, spices, and almost anything else you could need. They even have great gifts, clothing, god statues, incenses, cooking utensils, pots and pans, plates and cups. It’s an...