The Island Spice

Wasnt impressed with the décor of the place. But the owner and family truly put alot of love into the food. Everything was really good. Quality of food was above average. I hope they are successful and can make a living here. Its a great asset to A.M.I. God Bless

This place is pretty good. I got the Chicken Tikka spicy. It was excellent. Also, I had a bite of the Coconut Curry Chicken, which was excellent as well. If you want something different and tasty in the island, check it out!

This place is fantastic! Came in on a Monday for a late lunch and ordered off the regular menu (they have a lunch special section from 11−3pm). First– I had the mint cooler which is fresh mint and lemon– sort of a lemonade. I liked it but it could have been a tiny bit less sweet.
Ordered Channa saag which is chickpeas in a spicy spinach sauce made to a level of spice that you request. It was very good! Definitely recommend it.
Also had garlic naan, which was really really good but only four pieces of bread (like quarters of a naan piece) wasn’t enough to share– wish we knew.
Everything was fresh and it looked like it was made to order, including the naan. The staff was very gracious and accommodating, and overall it was a great experience.

Wonderful people and fantastic food, it authentic and worth checking out. I had the Chicken Tikka Combo and everything was delicious, I also highly recommend the Samosas (best I’ve ever had). Great seafood options and lots of choices on the menu, it’s 100% worth checking out.

Awesome Indian food! Perfectly seasoned! We seek out Indian food wherever we go and this is among the best.

Great place. Great food. Very nice proprietor. My wife and I look forward to our return next winter when this place will become a regular spot for our dining plans. On this visit, my wife had the Chicken Saag (chicken curry with spinach). She is VERY sensitive to spicy foods and the proprietor assured her that her food would be prepared accordingly and it was. I had the Mango Ginger Chicken Curry, prepared medium spicy and it was that and more. Both dishes were outstanding. Be sure to order Naan (special bread) with your order. Although both of us travel much and eat out at diverse cultural offererings, we are the least confident about ordering Indian food. It was so good to be carefully guided through the menu and assisted on making our choices. Hopefully, the Island Spice becomes a mainstay on AMI. Give it a try.

Delicious food, fresh & healthy, great flavor & spice, reasonable prices, and friendly service — what more do you need? Everything was truly delicious: samosas, masala dosa (huge!!), butter chicken with a mango chutney side order, and the mint lemon refresher. Looking forward to next time!

A must if you are an Indian food lover. We tried it for lunch and went back again for dinner. Tikka anything is excellent and the chef will do a special dish for your tastes, if needed.

The fifth star is absent only because the restaurant is small, in an older building and in an unremarkable location. That being said, this is some of the best South Asian food I have ever had, and having lived in India, I can say I have had much to compare it with. The owner is the host and server and all the food is fresh, hot, and prepared to your requirements. They are also creative, offering fresh fish cooked in a variety of Indian ways. Not sure what you want? Just ask your server and he will guide you through the menu. You can have your dish served to any level, mild to very spicy. There is an excellent selection of Indian beers. If you want to eat at home, they will fix it up for take out.
This is another of those places on Anna Maria Island where you should not judge the contents by the package.

You will not be disappointed. This is our 3^rd time in AMI in the past 2 years. We go here every time if we won’t some flavor able food. Get the usual Indian and then try their specials it’s amazing. Owners is very nice and will make sure you leave satisfied.

We had a Vegan friend come into town for a long weekend. She wanted to go to the beach so of course we had to take her to our favorite one, Anna Maria Island. Another huge reason we decided on Anna Maria was so we could eat at this restaurant. I’ve had it book marked for a while and this was a perfect chance to check it out. The outside of this small restaurant is colorful and quirky. The inside is plain and simple. Not a lot of ambiance but that was not what we were there for… it was late afternoon and we were ready to eat. We were greeted and seated right away by a lovely man. I am new to Indian food so with a little help from my out of town friend and the lovely man who waited on us… our table was able to choose new foods to eat. We started with Pinot for the ladies, a very tasty Indian beer for the gentleman and Mango Lassi for the teens. The Mango Lassi was perfect! Two kid thumbs up! Drinks were quickly followed by the best Samosas I’ve ever eaten. They were large and arrived hot out of the oven! The outside pastry was light and flaky and the inside was stuffed with perfectly cooked potatoes that had the best flavor. The Samosas came with two dipping sauces. One was coconut milk based and the other tasted as if it was made from raisins… both were delicious. We also shared an order of the garlic naan… just…yum! My Vegan friend ordered the veggie stuffed Dosa which is a crêpe made from rice and lentils and was stuffed with veggies. Never eating dosa, I sampled and it was delicious! The crêpe was light and the stuffing was amazing. I will definitely order this for myself next time. My friend said that it was right up there and rivaled any dosa she’s eaten in New York City (she lives in the Indian neighborhood in Manhattan so that says something) I ordered Chicken Vandiloo with basmati rice and went with the waiter’s recommendation and opted for the medium spice. I love hot and was afraid that it wouldn’t be hot enough. Our waiter cautioned that they go Indian hot which is different than Thai hot and he was right, my dish had the perfect amount of heat! Thank you lovely man! The hubs ordered the Indian Non-​Veg Combo (available during lunch only) which included spinach and home made cheese, garbanzo beans with onion and tomato based gravy, chicken tikka masala, raitha, naan and basmati rice, my son’s friend went with the Veggie Combo that included all the same things as the Non-​Veg combo did except instead of chicken tikka masala it had dry red potatoes and cauliflower. Both combo eaters raved about the food and left nothing on their plates. My son the non-​adventurous eater had the classic turkey club… yawn…all jokes aside it was legit and he ate the whole thing. The only bummer to the entire experience is that this restaurant is not in my neighborhood. Oh well I guess I’ll have to take more trips to the beach… darn.

Best food on the island! The service is a little slow but friendly and worth the wait. A nice change after a lot of seafood and bar food. Yum!

A pleasant dining surprise in the midst of cheap tiki tiki bars. It’s an oasis, say some.

Real and true Authentic Indian Food. The restaurant its self is also authentic!!! You must stop and have a bite when visiting Anna Maria Island!!!

If you are looking for something new to try with robust flavor check out Island Spice. The Food is delicious and very authentic tasting. You must dry the dosa, it’s fun experience and good for appetizer sharing. The chicken tikka masala is very good. We had a medium spice and it was pretty spicy, but a good spicy! The special was shrimp mankani and the shrimp were huge and very fresh tasting. Cooked to perfection! We will definitely be back!

You know when places say «authentic» you kinda of get nervous because it never is…
This place is LEGIT! Man, what a great surprise. The food was fantastic!
If you like Indian food — this is your go to!

An Anna Maria Island gem. I’ve driven past this restaurant hundreds of times but it wasn’t until I was looking through Unilocal to find an Indian restaurant that I found it– and so close to home. The place is very, very clean. I was impressed with how tidy it is. The food is delicious. The portions are huge. I was able to take some of my meal home for lunch the next day. We all had lamb in different sauces and all were so tasty. Cute restaurant with attentive staff. I truly enjoyed it and hope others will too.

Clean, intimate dinning. The owner was helpful with suggestions. I choose the Mango-​Ginger curry chicken. I asked for the spiciness to be medium. It was served with rice and It was delicious. The owner gave me a small cup of minted lemonade and it was a wonderful treat on a hot day. A large selection on entrees for dinner priced from $ 14 & up. I wish they had a larger selection for lunch items priced at $ 10 and under.
I will dine here again and encourage others to also.

Island Spice is a new addition to the cuisine available on Anna Maria Island. The location they have has seen many different places come and go through it, but I hope this one stays put! It was excellent! A wonderful blend of spice and sweet results in delicious entrees! We had the Channa Masala, Lamb Curry, and Chicken Curry. They ask for whether you prefer mild, medium, or hot. We went with the hot for all three, we like things pretty spicy. And they did not disappoint! No extra spice needed, nice punch of heat. If you are not one for spicy, go for mild. We loved all three and would definitely go again. And there is still leftovers too! It’s nice to finally have a great Indian place in the area!

Yummmmm. We moved to the area about 1.5 years ago from NYC and have been craving good Indian food for about as long. I had read about The Island Spice in Edible Sarasota and kept it in mind for the next time we ventured out to AMI. Today was the day! Our 2-​yo had been begging us to go to the beach ever since watching the Daniel Tiger episode where he goes to Jungle Beach. So we played in the sand a bit at Coquina Beach, went to the playground, watched the gorgeous sunset and headed to the restaurant. We started with the butter-​potato dosa – a huge crêpe served with lentil soup on the side (we dipped the dosa in it. So delicious). My husband ordered the lamb vindaloo – medium (they can adjust the heat to your liking) and I got the butter chicken curry, medium. Ummm, it’s a good thing we got mango lassis because our mouths were on fire!
The flavors were great – rich and complex. Portions were perfect. Presentation was simple but nice. I enjoyed the heat but was surprised at what they considered to be «medium» lol. My husband was sweating bullets and his face was red. I don’t think it was sunburn! But the two grandmothers at the table next to us ordered their dishes very mild and they seemed very happy with their meals, so note that they really can accommodate your needs.
Speaking of, they offer American food for the kiddos! Grilled cheese, chicken fingers and fries, hot dog, etc. so if you have kids that aren’t culinary adventurers yet, Island Spice has something for them too. The only thing I worry about is that we went shortly after sunset on a Saturday night and it wasn’t busy at all. So please go! We finally found an Indian restaurant that is on par with or better than many in Curry Hill and we want to make sure it stays in business!