Himanshu Sharma opened Indian Summer at a tough location, but the strength of the setting and his spicy food have provided a soft landing.

It''s fascinating to observe the restaurant industry. So often restaurants will attempt to energize a location that would otherwise be considered risky. Confident restaurateurs believe they will somehow be different and create a happening scene at a spot that previously may have been home to flop after flop.

Local perception about a location can also be a contributing factor. Places that were hot 15 or 20 years ago do not necessarily retain their cachet. Social climates change. The clientele grows older and stops going out. Old establishments close and new contenders fill the empty spaces. Usually, a tough location is a tough location.

Indian Summer is in a tough location. Located behind the DoubleTree Hotel in beautiful downtown Monterey, Indian Summer inhabits the space formerly occupied by Triples. Although Indian Summer''s design is beautiful, it has a number of obstacles to overcome that are indigenous to the site.

Much of the restaurant''s seating is outdoors in a beautiful garden setting. Unfortunately, because our weather is what it is, outdoor seating in Monterey is not very productive. It looks good, but only on certain days can one comfortably sit and dine al fresco.

Also, there is no access to Indian Summer by the usual means: driving. Assuming one does actually know where it is, one would have to park somewhere near the DoubleTree, then negotiate the rest of the way on foot. For out-of-towners, the possibility of finding a joint decreases in direct proportion to how far away it is from the visitors'' downtown lodgings.

Finally, there is already a much more highly visible Indian restaurant no more than a Tiger Woods three-wood away. So what were these folks thinking when they decided to buck the odds and try to make a go of it?

With those and other thoughts flowing into and out of my consciousness, Chickie Boom and I met two friends, Chuckie and Zelda, for a meal at this courageous little Indian eatery.

Old and New Times

We were arriving separately, so we figured we''d meet at Peter B''s for cocktails, since it is so close to Indian Summer. After catching up on old and new times, we headed over to what we were hoping would be an enjoyable evening of heavy duty, flavor-packed Indian food.

Exotic-sounding dishes like aloo bharwan, jhinga tamatari, paneer makhanwala, gobhi manpasand and dal bukhara makhani mingled with the magnificent artifacts and décor of the place, transporting us into a mysterious and ancient world. Indian music, frenetically driven by those great rhythms, had me tapping my fingers and psyching up for flavorful fare. The only glitch in the scenario was that the front-of-the-house staff was Mexican, not Indian. However, we let the fantasy rule out anyway.

Indian Summer has a full bar to go along with a few wines, beers--including the wonderful Kingfisher--and, of course, fascinating non-alcoholic drinks like lassi (a yogurt shake that comes in three variations), jal jeera (an herbal aperitif mildly flavored with cumin seeds and mint leaves) and nimbu pani (an Indian version of lemonade). We went for the Kingfisher, along with a decadent dark rum and mango lassi, which was good but a bit too filling to accompany the hearty food.

Sure enough, the chef buffed us out with a monster platter of appetizers that contained everything from tandoor chicken and lamb to shrimp and salmon. Everything was done up with huge flavors, rich and exotic. Unless you eat Indian food all the time, the spices can be somewhat overwhelming, but way cool. Everything was lovely, especially the little lamb chops, which were nicely charred and tender. We also ordered up a couple of baskets of naan breads, garlic-butter and stuffed. They were scrumptious (and filling).

By the time we had completed the first course, we were feeling pretty full--at least the ladies were. Chuckie and I were trudging along at a steady pace. We decided to get three dishes for our entrees and share them. We went with rarha gosht (boneless chunks of lamb cooked in a minced meat sauce) and rogan josh (a spicy lamb delicacy from the Himalayas cooked in whole spices). We also ordered an eggplant dish, the name of which has escaped me.

We told our waiter to tell the chef not to hold back the spiciness and make it like he would for Indian people.

Along with beautiful Basmati rice (one of the world''s great treats), the three complexly flavored and rich dishes pushed us over the threshold into our own private Indian retreat. This restaurant really does a nice job with lamb. The spicy one was fiery, but unlike the fieriest Thai food, it was more richly spiced than incendiary. This is not food for the faint of heart. However, for anyone who likes interesting flavors, this place is a winner.

Against our better judgment (what''s that?), we ordered one dessert, a rice pudding topped with ground pistachios. It had a distinctive, completely unique flavor. We each took a turn at it with half of us liking it and the other half not. Either way, it was well prepared.

This is a beautiful restaurant. The décor is so stunning and the gardens so wonderful that it would be a shame if Indian Summer didn''t get enough business to carry on its delicious business. I''d like to see the owners convert the garden into a happening outdoor bar scene (there is a perfect spot in the back to erect a bar). With a lot of space heaters and fireplaces, a good sound system with cool music and an ass-kicking bar staff, it could become the coolest place on the Peninsula.

Indian Summer is located at 220 Olivier (Behind the DoubleTree Hotel at the Sensory Garden) in Monterey and is open for lunch Tuesday-Sunday from 11:30am-2pm and for dinner from Tuesday-Friday from 5-9pm. For reservations or more info, call 372-4744.