A hidden gem of a movie theater in Midtown East is ImaginAsian: The venue regularly shows Bollywood and East Asian films, highlighting the works of both international and American filmmakers. It is an important space for even casual movie fans, as it ensures that anyone can get their Bollywood fix without having to travel out of Manhattan. The New York Sun takes a look at the latest film showing at ImaginAsian, and offers some suggestions on Asian eateries in the city.

DINNER

The current rage for Japanese ramen has assaulted the East Village and elsewhere, but an old standby on the East Side, Menchanko-Tei, also puts out a consistently delicious bowl of noodles. A solid recommendation for those trying out the restaurant for the first time is the original Menchanko bowl ($8.95), which features thick udon-like noodles (made in the restaurant), simmered in a soybased broth with shrimp, salmon balls, tofu, and rice cakes. The restaurant also offers small noodle bowls, including a hakata ramen ($4.50), made with a heady pork broth whose aroma can be uplifting for those fans of rich, wellmade meat stocks. Appetizers include maguro poki ($6.95), a simpler version of tuna tartare, seasoned with sesame oil and pine nuts (131 E. 45th St., between Third and Lexington avenues, 212-986-6805).

On the inside, Chennai Garden is a nondescript restaurant with plain wooden tables and a quiet atmosphere where waiters, dressed in casual business clothes, pass out plates of appetizers and beers. The plainness stops there: Chennai Garden serves some of the best and most authentic South Indian vegetarian food in the city — it is easily the best place to find vegetarian Indian cuisine in Manhattan. Start with appetizers of either iddly or vadai in sambar ($4.95): Iddlys are steamed rice cakes, and vadais are fried spicy doughnuts made from lentil flour. Both are doused in a thin lentil soup, and the combination of soft dough soaked with spicy soup is irresistible, even in hot weather. Staying on the spicy train, order a Mysore rava masala dosa ($8.95), an enormous rice and lentil flour crèpe filled with sautéed potatoes and served with chutneys and sambar. Don’t be turned off by the entrée’s size: The meal is filling, but the ingredients are light enough to keep you energized through a post-dinner film (129 E. 27th St., between Park and Lexington avenues, 212-689-1999).

MOVIES

Yukihiko Tsutsumi’s “Memories of Tomorrow” (“Ashita no kioku”) (2006) follows Saeki, a sales manager of an advertisement agency, as he turns 50. He finds himself becoming forgetful, and goes in for a precautionary checkup during which he is diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s disease. As he and his wife attempt to prepare for his daughter’s upcoming wedding, his memory slowly begins to diminish, and he struggles to keep healthy during his family’s happiest moments (Friday, 2, 4, 7, and 9:30 p.m., ImaginAsian Theater, 239 E. 59th St., between Second and Third avenues, 212-371-6682, $10 general, $7 students, seniors, and children).