Food and drink in Brigham Circle, the strip of neighborhood between Mission Hill and the Longwood medical area, is marked by ho-hum Chinese restaurants, pizza shops, and liquor stores whose offerings help fill the bellies of nearby college students. But some promising places have recently popped up, including Flames II (the original is in Mattapan).

This West Indian spot sets up its food in steam tables, and it’s often tough to tell what’s what. One weekday at lunch, a mother and her college-age daughter looked blankly at the phalanx of dishes before them. A server pointed out stewed chicken, tripe and beans, and curried goat. Mother and daughter glanced at each other and made a break for the door.

If they had stayed and tried the rich oxtail stew with rice and peas ($5/small), they might have developed a soft spot for West Indian food. Maybe one of the daughter’s classmates will drag her in for a snack, like the buttery, spicy Jamaican beef patty ($1.50), washed down with sweet, homemade ginger juice ($3). Some adventurous Sunday morning, she could try the Jamaican breakfast of akee and saltfish with green bananas and boiled dumplings ($6), a mix of mild and savory flavors she’d never find at IHOP.

A faux palm tree stretches to the ceiling in the center of the bright room that’s filled with a flow of reggae and the chatter of staff and customers. Flames II is a neighborhood oasis amid the surrounding mix of dull dining choices.

Flames II, located at 746 Huntington Avenue, in Boston, is open daily, from 8 am to 11 pm. Call 617.734.1911.