Manhattan Desi Restaurants

Well, there are a plethora of them. Unfortunately, in the three days that we were in Manhattan, we could barely sample a handful of them.

Among all the places we ate 2 places stood out. Shaan of India and Chinese Mirch. Shaan is located on W 48th street between 5th and 6th Avenues. The ambience is refreshingly different - no gaudy Indian paintings and no silly bollywood numbers. The food was equally good too. We tried the buffet in the afternoon and it was great. I still blame the Vegetable Makhanvala for the couple of pounds I gained that day :) .

Chinese Mirch was another Indian place that we thoroughly enjoyed. Paavana was delighted to visit this restaurant caterting to the Indian-Chinese palate exclusively. The gobi manchurian was wicked and the Veg schizuan fried rice did its part to make it a fulfilling culinary experience.

Avoid at Any Cost:

Saravana Bhavan Dosa Hut: They are on 102 Lexington Ave. between 28th and 27th street. I got lured in by the words Saravana Bhavan and Dosa. The waiters were downright rude and the food was only so-so. The waiter claimed to one of the diners that they are part of the Saravana Bhavan network of Madras, India which is opening a branch in NYC . However, it is expected to come up at 81 Lexington Ave.