Delivery
Yes
Panna II Garden in New York
Categories
Location on the map
New York, New York County, New York, US
Service options
Takeaway
Yes
Dine-in
Yes
Popular for
Lunch
Yes
Dinner
Yes
Solo dining
Yes
Accessibility
Wheelchair-accessible car park
No
Wheelchair-accessible entrance
No
Wheelchair-accessible seating
No
Offerings
Comfort food
Yes
Halal food
Yes
Late-night food
Yes
Small plates
Yes
Vegetarian options
Yes
Dining options
Lunch
Yes
Dinner
Yes
Dessert
Yes
Amenities
Toilets
Yes
Atmosphere
Casual
Yes
Cosy
Yes
Crowd
Groups
Yes
Tourists
Yes
University students
Yes
Planning
Accepts reservations
Yes
Payments
Cash only
Yes
Phone: +1 212-598-4610
Opening hours
- Monday:2–11PM
- Tuesday:2–11PM
- Wednesday:2–11PM
- Thursday:2–11PM
- Friday:2–11PM
- Saturday:2–11PM
- Sunday:2–11PM
Comments (199)
It’s a scam, you sit down with a group of 6 people, they don’t bring out menus, then the waiter comes up and tells you because you are a “large” group you need to do a fixed meal for $30-$40 a person.So you argue with him and eventually he gives up and brings you a menu and you see the exact fixed meal he was trying to sell you is actually $18 a person. So we would’ve paid twice the actual price if we hadn’t asked to see the menu.Food was alright and lights are cool but having to haggle that much in New York annoyed me.
It’s a really good time! But between the mediocre food and the constant push from waiters to order more things, it’s not a place where you go to have a nice meal. Stick to the Vindaloo and the samosas, everything else was just not good. The BYOB is definitely my favorite part.
The food here was really good and the waiter was super friendly
It was horrible. The chicken Tikka masala had no flavor. I dont think any of the dishes I was excited to try had flavor. I think the chicken Tikka had a slight hint of a butter taste but it isnt like your usual chicken Tikka. Im used to indian food but this place instantly hurt my stomach. I dont know if its just a really off day, but Id never happily or willingly come back here. Worst indian place Ive ever tried.
Portions are extremely small. Food is C+. They dont take credit card, service is meh. There is a guy downstairs that tries to trick you into going to his spot. Place is crazy cramped. Go for the instagram pic I guess but eat beforehand or plan on getting pizza after. oh and no alcohol.
Best decor ever- its overdone and so much fun! Ive been coming here for the last 20+ years in large and small groups and its always a great time. At my last visit, we were given complementary Banana Fritters which arrived huge, delicious, and piping hot!Then, with almonds, raisins, and sweet spices in a cream sauce, the Lamb Kurma IS A MUST!!! While this amazing dish came with rice, we also enjoyed it with some naan. To drink, their sweet Mango Lassi refreshed with a good hint of cardamom. My daughter also savored their complementary chocolate ice cream. After everything, we were all satisfied and smiley. Good vibes, good times!NOTES/TIPS:**Stairs up to their front door.**Cash only.**Loud and crowded most evenings; not busy at all during the day.**Temporarily closed due to the Covid crisis.
This place was okay. I seen it on a few blogs due to decor. Appetizers took a while to come out, a long with main dishes. However, server was very kind. What I didnt like in particular was that they advertise it as an Indian Restaurant but there was Bengali food on the menu, along with Bengali servers. The food was a fusion of Bengali/Indian food. Which is fine, but as a Bengali myself, theres still very little representation of the Bengali culture, so it wouldve been nice if they advertised as a Bengali restaurant instead of Indian, and embraced more traditional Bengali food. But I guess advertising it as Indian sells more🤷🏼♀️
There still is a bargain out there. It was lovely to have a simple dinner including appetizers, entree and dessert for under $35. The food was tasty, environment was friendly. A memorable meal.
Food is really delicious , can’t say any bad word about it. Design of restaurant looks really nice, but unfortunately it’s really hard to keep it clean. I saw dust everywhere. You don’t want to eat when you now that dust can fall into your plate from lamps. Moreover, everything there was too fast. You can’t just wear a little and talk with your friends because you already ate, so waitress give to you a bill. I think people there should be more nicer.
Disgusting food hygiene practice.Service was ok.We couldnt wait to leave.Im surprise this place is still running.Will never be visiting again.DO NOT RECOMMEND. Spend your time and money elsewhere.
The best place for curry and Indian dishes. If youre looking for authentic Indian under a colorful backdrop, this is your place! The service may be a bit slow, due to the high volume of customers, but the wait is worth it! This location is CASH ONLY, but you wont spend more than $40, unless you can eat for two. Did I mention that you can bring your own wine?
I’ve never been to a worse Indian restaurant. We asked for mango ice cream they gave us two half spoons of Breyer vanilla ice cream and charged us extra. Terrible food terrible service.
The food is simple but tasty, but you really come for the lightshow. The staff were kind and friendly and gave free ice cream.
If I could give a zero I would. Horrible service their “mango” ice cream is just vanilla ice cream. This is the biggest tourist trap I’ve ever been too DONT waste your time or money here
Average food and exhausting experience. The place is super packed. Lots of celebrities passed by but, honestly, you can find much better place.s. Sure, the interior is crazy, but apart from that and considering the rudeness of the waiters, you can just take a pic and go somewhere else.
One of the most nicest, aesthetically pleasing places I’ve gone to with my friends in NYC. The service was fantastic- and they don’t really make you wait on your seats. The only reason I’m giving this an okay rating is because of the actual food. As a native Punjabi, I’ve honestly had better tasting Indian food.
The service was a little slow but it was nice to just chill in there and was byob. The food was excellent. I enjoyed everything I ate especially the butter naan. Cash only!
When we arrived at around 11:45 am for lunch, the person attending the place was discussing in anger with someone in the kitchen. We were seated at a small table. We ordered chicken, lamb, rice and nan bread. It was a disaster. The rice wasnt basmati, but Jasmin rice from Thailand, boiled flat and flavorless. The nan bread was so sad because it wasnt done at the place. It came from a supermarket, tasteless and you could smell the rancid oil in which it was heated. The curry sauces were so generic you couldnt taste the difference between them. The soup that came along was cold, oily and clearly not fresh. Then a couple of people entered the place, glanced it and turned around leaving to which the waiter reacted angrily slamming the door. After that outburst, he offered us another soup. We declined but the waiter decided to ignore our answer and still got us another bowl of bad soup. Another telling element of a restaurant about the respect it has for its clients is the cleanliness of the bathroom. I will save you some details and tell you about the sink. It was dirty, moldy and smelled. The worst came later when after paying the bill, including an undeserved 10% tip l, the waiter came after us demanding more money in recognition for his work. We had to remind him that a tip is a voluntary gesture by the client as a sign of reconnaissance to the merits of the food and the quality of the service. A hostile waiter, crammed tables, bad food and unclean premises, definitely not a place to visit again.
Worst cheese naan ever.Worst service I have had since long time.We reserved a table for 6 people. And just after we seated the waitress told us that above 5 people we were FORCED to have a $29 menu wich didnt included all the options of the normal menu.Even if we insisted they didnt even gave us the option to choose from the menu. They served what they wanted to serve and not what we wanted to order!The food is not good and the cheese naan is hard and has yellow american cheese in it!!The desert of menu we were FORCED to have was vanilla ice-cream! I mean...If you really love Indian food, dont come to this restaurant.
If you’re here for pictures its good. If you’re here to eat indian food, go somewhere else. As an indian who’s been to countless Indian restaurants this is by far the worst indian food. Not authentic at all. Corn doesn’t belong in samosas. Pakoras aren’t supposed to be filled with besan. It was literally a ball of fried besan. Also we made a reservation for 9:15 and weren’t seated until half an hr later.
Panna II is interested in making a quick buck, providing an enjoyable experience and good food are nothing but afterthoughts for them. I had the most miserable experience ever. Here’s what went down today: I walked in with a friend and joined a large group of friends who were already seated. Once we joined the table, a waiter throws my friend and I plates with appetizers. I ask the waiter what this is because I hadn’t ordered that and he tells me that I’m doing a group special so that was my appetizer. He leaves. Confused, I wait for him to come back so he can clarify what is happening because we didn’t want the appetizers that were thrown on the table. When he finally comes back, I ask for clarification and with a raised voice he tells me I have no choice but to eat the appetizer and share the food with the rest of the group. My friend and I tell him that we’re not interested in that and that we’d like to instead order our own plates of food. He refuses to allow that and then hands me a menu. I’m looking over the menu in absolute confusion considering he just told me I couldn’t order what I wanted. Nevertheless, I take the time to analyze the menu. He comes back and asked if we were ready to order. We weren’t and asked if he could clarify once and for all what is going on, why he told me I had no choice but to go with a mystery group special, yet we have a menu to order from. He angrily tells me that he gave me a menu because I’d ask for it and rushes us to order something. Meanwhile, the table next to us opens up. When he comes back, my friend asked if we could move to that table so we could be considered a separate group and that way order on our own. He AGAIN raises his voice and loudly says “NO, NO TABLE!” We continue to uncomfortably sit there still confused at what’s happening and rattled by the aggressive anger and rudeness from the waiter. When he comes around again, my friend asked “so are we not allowed to sit there if we want to order food?” He responds, “fine fine go go go sit there go go!” With our patience with him pretty thin, my friend clarified “did you not just tell us we couldn’t sit there and now you’re saying thatwe can?” He screams something along the lines of, “go, go sit there if you want to eat go go and sit!” Disgusted by the tone, we get up to leave. It was clear that he was just interested in making as much money from us as possible, begrudgingly changing his mind about whether we could sit at the other table once my friend said she’d order food. As I get up to leave this hot and dusty restaurant, he starts to scream saying that we are causing him problems. I kindly ask him to rethink who is causing problems for who given that he is screaming about us to an entire restaurant after he was the one that failed to explain anything to us and tried forcing us to participate in a group special that nobody in the group had any details or prior knowledge about. After we left, we found out that the group who stayed were served a handful of plates to share and charged $40. Hands down the worse experience I’ve ever had.
More hyped up than it deserves. It has great atmosphere with the lights and all but the food is very bland and they charge $0.50 to make it spicy
Service was good, not traditional. They kept the water filled and never asked how we were doing which is fine. Some of the reviewers here need to get over the lack of niceties. The food was really great, but unless you ask for spice it will have zero heat so just make sure do that when you order. Would go back for sure.
^_^ BuleStory review for Panna II in New York City - Panna II is unique because of the lights they have inside. It’s like Christmas every day! Here’s a photo of the inside of the restaurant and a closeup of the lights. It was really cool!! and its a BYOB restaurant yeaaaayy 😋😎😁😂🤣
Ordered beef kabob and chicken curry dinner. It was well seasoned and cooked. The service was over the top great - topped off waters with complimentary ice cream, and banana frittatas which were great. Granted It was a slow dine-in night. Overa atmosphere was cool with the Christmas lights and authentic music.
The food was good it had great taste but also poor service. Reminder! They only take cash.
I went to this restaurant for the second time on October 16, 2021 and I can honestly say I had a really great experience from the entrance, to being sat down almost immediately on a Saturday night to the clean silverware and cups and service honestly it’s hard to find things to complain about. The owner or restaurant manager was very kind and attentive to everyone’s needs, The ambience was great and the food was delicious! I would definitely come back again because we felt so welcome and it was a great dining experience. This is a cash only restaurant and unlike the other reviews, I did not receive any backlash for a tip!!Just a minor complaint would probably be the bathroom could use a renovation and on the menu it says “cooked in front of you”, we did not get that experience maybe because of covid or it was busy but they could’ve said that.
This place is worst.. This is not at all Indian Food.. Everything is sweet even though we have ordered Spicy.. Soup comes after appetizers and they take only cash and add unnecessary taxes. Very small pace.. Difficult to Fit, its size of pathway.. No proper customer service.. Never recommend to anyone.
When you walk up to this place, there are 3 surrounding Indian restuarants that copied place and they will all try and get you to come into theirs.Panna Garden is the main popular one. Dare Devil (Netflix series) had a scene hereThe chicken, while still good, was a bit dry and they seemed to know it when we were finished and still had lots of chicken left.This place has intense lighting everywhere and is very tiny. Its not easy walking around inside there.They also played some very dancy electronic music, which I didnt mind, but there was also a large bday party happening.
Came here yesterday with some friends and we all really enjoyed our food! We got vegetable samosas and chicken tikka masala which were delicious! The lights are hung really low which made it kind of hard to walk through but they’re beautiful nonetheless!
CASH ONLY + BYOB,. Pretty filling food. Vegetables sample as an appetizer and chicken curry! Staff is not as fast as expected for the amount of people that fit but.. decent food!
Cozy and small place with this beautiful decoration. Ive been there during lunch time, the food was very good and also the price.
Wife and I went there for our anniversary dinner. When you pull up there are three other knock off restaurants in the same building. Ignore the men outside begging you to come in. Go up the stairs and to the right. We went inside and it was packed so we had to wait. Now be warned its a TIGHT SQUEEZE in this place. I almost bailed on it because of the wait, but boy am I glad we committed to it. This was by far the best Indian food Id ever had and so cheap! The staff was very helpful (dont confuse their rush with rudeness, its a busy place) and even the other patrons were great. The table next to us overheard it was our anniversary and bought us a bottle of wine. Be patient and take a chance. You wont be disappointed.
Dishes are so unique and tasty, especially chicken tikka masala is my favorite! The interior and music are interesting. Affordable, tasty restaurant in East Village.
Good food, prices were raised recently but still fairly cheap. atmosphere was cool. they have a weird system w servers, different guys brought food and took orders so when we asked for change nobody came and we had to go to the server ourselves.
I didnt know that the restaurant was so popular, until I came back yesterday . I was coming there often, starting in 1989. 32 years ago , it was one of many inexpensive and decent Indian restaurants, in a run down Lower East Side area. From what I remember, the decor has not changed over the years . At that time the food matched the price and it was very decent. Coming back yesterday I found this place almost full, with 4 tables available . I liked the lightning, and I introduced this restaurant to my friends from Miami. The space was tiny , and you felt like you were sitting at the kindergarten table. The restaurant didnt serve alcohol, and I went to the deli downstairs to buy some Indian beer. We bought pre- fixed dinner . All food came from ready to eat pouches and was barely warm . Terrible shrimp vindaloo, oily appetizers and the worst Indian bread I have ever eaten in New York. Frozen, and reheated in a microwave, it had nothing to do with a regular Indian bread made in clay oven . When we left a line of young people was forming outside the restaurants.ProsDecorBring your own alcoholConsThe worst Indian food I ate recently, including the worst Indian bread I have ever eatenSuper tiny space, with extremely uncomfortable outdated chairs and tablesRushed serviceRecommended for the pictureEat at your own riskHey, you dont go to Disneyland to eat world class food. If it wasnt for the decor I wouldhave given 1 star. 2 stars for the look and the fact that this restaurant has survived COVID and is still in business for over 38 years.
OMG I wish I can give 0 stars literally payed 40 for the lights! The food is way to salty and doesn’t have flavor and the service isn’t the best I don’t recommend at all 0/10 for sure don’t waste your time and money.
Delicious! Their Naan is also addicting! So good!
I went out with my cousin to eat here. The food was fresh and tasted great. The mango lassi is to die for!
Worse client service ever. We called and made a reservation for 3 people (myself, wife and father in law) for 8pm and when we got there they said that we would have to wait 30mins even though we made a reservation but they let in 3 women straight after we were not accepted inside. When I asked them the reason the restaurant manager told me « go off or I will call my boys and they will chop you like onions ». I do not recommend this place at all.
Great prices, good food, unbeatable atmosphere. Great place for a date. Loved the service here as well! The manager was super nice, made sure we were enjoying ourselves and enjoying the food. The BYOB aspect was fun as well. Would recommend.
The food and the service were great! Its coasy and the huge amount of Christmas lights make for an atmosphere like no other restaurant. Yes honey, its hectic and you need to squeeze in tight, if youre not ready to do that then this place is not for you...Beware there are two other restaurants imitating Panna II in the same building! Dont let yourself be fooled by the agressive guards that the other restaurants hired. Go up the stairs and to the right.
We went at a quiet time and it was honestly lovely! Dont expect like fine dining, but its good food and a fun atmosphere. The waiters were lovely and brought us comped soup and ice cream at the end. Which was nice because of this damn heat.The appetizers are bomb, get a bunch. Also a lassi.
Colorful, nice, cozy place with very good food that comes in great portion. It is Xmas all year round in here.Ps. This is also a location in one scene of the movie After the wedding (2019)
This place is TERRIBLE. I would advise staying away. We went on new years eve, they charged us $96.00 for a little samosa, some Chicken Tikka Masala and literally one small scoop of Mango (ish) ice cream.Oh wait, we did also get a can of coke.Seriously absolute rip off and would not recommend this place to a single sole. They are robbers.You have just replied so I will reply to yours:I would like to say that I asked the question on the night and the manager said that this is what the bill is and there is no changes. So you stated you would fix it if I asked, however I did and you didnt change it.140AUD to eat some Indian Food.Its a Joke.Edit: Still have not returned my money after stating that they would never have charged this to us, when it is clear on the invoice. Overpriced.
Very affordable, but delicious! Bonus: One of my favorite TV shows was filmed here, (Daredevil)
Complete insanity in the best way possible. The restaurant on the upper right as you look at it from the street is the one to go to. The others are fun and the food is good, but if you want the whole experience, the upper right is your jam. It’s completely adored in flashing lights, colorful ornaments, and is usually quite loud with chatter and music.Prepare to be hot, to have little leg/personal room, and to eat amazing Indian food. It’s just like being in Mumbai- crazy, intense, amazing.
Very interesting place. Great food. Small, crowded but with a very cool and unique atmosphere. BRING YOUR OWN ALCOHOL.*Make sure you walk into the correct building! Theres a lower level and it does not belong with PANNA II.
The food was so delicious (highly recommend the butter chicken with garlic naan) and the staff extremely welcoming. My friends and I loved the atmosphere and will definitely be visiting again. Such a cute spot with so much character.
This place is a scam. Waiters gave the worse attitude while at the same time is chewing something while he talks to you to the point he’s even spitting. This place is a scam because located in nyc and it doesn’t take card. Cash only. Receipt wasn’t clear as if a child scribbled all over it. And when I was ready to pay he forcefully insisted that I pay him tip when I was unsatisfied with the service to the point I had to call the cops for him to give me my money back.
This Indian restaurant was extremely lid up with hundreds of small festive lights, which was....Wow!!I believe we all had very nice main dishes, I know my dish was delicious and worth the price l paid. However I have had better garlic naan bread and the better samosas. The resturant is narrow and the seating is tight so go with someone you enjoy being close to. Also BYOB or wine.
Terrible place. Came with a party of 6 and they didn’t let us order our own food then charged us $240 for four dishes! Seems like a joke but unfortunately is just the way this place works.
A kitschy spot thats fun to hang out with a group of friends. Just make sure to duck your head when you step in because all the lights and decorations hang quite low. Food is okay, nothing stood out in a good or bad way. It was pretty empty when I went so service was good and quick.
The place is just for decorations and your selfies and posts. Christmas lights and a bunch of abstract objects, pretty cool how it worked out. Looks like they just threw things up with the vast amount of Christmas lights. Lots of pictures on the wall, some of them are pictures of the celebrities that been there such as Beyonces sister Solange. The food wasnt really good. More onions then meat/seafood.
I have been going here since I was little with my father starting in the early/mid 90s. Nothing has changed (the lights, great food etc) which I love. The food is great (try the chana bhaji with poori). Definitely recommend. Staff is perfectly nice.. I cant begin to understand the negative comments on here about the people who work there.
I really can’t recommend this place enough. The lights are really fun and give it a real atmosphere. The food was AMAZING. We had the veggie samosas, garlic nan, chicken balti and lamb rogan josh and it was all delicious. The staff were very friendly and attentive. I honestly can’t wait until I go back.
Amazing!! Best experience of our nyc trip- the food and the entertainment. Yes the place is small, but the service is outstanding, extremely pleasant and friendly. Very much recommend but not if the tiniest of things bother you (we had to switch tables when a larger party arrived, before we even ordered, which is more than ok and understandable!)
The food and service were amazing! It is such a fun little spot! The decorations will make you smile the whole time. And the food was veryyyy good.
Fun atmosphere but awful Vindaloo, much like tomato soup or a bland tikka.I live the byob nature but where’s the flavor and the spice brothers?
Delicious food. Warm and friendly welcoming staff. Fun decor.
If I could give the restaurant zero stars I would. Lets be clear - if you happen to be brown, you will get treated like a second class citizen here. We went as a group reservation - and as we were a party of 6, the server immediately dictated that we would have the “family special” without letting us look at the menu. The service was pretty appalling throughout - rude, rushed and condescending. The kicker was when they brought our our dessert - which was 4 small scoops of ice cream. For 6 people. Which somehow amounted to $30 per head. On top of which, they then had the nerve to demand a 20% tip for service on the bill. Honestly, the food was nothing special - go elsewhere; there are plenty of places to try authentic Indian food in New York.
A neat, beautiful atmosphere! The plethora of lights made it feel dream-like. Food had great flavor, and the nice staff was competing over which of the 4 rooms we would sit in. Overall, a recommended experience!
Decent ambience. Service was courteous and decent as well. It was my first time today. I wouldnt go there again. Food was mediocre. We ordered Chicken Bhoona and we were served butter chicken. Chicken biriyani was light and dry. Would love it if the food lived up to the decor.Wasnt satisfied overall with the evening.
Upon arrival you will realize there are 4 different restaurants with the same festive decorations. Panna ii Garden however is on the 2nd floor. The food is okay not as flavorful as I expected Indian food to be. The restaurant is extremely cramped. You are seated against the wall and basically on top of each other whether the person is with you or not. The servers aggressively rush you through the service from the moment you walk in. If you are a party of 6 or more without giving you the option to look at the menu first , the server will tell you that you are having the “family special”. Because they are rushing through the service the server can finesse you into having this “family special” where the appetizers alone costs $25 person and you do not know exactly what the special consists of. If you decline what they are telling you to have you can expect for the server to get irritated , slam everything on the table and have rude service from that point forward.
Im not a huge Indian food person.eith that said the food was ok, but the people i was with seemed to love it. There were some regulars in the place. Its really cool cause they have hanging lights from the ceiling and thats always fun.The kicker is that there are 4 restaurants , 2 up top and 2 on bottom. They compete for people to come in so it can be a bit over whelming. We chose the bottom cause we had a baby and a stroller with us. So, just be prepared to get convinced But a word of warning for the tall people. I javent been to the top restaurants in a while so I dont remember how low the lights are. As a 510 person on the bottom i had to been to get to my seat. I have big hair so it did get stuck in the lights as i walked in and out 😁😁. So, dont get mad at bending or getting caught, youve been warned.
Claustrophobic, hot, food takes forever, bathroom is nasty, don’t come here, don’t waste your time
Don’t come here if you’re tall or claustrophobic 😅
This was one of the best restaurants I had the pleasure of dining in NYC. The food is absolutely delicious and the ambiance is to die for. It is the perfect place to go to for parties and special events. I highly recommend this resturant for its service, quality of food, and convenient location. I will definitely come back again!
I had the worst experience everything was good from the appetizers. But when I got my main course roaches started crawling from under my plate. Me and my family was really disgusted. I told the waiter to give me a whole new plate. But I knew he brong the same plate back. My family started loosing their appetite because it was not just 1 roach it was a couple of little one . I felt bad because it was my sisters birthday. I didn’t even bothered to have them sing happy birthday to her . They need to do better.
9/10 ExperienceIts BYOB which is great the food was delicious. The place is small and super crowded but its all part of the experience. The water could use some ice.Instagram - bnd_eats
I visited in January. Wonderful food, music, and beautiful decor! The lights and flags added a truly unique experience to dining there. They have a variety of dishes and drinks that will satisfy any cravings you may have. Space can be a little tight but I don’t mind. I feel like it gives an intimate cozy feeling that most restaurants never achieve. My friend and I even enjoyed a few jokes with the couple next to us. They conveniently have an atm outside the restaurant as it is cash only. There are people outside the doors to greet you as you enter and leave the restaurant. The gentlemen at the doors were very kind. Staff was accommodating and I generally had a great time. My only complaint is that when it came time to tip I wanted my waiter (an older guy) to break a $10 and give back $5. He refused saying that there were two people who served my table which was not true. Despite explaining this to him, he promptly took the $10, kept $8 and gave me back $2. I found it a bit tasteless that I was treated in a way where I had little to no say in how I should tip. It soured my experience at the end of the night. If you’re planning on coming here, please bring cash and if possible give exact change.
Cramped atmosphere, shady business practices, decent food.We brought a large party (7 people), and were harassed into doing a chef’s choice type of meal. Never offered menus. After 2 hours of oddly timed delivery of less than 1 entree per person, we were billed a very sus amount (came out to $30 per person...). We could have each gotten an entree, appetizer, and dessert for that price. We were also not served dessert because of some McDonald’s level excuse that the machine was broken - which they failed to tell us BEFORE we got pressured into doing the chefs choice (which they said included dessert).I get the whole “the place is cute” yada yada, but you literally cannot stand up in there. If your one goal for your meal is to get a picture for Instagram, this is definitely the place for you. They also play very loud Indian/Electronic dance music and seat people close together (not even going to go into how dangerous that is during covid).
Food was pretty good, but the place was very crammed and wait staff was rude.
Tiny tiny place, good Indian food. Very traditional. BYOB makes things interesting. Very cheap, but cash only.
The reason why I went here is because the show Daredevil was filmed here. I wanted to see all those lights. The restaurant is upstairs. It is a small place. The staff was so welcoming. I had a chicken samosa, garlic naan and a chicken curry dish. It was all very tasty. The best part is that is BYOB but cash only. I would definitely recommend this restaurant. It is a tasty and fun experience.
I love this restaurant! I have been regular at this resturant for many years and every time, Im extremely satisfied. The food is impeccable and I love spending time here. The lights really add to the experience. To die for! Please pay them a visit
This place was such a joke! We had a group of 11 people and they forced us to pay $29.95 each ($40 with mandatory tip). All they gave us was rice and chicken. Also, no cards are accepted, you have to use the ATM that they own. It’s not worth the seizure of flashing lights.
Food: Totally reasonable, if unremarkable. The Naan was very good. Everything else was fine. The chicken dishes contained only chicken and no vegetables, which could be a plus or a minus.Service: Wait staff was attentive - my water glass was never empty for too long. Be forewarned that, if your party is five or more, you must get the buffet-style meal and cant order specific dishes.Environment: This restaurant is extremely cramped and rather tacky. I spent the whole night bumping my head on low-hanging lights, squeezing my shoulders together to avoid elbowing my neighbor, and hugging the table so that the wait staff didnt hit me as they walked past. It looked like this restaurant had a downstairs dining area which was less cramped, but we were sent upstairs without any conversation on the matter. Not recommended for anyone average to large in build.Overall, I didnt leave hungry, but the seating was so uncomfortable that I didnt really enjoy the experience. You can easily find an Indian restaurant with similar-quality food and a more pleasant environment elsewhere.
Great NY vibe. A BYOB Indian restaurant that is reasonably priced serving excellent food. Friendly staff. Highly recommend. No real complaints except that they should check COVID ID since seating is tight and the space is small. (NOTE: This restaurant is up stairs).
I ABSOLUTELY LOVE THIS PLACE! There arent enough stars to do it justice! My friends always thank me for introducing them to this joint. Its local East Village flavor at its best. The food is delicious and one of the most festive places in NYC!!
Byob is the best part but food is just not good and it is very cramped
Decent food, fantastic atmosphere. BYOB.
The worst Indian food ever complemented by their terrible service. After seeing Daredevil me and my friend decided to go here for a nice dinner. We were seated by this unsmiling server and the glasses on which the water was being served had grease stains on them and when I asked for a new glass, they gave me a new one with the same issue and I saw one server picking up a wiping cloth from the floor to wipe the glasses that the customer were being served with!!! Disgusting. Then the food had arrived which was pretty much tasteless and the middle aged manager was in such a rush that he decided to transfer the unfinished food on my plate to another one without my permission and was in such a haste to take the plate. Also we were waiting for our friend ad we had already informed them about it so that the would arrange a seat for and the guy told us that he would arrange it after our friend would arrive. In between that we were served ice- cream which we hadnt ordered and the one my friend got had a hair in it. And suddenly we were presented with our bill even when we hadnt asked for it, and we had told them that our friend would be joining us. I have no words to describe their horrible service . As being an Asian myself I would love our culture and food to flourish but this is a same to Indian culture and food! I strongly suggest you not to visit here. We were just there to enjoy our food and evening but they completely ruined it. Its a complete waste of time and money and plus so very unhygienic!!!!!!!
The quality of this food was way better than i expected at first impression. Their food is so flavorful and delicious—love their samosas! Also you cant help but be happy in all of the lights encompassing the tables😊
Its always a different experience going there the food is great and the best thing is you BYOD no cover and yes includes alcoholic drinks!!
The lights in this place makes your dining experience feel so magical! It was my first time here after hearing so many good things & I did not leave disappointed!The food was delicious & the staff was kind and welcoming. Look forward to eating here again!
Interesting place. Food is good. It is BYOB and there is a wine store a few doors down. This is a perk. Our naan and poori were great... and fresh. Both our meals were wonderful. However, bathroom is gross which worried me and ice cream desert is definitely freezer burnt... not sure why considering every customer gets a scoop. Lights are fun and music is too! This makes for a great atmosphere which would be fun for a group event. Service was good as well so all-in-all I would recommend.
Ive had my fair share of bad experiences in new york city, but nothing tops this one. We made a reservation for 10 people at this place (which if they cannot accommodate, they should limit the number of people per party, it was VERY cramped and they didnt even have enough seats). A few members of our party were running late and we were being harassed by the manager about how we were making him lose business. Ive worked in restaurants, I completely understand the frustration with that, but you DO NOT take it out on the customer. In an attempt to mediate, I asked if he could bring us some menus so we could at least be prepared to order. I was ignored 3 times when I asked. Finally, the rest of our party showed up, and when I asked for the menus AGAIN, he revealed that we had a set menu called family style for a set price of $25 because we had more than 6 people. We were taken aback by this because we were NOT told this when we made the reservation, and I made sure to let him know that this is 100% not going to work for us because we had a few vegans and vegetarians. One of my vegan friends had to explain to the waiter how the chicken was not vegan and butter was, in fact, dairy and also not vegan, this was a cause for concern that they wouldnt prepare the food properly. He then caved and practically threw the menus at us and said we can order from there but by this point, we were so disgusted by the behavior of the entire staff we had unanimously decided to leave. This caused the manager to freak out at us and even tried seating one of us down and we had to tell him to get his hands off of her.The ONLY thing this restaurant has going for itself is the aesthetic, but it is 100% not worth it. This place is MAYBE good for a date night, and I cannot speak for the food since we never even got to order, but I cannot recommend this place. The staffs behavior was rude, aggressive, unprofessional, and extremely unethical.
The food and atmosphere is everything I expected and heard of. I highly recommend this place. Also, the mango ice cream is heavenly delicious. For even a better time, walk with your bottle wine to have that little buzz. The sever is very friendly and kind; always refilling the glass. The lights on the ceiling is very instagram aesthetic. I rate this place 10 out of a 10.
This is a staple of all local new yorkers, Ive been coming here for over 10 years. Its just as colorful and noisy as the city is. My favorite place for a group meal with friends. The staff is boisterous, they are used to dealing with volume so dont expect a conversation, save your quibbles and dietary restrictions. BYOB, food is always good and very cheaply priced, bring cash. Come for the environment and classic NY experience.
If you love Indian food, dont go here. The food is tasteless. On the coldest day this winter, I was invited to the restaurant for a work lunch with approx. 20 people. The space was tight and there were thousands of Christmas lights and ornaments hanging from the ceiling, which meant you had to bend over in order to walk around. There was no heat, so it was super freezing (sniffling as I write this). Our large group was informed that our lunch included an app and an entree of our choice ahead of time. However once we were there, we were informed that the options were samosas or pakora for the app, and chicken or vegetable curry for the entree. The staff was a bit aggressive and rushed. And when asked about the menu or food they were not accommodating. The water tasted funny,almost like bleach.
The service here is terrible and the staff are rude yet they still expect a 20% tip.However, if your prepared for the rudeness, it can be funny given the overall setting. I have brought friends here just for the experience. The food itself is excellent in my opinion I always get some form of curry and the Indian Dips they give you at the start are also very tasty.However, one time my friend asked for extra curry sauce and they brought her out a different one to the one she was having.Do not come here if your looking for a nice relaxing meal as you will be rushed out once your plate is finished and they will not even allow you to finish the rest of your BYOB. Their main concern is turning over tables and half of them barely speak English.
A Fun experience, unless you are IN ANY WAY claustrophobic: if you are STAY AWAY (seriously: Im not remotely claustrophobic and it was almost an issue. There is ZERO room (including headroom)). Food is decent, competently done Indian, but not great by any stretch. It is however a spectacle to see/experience and they campaign you to go to one restaurant or the other. Its great fun and a neat little tradition in this corner of NYC: Worth doing at least once -or anytime you have visitors- and I sure hope they make it through the shut down.
This place taught me not to judge everything a book by its cover. The interior design of the place was beautiful however, their service plus food was horrible. I have no idea how this place is still standing. Me and my friend visited this restaurant and we were not happy about the food, it was horrible. We told the manager orBoss, whoever he was that we will pay for whatever we ate and whatever was brought to the table. We would like to cancel our main order. This manager/ boss became so angry with us he walked away and sent a waitress who completely ignored our request. We paid $50 for food we didn’t even touch. The waitress also proceeded to tell us that if the food wasn’t good he did not know how they were taking orders from over 200 customers everyday.
Dont let the nice lights fool you, this place has the worst service and food in NY. As much as it may look pretty, the lights are the only good thing in the restaurant. The food is terrible and Im not even sure it follows health regulations. We saw the waiter use the same curry that he gave us and ADDED IT BACK TO THE POT. It felt gross eating this food. The service was even worse, the manager was rude and treated us horribly. I would never go back. I should have read the reviews before I even considered going here. Not only that, outside the restaurant there were two people urging is to go inside. None of my family felt safe. Please, do yourself a favor and dont eat here.
This is a very cool place with fantastic food. Authentic Indian cuisine (verified by my friend who went with me). The decorations are awesome, lots of dangling lights and the place is lit up like a disco for birthdays, which we luckily got to experience for a person at the table next to ours. The prices arent bad either, especially for the lunch special between 12-4pm.
Don’t come during peak hours. They crammed me and two of my friends at a table with two strangers. It was really awkward, uncomfortable and the table was for 4 people max. We asked to move to our own table and they let us, but the waiter rolled his eyes, yelled at us and randomly called my friend ‘little Donald trump’. They were rude to us the rest of the night. We left a minimal tip because of the appallingly terrible dining experience. They yelled at us down the street for not leaving a large enough tip. I will never be coming back.I would have left a 1-star review, but the other star goes to the lights/ambiance of the place which are very festive and pleasant to look at.
Worst dining experience in NYC and I’ve lived here almost two years. Poorly managed, poor service and food is nothing impressive. We arrived and were sent to the back for a table only to find there was no table and then yelled at for being there and not waiting for a table? Staff were inattentive we waited almost one hour for our order and only after asking was it brought immediately, not sure what was holding it up. They forgot our drinks, in fact the only thing they remembered and brought quickly was the bill. We came to check out the place because of the hype due to the light display, but certainly won’t be returning or recommending to anyone. I feel they were racist as I am of Indian descent I was ignored, while other tables appeared to be getting better service and attention. I could be wrong but I see no other reason we were being forgotten and treated so poorly. Awful place, awful people.
Delicious food and really great service. Very fun and low-key environment. Cash only. One of the better Indian restaurants in the city, in my opinion.
Terrible experience. The waiter was rude and aggressive. Would just come and take away plates without even asking. Food was not even good. Went for a quick bite and ordered a few things. The waiter kept saying “that’s it? What main course do you want?” Even after i declined the first time. Waited forever for the food. What really shocked me was when the bill came, it was $18 and the waiter said “give me 25 with the tip”. Never have i ever had a waiter DEMAND what he wanted for his tip ESPECIALLY with his terrible service and rudeness. Place seemed unsanitary as well. I would stay away.
Great food, great service, great backyard. My friend and I did the dinner for 2 for $30. We both had soups, a plate with mixed appetizers, 2 main entrees, and dessert. My girlfriend had a tandoori and it was amazing! I had number 37 on the menu (I dont remember what it was called) but it was the perfect amount of spice and great tasting lamb. Def would come back here again.
This isnt a place you go to eat amazing food but instead you go for the amazing experience of eating.Not only are the lights fun, but the guys outside trying to direct you to the two other Indian restaurants that share the same building and storefront are fun too.Food was good, but the star of the show is the restaurants interior.
I normally don’t go out of my way to make a review, but felt it was necessary. The place is very beautiful and the tandoori was great (reason for two stars), but the service was TERRIBLE. I came here to celebrate my birthday and the waiter was extremely rude, forced us to purchase more food than we wanted, and rushed us the entire night. He was very aggressive. I’m not sure I would recommend this to a friend to come due to this
Enjoyed our meal here for the most part - the lamb tikka was our favourite by far. The service left a bit to be desired though; we were FLOORED when the server came back requesting additional tip, after wed left 18%! So that left a bad taste in our mouths, despite the meal being decent. Not the best Indian food Ive had, but certainly not the worst either.
The popularity of this place seems more about the novelty than about the quality.The food is pretty good, not incredible. The service is subpar with a caveat; your meal comes fast. That promptness is a good thing. HOWEVER, because theyre fast they expect you out as soon as youre finished your meal. On a positive note, you can bring your own bottle of booze. Which is a very cost effective way to pregame and eat before you go bar hopping in the East Village. Dont wanna get a drunk tattoo on an empty stomach, after all.There is a 4-course (soup, app, entree, dessert) dinner deal for two, HOWEVER the two of you must order identically.I guess Id suggest to visit here once for the novelty (its been on shows and stuff and it has tons of colorful lights) and the decent food. But I see no need to return due to the poor service and cramped space.
Bad food and horrible costumer service. They demanded a $20 dolar tip even when the waiter was extremely rude to us throwing the menu and giving a lot of attitude. DON’T COME HERE
So I want to start off saying that I was excited to finally get a opportunity to eat at Panna ii and quickly my interaction went sour.I made a reservation for 7 people for 8:20 and was told to enter the top right door. As we arrive prior to the reservation time, clearly no table were reserved instead the 7 of us was told to stand near the restroom of the very narrow and crowded restaurant. After being seated down, the waiter rudely announced that, since there is more than 5 people in our party. There is a set menu and a minimum of $25 per person. Out of shock we said this was not mentioned while making reservation. The waiter (who clearly was annoyed by our presence) gave us the menu instead.Before we could even browse the menu, all the waiters of the establishment suddenly started suggesting we go downstairs instead! I found that odd since this was NOT mentioned before during nether of the following times:1. Making the reservation via phone2. Entering the restaurant3. Standing around waiting for our tableThis really started to put all of us in confusion and to be frank offended. After glancing around the restaurant it was clear that the majority of the customers were White and we were one of few only South Asian customers and when they sensed that we were not easy to be scammed, they wanted us to go downstairs where was less appealing. We finally decided we should just leave and as we were the leaving the owner joined us outside and was coming up reason for the suggestion to go downstairs claiming it was spacious (🙄)Overall, my final thoughts is that this whole interaction was sketchy to begin with. For a restaurant to flaunt its popularity due to being a location used for TV show and good food, the behavior from the waiters did not correlate.If you are unfamiliar or even naive on how a desi establishment can scam you then this is the right spot to get ripped off 👌🏽!
My girlfriend and i were completely shocked and entertained when we got to the front steps and three men popped out of each of the three restaurants situated in this spot and started yelling for us to go to their restaurant. we went to the man screaming panna (top right restaurant) because we wanted to go to the cool looking place that was in daredevil. the place looks awesome inside, the service was really good and prompt, and the food was ok.Id say its a great place to go once and take some photos but not one youd want to come back to repeatedly for the food. so yeah go, take some photos, have some alright food and a nice night.
My friends and I had made a reservation at 8PM today. We got there at 7:55 but they did not even care about reservation. They never took the time to check the name I gave them and made us wait for almost 40 minutes to get a table. They finally accommodated in a small table in the corner of the restaurant and squeezed 5 people on a tiny 4 person table.The manager (owner, I think) was EXTREMELY rude, aggressive and physically pushy with us. With respect to the waiters, as we had finished eating they rushed us out of the restaurant.The food was average, so if you actually like Indian food, dont bother coming to this place. You will be very, VERY disappointed.The atmosphere is nice and it can be considered by some people as a remarkable New York experience, but surely it is not for everyone. It is not worth it at all and well never go back to this awful place. Simply the worst Indian restaurant ever!!!! It sucks.
Absolute worst restaurant Ive ever been to! If I could rate it 0 stars I would. The service is absolutely horrendous. The place is tiny with hardly any room to walk in between tables, which is not the problem. The problem is the staff physically moving you around the restaurant. I have never had restaurant staff put their hands on me and physically move me, yet for some reason this staff thinks its okay. In addition, one guest I was dining with slightly moved the table over so another guest could get to their seat at the table beside us. In response to this our waiter aggressively moved the table back in place and actually yelled at us to not touch the table. As if it couldnt get any worse, I saw a waiter make guests move to another table mid appetizer so they could make room for a larger party. I have never been to a restaurant where they move people MID MEAL to another table. The entire staff speaks with an aggressive tone and isnt friendly at all. The food is mediocre. There are definitely better Indian restaurants to dine at in the city with similar pricing and much better service. I will never come back to this restaurant and hope I saved someone from experiencing the worst dining experience of their life by writing this review.
The food was delicious, I dont like spice and they took care of me. The service was very prompt and polite, the waiter even opened our bottle of wine(that we brought) and poured it for us. They gave us complimentary ice cream and it was also delicious. The decor.....was to die for!!! I will definitely come back here when we visit the city.
One of the worst dining experiences I had ever had. The manager was the rudest person alive. We reserved a seat for 7 people and when we reached there they gave us a seat for 4 people. We somehow squeezed in but the manager was still rude, unwelcoming, and unprofessional. Some of my friends didn’t order food because they didn’t want to give money to the restaurant. There was a point where he screamed at us and completely dismissed us when we asked for an extra table. I had never felt so disrespected and unwelcomed. The waiter came to us and apologized for the manager’s behavior which made it seem that it wasn’t something new. If this restaurant wants to survive in the cutthroat world of restaurant chains in New York it should do something about the manager.
This place was recommended by a friend. So, I didn’t check the online reviews. I soooo wish I had checked before wasting my time going here. The service is the WORST I have ever experienced in NY! Before drinking, I actually checked the water the waiter gave me to see if he had spat in it! I should have followed my instincts and walked out from we sat down and the waiter literally threw the napkins and utensils down on the table. It was downhill from there:1. We were served water in dirty glasses which had curry sauce all over it. When we asked for it to be replaced, no apologies and it took him minutes to bring us clean glasses.2. We had to ask 5 times for someone to take out order, after being ignored for 11 minutes.3. We were “put in our place” by a rude reply to our query if the appetizers would be served before main courses (vs all the dishes together).34.The list goes on... but the best part was where he accosted one our party, preventing her from leaving the table because we left a small tip. After, fighting her was from the table to the door, 2 wait staff followed us outside to still demand more tip. We had to stand there explaining that we just experienced the worst service ever and we do not feel obligated to have to leave a big tip!!Can I give this place a negative -4 rating?
This place looks very nice, the food is alright. The service was terrible, waiter was slow and acted very strange. Brought us half the drinks and then the other drinks more than 10 minutes later. Dropped onions on my friends lap and took forever to bring us the check when we were finished. We gave him a tip we thought he deserved and even after we left he actually chased us out of the place and demanded a higher tip. The nerve.
This is a somewhat late review but anyway, I visited back in August with three of my friends. The only reason we really wanted to go was because of Dare devil haha. Anyway upon entering, immediately we were thrust into the amazing aesthetic of the restaurant. It was small but that wasnt a bad thing. It felt cozy. The decor was amazing! Now with all of that said you may be wondering why would I rate this place two stars? Its because the service was extremely slow, granted it was busy. A server could have at least checked up on us and refilled my water. I am not joking, no one said anything to us for a good hour after we ordered.When the food did finally come, it was pretty good. Although nothing too special. It d idnt blow my mind, but it wasnt the worst Indian food Ive tried either. All in all a pretty good meal.After we were finished eating it was time to pay. We all put in cash. We talked it over and decided to give about a 10 percent tip due to the slow service. I personally am against the concept of tipping. Restaurants should pay their servers enough of a wage. However, I tip anyway, because I realize that isnt the case. But if the service was bad I give less of one. In my eyes you have to earn a good tip, its not an obligation. Then as we were leaving the manager picks up our cash and immediately tells yells for the doorman to block the entrance. He then begins to berate us and tell us how this isnt enough money. He begins to talk to us like we are stupid and makes us give him more money. Me being passive aggressive (hence the internet review), gave in and gave him more money.It was very annoying and left a bad taste in my mouth. We had gone to the restaurant expecting an amazing experience but left feeling frustrated at our treatment. Not tipping is not illegal, he had no bases for making us pay more after we already paid more than the full amount. It wasnt like we didnt tip either, he just wanted more for subpar service. Needless to say I will not be coming back here.
The atmosphere is what you go for with this establishment. My partner and I are both daredevil fans so it was cool sitting in the restaurant where one of the episodes was filmed. That said, the food itself was fine, it came out alarmingly quickly which made me question its freshness. The person who served us didnt seem to interested when laying down or taking away plates (almost chucking food onto the table and sweeping it all way without much finesse). It sounds like a weird thing to comment on but it left an impression on us, it almost felt like we were an inconvenience to them.They were however happy to take photos of us amongst the lights so perhaps we caught them on a bad day.TL DRFood is okAtmosphere is its strong suitStaff seemed uninterested
Food is good for the price you pay. It is a tight squeeze so be prepared to share tables with strangers if theyre full.
Didnt like the place for 3 reasons. 1) the portion was not enough, especially when we paid over $70 for 3 entrees, with each one having about 4 pieces of chicken in it. Food quality was below average, doesnt make you feel like eating in a restaurant, but more like by an amateur cook. 2) the noise level from the guests, constantly yelling staff and the loud music would make you feel like youre in the middle of a supermarket (headache). 3) unfriendly staff, theyll do everything to hurry you out of there for others to come in.Overall advice for you, if constant loud noises doesnt bother you, then go for it. Just dont expect too much from the food, they invest most of their money in the lighting and not their food, so youll mostly be paying for the decor.
We went as a large party and had to get the pre-fix menu. Lowest quality Indian food I have had in Manhattan so far. The appetizers and garlic nans were old, reheated, and the plain nans were the bready kind you buy in bags in a dozen.The only thing the place has going for itself is the experience of lights, it’s like Diwali every day!The venue is extremely small and can get tiring to sit in after a while, as there no place to even move your arms around.And all this comes with a price tag that added up to $33 per person, which was after we were told we had been given a 33% discount. I would not have wanted to pay more than 10 for what was served.If you want good Indian food definitely avoid this place, there are way better restaurants within a 5 block radius of this place.if you want the experience of lights might be worth trying.
Dont bother making reservations. Youll end up waiting 2 hours anyway. The atmosphere is fun and kitchy but get ready to be packed like sardines inside as you eat, and rushed out as soon as you are done. After waiting 2 hours we agreed to sit at a table for 4 with 2 strangers just to get some food, which ended up being mediocre. Lots of birthday parties there for some reason. No alcohol served, only accept cash.
Always a great time at Panna 2 if your willing to wait a bit for some excellent Indian cuisine. Then sit tight your in for a ride. Our server babu and all the servers are great. BYOB if you like but otherwise the food is straight excellent.
This is the original restaurant to feature such decor! Do not be fooled by the other 3 look alike restaurants just next door. Panna Garden is serving good food as well for a reasonable price as this is in Manhattan. This place is great fun for a group of friends and family! Highly recommended.
As previous people said, the only thing appealing about this place are the lights. The place is so small that every time someone passed by our table, I was hit. Not the ideal environment to have dinner.So if you like being touched by unknown butts while eating, thats the place to go.The food was pretty average for the price.
Nothing about this place was worth it. The staff is down-right mean to their customers. They didnt seat us until almost an hour after our reservation. Once they sat us, they threw a surprise fixed menu on us, which was clearly a scam. I had hair in my appetizer. They were completely rude to us and didnt bring us water until after our food came out and we had to ask 10 times. They came out with tiny platters that we all had to share and gave us hell when we asked for more. They tried to short us on the dessert, which was supposed to be part of the pre-fixed menu, by bringing out 3 scoops of ice cream for our friends birthday, but not giving dessert to the rest of us. The food was awful. It was the worst $33 I ever spent.
I visited this place with my friend a few weeks ago and the food was great however the service was terrible. One of the waiters accidentally spilled sauce on my sweater. The waiter and the manager were both very apologetic. But then, they had the audacity to rush us out while we were eating and had full glasses of wine. The waiters hustled passed our table glancing over at us and making remarks to the manager as they checked up on us every 2 minutes. Finally, the manager approached us and begged us to leave because they had people waiting.
Environment is really cool and I guess thats mostly what you pay for. Kind of insane and funny there are four restaurants all next to each other and each one kind of tries to lure you into the other.Im giving this place three stars because of the service and the prices. Our server was pretty rude and was very aggressive about selling us naan because two entrees is not enough for two people. He was right, but we werent expecting to pay 12-15 bucks for curry and it being cash only.It was also a birthday dinner and I told them so but they said it was 5 bucks extra. I said okay, but for five dollars all they did was turn on party music and give us a quarter of a scoop of ice cream...not worth the money to be honest and feel like the server only charged us because we didnt buy any naan.Also, dont even bother paying for the spicy (which is ridiculous you even have to pay extra for a spicier dish), my girlfriend ordered EXTRA EXTRA spicy and it was underwhelming and mild.Overall, the food was good, but bummed at the service.
Ive been eating at Panna II for at least twenty years. When I was in college I was a regular and didnt even have to order. As soon as I opened the door, one of the gentleman upfront would show me to a table, pour me some of their always ice cold water and put down the on the house condiments.Life doesnt allow me to visit Panna as much as I used to, but when I do there is always one waiter, or bus person, who says hey where have you been?. Its my version of Cheers.The decor is by far the best thing about Panna. It looks as though someone raided a 99 cents store and through the decorations up like a wild man. Caution: If youre tall you might get a Christmas ball or a hot pepper in your face.As for the food, i can say that its the best Indian that Ive ever tasted, but it is good enough. The samosa is good as anywhere Ive ever tried. Personally i recommend vegetable.The free mango ice cream at the end is nice touch.If you have a visitor from out of town or you need to go out with someone who you share little in common with this whole place is an icebreaker.
The interior atmosphere is cool and all, but they do tend to rush you both in and out. It was a chaotic beginning waiting for the rest of our party to join us and to be rushed by the several other places next door.For the price of the food, it was very lackluster. At $30+ per person, I definitely expected more. Atmosphere isnt everything. The butter chicken and the chicken tikka masala tasted like it was slopped together. The dessert was just thrown together and I was hoping the naan bread would have been the saving grace, though this disappointing as well.
This places concept is quite original, on decor and atmosphere id give them 6 stars on a 5 star scale. The man at the door is very inviting and polite as he gives the impression that they really want and welcome your business. The charm continued once inside as we were politely seated and promptly followed up on service. We wanted to enjoy drinks and maybe a couple of appetizers, we relized then that they were a b.y.o.b establishment, this is when things took a turn. The waiter was very rude and seemed to have little patience, i didnt want to ruin the moment as i was out with my wife, but i felt tempted to just get up and leave. If the owner reads this. Please pay close attention to your staff. Not the bussers as they were very attentive. But there was a short mid early 50s man that was rude, not just to us, but i saw him being rude to a table of young ladies. The place is small and he makes the place get tense in front of everyone by being a jerk. The food was good. Decor is original, service by staff other than the waiter (i think you may know whom it may be) is good. Place is worth the visit for the concept. But its not on my list to frequent, just because i want to be treated as if my money counts.
The food is decent, but what really makes this place great is the ambiance and decorations. When I went, there were two birthdays that were being celebrated and it was a really great how they played with the lighting and music for them. When its crowded this place is filled with energy but still maintains the ambiance.
Rubbish. Customer Service at its lowest. A Bangladeshi old man as the owner and rude waiters working this place as an Indian Restaurant!!! What a joke! The food is atrocious in the name of Indian cuisine. Its BYOB, however there were 4 ladies beside our table last weekend and they were enjoying their wine and having it at their leisure...the waiters and the old hag walked up to them and told them to get out in front of everyone because their bill was only $60 and they had been sitting there for an hour. People possibly go there because of the crazy light fixtures hanging all over inside but truth be told, it really is a very very horrible experience. Least you can do is not malign a country where you dont belong from.
Got told there was a table free for us, got herded into the restaurant and sat down, looked at the menu, then they told us to get up and wait in the kitchen of the restaurant. We then got told 5 minutes later to go out of the restaurant to the back of the queue (even though we had already waited in it and sat down). Not worth the awful service for the tacky Christmas lights. The seating was very cramped. Having waited in the kitchen and seen how the food was delivered, we wouldn’t be surprised if your food fell on the floor and they then served it to you.If you respect yourself think twice about going here, not even for the instagram post.
Its an Instagram worthy restaurant for pictures and light snacks, or even date night. But highly discouraging to go with a big party and a big appetite because their food is below average and overpriced.Called a made a reservation for a birthday dinner for 16 people on a Friday night, and when we got there in 35 degrees cold weather, there was no table ready for us! We had to stand outside even with a prior reservation made for a large party. One of the servers there managed the table for us after 20 mins or so by moving a couple around to another spot who was already dining there!We did family style for 20$ a person and had 4 finger food type items including a chicken tikka (average) and some naan. Like I said, dont come here for the food, come for the beautiful ambiance and a snack, youll enjoy the experience even more.
Warning: Stay away from this restaurant!!!!! We came here because a friend told us this was such as cool place well The only good thing about this place is their tons of lights hanging from the ceiling but the staff and everything else is awful. The place is like 500 degrees due to the many lights and the lack of ventilation, so get ready to sweat like a pig. Im pretty sure they dont follow any regulations and this is an unsafe restaurant, there are no emergency exits at all. Then you also got another problem, the tables are so close to each other that you literary sit on top of someone else. The guy sitting next to us didnt understand that and pushed and called my brother-in-law names because he was angry he didnt have enough space for his chair. On top of that the waiters run from the kitchen to the many tables holding the plates on top of them as there is not enough room for anything at all and you have to deal with their stinky armpits every time they pass by you. The food is good but its just too much craziness to handle. Make yourself a favor and go somewhere else.
Been going here since they opened. Favorite Indian place in Manhatten. So tiny. Crazy awesome decor. Great food.
Horrible service with horrible food. Inattentive staff, cramped space, the womans hair in the table next to us kept almost getting in our food. Will never come back.
Their service wasnt good at all. Went there at around 11 and the servers were all so rude. They were in a hurry to close. Me and my sister ordered an appetizer and as we were in middle of having our appetizer, the waiter came and took our appetizer which we hadn’t finished!! What a total disgust. Never going back to this place again!! Would have given 0 stars.
Loud Bollywood music and colorful lights with average to good Indian food. This restaurant is quite an experience. If you go in with an open mind youll definitely enjoy yourself. Pro tips: 1. This place has lots of vegetarian and vegan options which are fairly good. 2. The vegetable samosa is really good! 3. The turn the lights off and do a laser show with loud music if you have a birthday which I found really entertaining! So Id recommend it for birthdays.
The food is not great, but the lights are the real reason youd want to go.Mostly what annoys me is how they packed up my leftovers. I asked for a box, but they packed it up themselves instead and threw most of it out! All of the sauce was gone and there was just a few flavorless pieces of chicken left. I paid $20 for most of the food to be thrown out.... Its really upsetting.
Of the three Indian restaurants clustered on 1st Ave, this is my favorite place. Its located on the upper right side, and while all three of the restaurants boast the same kind of menus, this is the best. They have a prix-fixe dinner special thats a steal at $35. Great for groups and birthdays, despite the small space. BYOB + Cash Only.
Cute but cramped atmosphere featuring strange house remixes, average Indian cuisine and hyper-aggressive wait staff. They took the plate out of my hands as I told them that I wasn’t finished. I’d recommend trying this out at like 2pm on a Wednesday; any other time and you might be rushed out to fill the next table. Hilariously, also, the “tax” on the bottom of the bill evened is up from $72.90 to an even $80, with some suspect mathematics involved. Got into an argument with the girlfriend about whether to include this fake number in our tip. Still not sure who was in the right, but I’m fairly certain it wasn’t our friends at Panna II. Pretty good samosas though!
Amazing brunch special! Left full as could be with so many entrees for under 10 bucks. It seemed as if the restaurant was a one man show and he did great. The decor is insane. Beachballs, dinosaur toys, international flags and oh so many lights! Its a blast.
Bad location to begin with. Not the best for wheelchair accessible people. Inside is small. Hard to get around if you wanna go to the bathroom, etc. Service is bad as they are pushy. I was coming from the bathroom and about to sit down when the waiter (or cook) was pushing and nudging me to hurry and sit. Not my fault you cant make your place a bit wider. Food was pretty bad and overpriced for quality and service. Overall would not come here again or recommend to a friend.
So much fun! Love the atmosphere, great food and friendly staff. (I think its fun I have to duck to walk to the restroom). The lights make the place memorable. Hope you reopen soon!
We made reservations at 7:30 for 8:00. We got there at 8:00. We see another vendor trying to get us to his restaurant which was located below Panna. He says it is totally fine as they are all brothers....okay.....We still proceed to the Panna and the older gentleman tells us the table is getting ready so we need to wait on the sidewalk. We see a group of 6 come and they are not asked for any reservations and are taken right away. Not cool! We went to Apna Masala around the corner. Higher star rating and much better ambiance. Food was great. So next time try to treat potential customers the way you would want to be treated.
Dont go there if you want good service. The restaurant is unclean and recycles dishes without washing them. The staff is very rude as well. If you are not a New Yorker, they may even try to take advantage of you and dupe you. Absolutely terrible experience.
Clearly people come here for the decor. The food was very good, but the service was terrible. They crammed three of us into a small circular table by the door and hustled us into buying things we didnt want. We asked for a dessert menu and they automatically brought us three ice creams that we didnt want. Cool place, but I dont like feeling hustled when Im eating my dinner.
This is a great place to take a picture for Instagram, but not so much to enjoy a meal. It is stiflingly crowded and the lights hang so low you need to bend over to walk around. The service is extremely rushed and as other reviewers mentioned they do take plates away before youre done, dumping whats left onto another plate. The food itself was really bland and poorly cooked. Overall, really disappointed.
I dont know whether to begin with the hair in the food, the terrible service, the yelling, or the physical harassment.Me and two of my friends arrived at the restaurant for dinner late on a Tuesday night, so naturally they werent busy. We had a fourth person joining us. They quickly seat us and get us water and menus and a free appetizer served to all guests (which had several hairs in it, so we ended up not eating it), and we made sure to tell them that we had another person joining. Keep in mind that the restaurant was far from being full. Within two or three minutes of being seated, we realized the restaurant was cash only, and decided to leave. We werent very hungry, as we had just come from an event, so none of us were going to spend a lot of money anyway, and with us all being college age, we didnt want to withdraw a large amount of money from the ATM and be charged for it. As we stood up to leave, a server immediately ran up to us and physically shoved one of my friends, in front of the entire restaurant, and yelled at us that if we would eat there they would take our cards no problem.Her being shoved should have been our first sign to leave, but we decided that maybe it was just a strange, accidental thing and that he just got too excited. We made sure to tell our server we were just getting appetizers, and he made no fuss over it. He insisted that we ordered immediately but everyone didnt know what they wanted. However, he kept insisting and kept insisting so finally I ordered my food and my friends said they would order something once mine came. The food came out very fast, and tasted fine. However, within five minutes of the food arriving, before my friends could order (this was within probably 20 minutes of us arriving at the restaurant), we were being harassed by multiple workers to leave. They said we werent spending enough money and that people were waiting for a table (no one was waiting). I finally just asked for the check.Only problem is, they overcharged me by nearly $10. Keep in mind I am a poor college kid on a budget and I only ordered two appetizers. I tried to explain to my server that it wasnt correct, and had my entire table backing me up because what I ordered was not on the check. The waiter started a screaming argument in front of the entire restaurant with me, and started grabbing my hand, touching my shoulder, knocking my hands out of the way, etc. Much of the argument was just as much me telling him to stop touching me as it was him insisting that I pay for food I didnt order. He finally fixes the check and when I hand him my card, he refuses to take it, telling me that I didnt spend enough to be able to use a card and that they dont take cards anyway. At this point two servers were at our table harassing us, still touching me and yelling. I have no cash on me and neither do my friends, so we are stuck, and one of my friends had to go to an ATM outside (overdrawing her account) to get cash for me to use while I was still trying to talk to the workers. At this point I had told my other friends to just leave and wait outside. She is taking a long time and I am still being harassed, so I stand up and walk towards the door to see if she was waiting for me there (keep in mind this is a tiny place, with ceilings around five and a half feet, so its not easy to walk in and our table was far in the back). I am harshly grabbed by the manager of the restaurant, who shakes me so hard I almost lose my balance and fall. I try to explain to him what I was doing, and he started grabbing my clothes yelling at me threatening to call the cops on me and my friends, refusing to listen to what I was saying or to let me go.Finally, my friend brings the cash back inside and I hand it to him and he releases me, only now he tries to keep the change. I have to stand there for five more minutes to convince him to give me my change back so we can leave.We were harassed, touched, and yelled at in front of all the patrons there, and we will not be returning. Would give 0 stars if I could.
Im almost positive that this was the worst dining experience Ive ever had.A friend decided to go here for her birthday, and made a reservation for 7pm. We arrived on time, walked up the stairs to the restaurant, and then the host pushed me down the stairs and told us to wait.We continued to wait, while the host would come out and assure us the table would be ready soon. After standing outside for an hour, we were finally brought in. However, the table was *still* not ready. We were pushed into the very back of this tiny restaurant, packed against the walls, waiting for another party to clear out.Eventually, we got seated. We were given complimentary samosas, which was nice. None of the entrees we ordered were particularly impressive. The met my already low expectations.Almost immediately after the plates were taken away, the check was dropped and we were expected to leave.Ive never received such poor service. I have no idea how this place stays in business. All I know for sure is that theyll never receive my business again.
Lets face it. This place is most famous for its thousands of dangling lights way below headroom. The food is ok. Not the best Indian Ive had, but reliable. The place is noisy, crowded, but charming.
Great restaurant and excellent service. Food was good and we got mango ice cream on the house as it was my birthday. They also gave us a lovely window seat. So happy I got to celebrate my birthday here! Very instagram worthy. Definitely recommend eating here.
I used to like this place. I found a long hair in myfood but I was like “ okay protein” but when the waiter ( old guy) said give 16 dollars with an attitude when I asked for a check, I was just done with the place. The food used to be really good before.
This place always delivers. The food is great and a bit less expensive than other similar places in the area, and service is friendly and attentive. Keep in mind its a tiny room and the decor prohibits taller diners from standing completely upright. Dont worry; its worth ducking your head to get in and enjoy the ambiance.
It was a terrible experience. Me and my friend went there during holiday time and after waiting for so long we got the table, waiter were so rude and racist , they were in so much hurry and they want you to just go as soon as possible to get new customers. One waiter followed us to the down of stairs when we expressed our concerns and he was abusing to all Indians and it was so disturbing, he specifically mentioned that they dont want any Indian to come here and he said Indians are cheap. Its not an Indian restaurant , they should not use the tag if they dont want to respect people and the food is so bad I cant explain.A big no and -ve ratings if there is an option here.
Excellent Indian food, very heavy on the butter though. If you dont make it a regular thing this place is an extraordinary treat, and the setting is very unique.
Fairly standard & straightforward North Indian cuisine in the East Village . . . but youre coming here for the atmosphere, not the food. Dining in this chaotic tangle of string lights while waitstaff artfully navigate the narrow corridors is truly a unique NYC experience. Definitely not for the claustrophobic! Make sure you enter the correct doorway (up the stairs & to your right) and beware of neighboring restaurateurs attempting to lure you in to their copycat establishments.
The food was really good but the waiters were super duper rude. I asked if they had a certain dish because I lived in India once and the waiter said “we only have what’s on the menu”. And we were also rushed to order and rushed to leave to seat others.
Do NOT go to this place - me and 2 friends came here for dinner. First off, the place is extremely cramped - my friend couldnt even get in her seat because they stuff customers in there with no regard for comfort. Next, the waiter elbowed my friend in the face and didnt even apologize. Service was absolutely terrible - the server was hostile, we had to ask multiple times to get water at the table, it took over an hour to receive our food (although there werent many customers). Additionally, we didnt receive a bread basket we ordered. We ordered 3 entrees, each of which comes with rice, but the server only brought out one plate of rice and refused to bring it more when we asked.It was the worst service I have EVER received - the bill came out to $55 and we felt generous even tipping $3 as the waiters essentially were just spitting in our faces. We walk outside after paying and stand outside and the owner CHASES after us and begins yelling saying that were required to tip at least $10. When I told him the service was HORRIBLE, he claimed we were wrong. When I said we hadnt received all the food we ordered, he insisted we hadnt ordered it (although all 3 of us remembered ordering). He essentially screamed at us and was so close to grabbing our purses and taking money. I have NEVER been treated so badly at an establishment. The food was some of the worst Indian food Ive had and an entree is over $15. There are so many better and cheaper Indian places in NY (even some right next to this one).If you go here, prepare to have the worst service possible, have your food spit it, and likely be robbed by the manager
The dishes were, mediocre service
Super rude staff. I sat at a table, my friend was gonna arrive in 15 mins, this waiter kept asking me every 2 mins about status. I asked if I could take a picture of the place he said yes in such a way like he was doing favor to me. Felt like being in india/Bangladesh where restaurant owners and staff in tourist places treat foreigners with respect and don’t respect locals 😑. Also the food does not taste good. I know so many other good Indian food places near by which are cheaper than this, better taste and better ambience. I just tried this thinking to try something new.
Wish I could give zero stars, the food is absolutely disgusting, the waiter was nasty and rude. I found a hair on the table and menu, our waiter spilt water on us. The waiter made us order more food because the portions were too small, he gave us attitude when we asked for extra rice, we waited 15 minutes for the check and our waiter threw it on the table. Horrible horrible service, we did not tip the waiter and he would not let my friend leave, he stood in front of her. We told him he did not deserve a tip for his service and he continued to argue and yell causing a scene in front of the entire restaurant. Tipping is not mandatory and he has no right to hold us back, I was very close to calling the police. I am appalled at his behavior and at the situation, this restaurant is horrendous and the waiters are horrendous. I will never come back here, avoid this restaurant.
Best Indian restaurant in the East Village! On the 2nd floor, this place always has a line of people waiting outside to get in. The surrounding restaurants will always try to woo you, but dont give in, because the chili pepper Christmas lights hanging from the ceiling and the tight seating are the essential charm of the restaurant. My boyfriend took me here on one of our first dates years ago, and when we show up once a year or so, they always remember us. A fun place all on its own, its even better if its your birthday, because they turn off the lights to garner the attention of all the diners as they bring your dessert. Classic NYC experience!
Solid place for food but you dont come here for the food you come for the novelty. Its really small so expect to be jammed into a table. Its BYOB which makes it affordale for NYC. The best part is the lighting. Its a fun experience with good Bangladesh food.
I accidentally walked in to the restaurant just downstairs, but Panna II is on the second floor! It’s a small place with cool decor; the Christmas lights create a fun atmosphere. However, the ceiling is low, so tall people be forewarned. BYOB, which is nice, but cash only. I ordered the Channa Saag, which was really spicy but good.
The service and management practices at this restaurant is appalling and discriminatory. We were denied service and entry at the restaurant because we weren’t interested in dinner, but wanted to try dessert and drinks. They lied to us that they didn’t have a dessert or drinks menu, and then when showing them their menu (which clearly had dessert and drinks), they told us to leave. I have already reported this business.
Cool spot! Good food and nice staff. Worth a visit
The worst Indian restaurant I had ever gone in NY. Panna 2 and the opposite restaurant were literally haggling for the customers and once inside they give me very rude service. One waiter was even ignoring me when I asked direction for the restroom.The food is very expensive for the quality and quantity they give you.I also found hair in the food, when asked they just ignored me and gave me another plate and the attitude was as if I purposely put that in my plate.And they were demanding 8$ tip for a 35$ bill, which was ridiculous.
Hands down the worst indian food I’ve ever had. Tasteless and terribly made. The decor is interesting for a minute but the incredibly loud edm soundtrack, poorly cooked food and bad atmosphere really ruined this place for me. Do not waste your time.
Not sure why people would ever return to this place. The food was average at best. Our 8 person table was made to take the banquet which was hardly a banquet. We ran out of food twice and had to ask for more after they only bought out three dips/paps and 4 small plates of entrees with one single plate of naan. We were 8 people! The service was rude and the maître d was horrendous - rushing people out the moment they put their fork down. Get out he yells at the table for two next to us. At $20 plus compulsory tip, its not worth it. Dont bother - the Christmas lights arent worth it
Worsttttttt Indian food ever... and you know what ? The service is even terrible..rude, unprofessional. Very unhygienic, it was disgusting. Dont go for the decor, it sucks too. The bright unique lights are the only attraction. Everything else is a disgrace in the name of Indian food. Save your money and forced tips at this place.
Definitely a place more for the experience than the food. The lights are definitely unique but the restaurant is tiny with too many tables. The food was average and the service was what I would expect for a place that was busy having worked in restaurants for 5+ years.
Make sure you go to the restaurant up the steps!! We were tricked into thinking the restaurant downstairs was Panna ii, there was a guy waiting outside rushing you through the basement door and seating you. Don’t go downstairs! The place is filthy, crowded, staff is rude, walls are disgusting along with the bathroom!! We walked about as soon as we realized we were tricked and that it wasn’t the correct restaurant. Make sure you go upstairs if you are trying to go to Panna ii.
Panas food is good, but you really go there for the experience. I dont want to spoil it for you, but the place has maybe a billion of little lights all around. Its also so tiny - but in a very cool way. The staff is just the best, always so happy to have you and serve you. I always take my tourists there for a local experience, and all of them have loved it so far! Two tips: its a BYOB place and you should also tell your server that it is someones bday (even if it isnt), trust me, it will be fun!
Due to the fame acquired is always crowded but I think is an overestimated place. Even is cheap, the food is good and the lights give the place a romantic atmosphere, the service is slow and you will have to wait to get a table. The day we went, they were not serving dessert because they have people waiting for a table, so we couldnt enjoy the place or the food.
Came here for a late lunch for an pleasant surprise of crazy Christmas lights that hang so low you have to bend down to avoid getting caught up in them! Was promptly seated and attended to - the food was good: started with vegetable Samosa and got their specialty beef Balti. Would recommend the Samosa, and the flavor of the entrée was good though I wish there was more meat. Certainly Ive had better Indian food, but for a fun casual atmosphere this place is certainly worth a visit!Tip: the place is a tight fit, so I wouldnt recommend it for large parties. But definitely take friends or a fun date.Cool fact: apparently this place was the setting for a scene in the Netflix show Daredevil in the 2nd season!
The atmosphere is everything!Happy I read other reviews which said to beware of the neighboring Indian restaurants trying to lure you in because they definitely did! Service was a bit slow and food could have used a bit more sauce but a fun experience nonetheless
A New Yorker spot. One of a kind on a street of Indian cuisine. Good food. Great environment. Fair prices. Pretty great service. Cash only. But itll make memories you wont forget. Good guys working there.
Crammed seating. The waiters try to persuade you to get more bread and then when you ask questions about it they dont want to explain. Their bill is questionable especially when they include their tip. Seems like they are afraid they wont get a tip so they put it in there themselves. A tip is NEVER required. And they surely dont deserve it.
Nothing to complain about,Loved the food and great experience!!You can take your own beer
Unless youre a white person dont go to this resteraunt. The food had no spice and the naan tasted like it was bought from an Indian grocery store. Also, the resteraunt is so small. I was told that they would be able to accommodate 5 people but then they made us stand in the back for 20 minutes. Everytime we tried to leave the waiter kept on blocking our way. Only the decor was nice everything else was horrible.
The food is very good. The service is exceptional. The decor is beyond tacky but suits the place and I wouldnt change a thing.The samosas are excellent and chicken Tika masala is yummy. I will be going back.
This is a fun restaurant that you can go with friends. The decor is overwhelming with Christmas lights and the space is crammed but the experience is one of a kind. It literally feels like youre sitting in someones RV to celebrate Christmas with Indian Food. The food was not bad for NYC standards. Highly recommend it.
The experience it was amazing, nice atmosphere.The food it was okay, a very basic Indian. I had Tikka Masala and hadn’t much flavour and tasty as I expecting.The waiters are very aggressive and you should be patience.
Dont waste your money at this restaurant. All they have added is food color and cream into every item. Not an authentic indian food, didnt use right spices in anything I ordered. Perfect example is Butter Chicken which was sweet, no restaurant in India adds sugar to Butter Chicken
If you want to get the authentic Indian experience go ahead. When I say authentic, I dont mean the food cause we didnt get the chance to try it. We waited inside the place, the waiter told us one minute, we stood 15 minutes on the head of other people. Then the guy in the entrance shoved me to the to go to the other side of the restourest saying the table is there. He just pushed me physcaly. We found ourselves standing next to the bathroom now. After few more minutes when everyone kept telling us 1 minute, 1 minute I decided its enough. This place doesnt respect its customers. Guys, you are in America, treat people respectfully, dont lie about waiting time, dont let people wait on other peoples head while they are eating and dont push them to go to the other side. Its not a third world country, its a restaurant in Manhattan.
The eclectic display of fire hazardous Christmas lights dangling precariously close to your head as you eat is definitely one of the unique draws of this restaurant. A lot of the entrees, including our tikka masala, was in the $6-8 range. We even got complimentary mango ice cream at the end of our meal. We went pretty early in the evening (weekday), so the restaurant wasnt as crowded and our waiters were quite attentive. We even got to witness their infamous birthday celebrations when they presented this little girl with mango ice cream with a glowing candle in the middle, the restaurants Christmas lights flickering to the beat of this funky Indian birthday tune.
The place is cute and the food is really good. But the the service was awful. The waiter was rude all the time. And after dinner we just wanted to take a picture and he kicked us out.
I WILL NEVER GO HERE EVER IN MY LIFE!So basically we were excited to go to this so called “ RESTAURANT” for a long time because we saw some people posting it on Instagram. The food was like 3/5 but the customer service was 0/5. The guys that worked there was so unprofessional. After we finished eating. We paid the bill in cash and we were about to leave cause the place made us feel uncomfortable. BUT! The guy stopped us on the way out and asked us why we didn’t give tips! FIRST of all we thought the tips was taken out of the “bill” as most of the restaurants does that policy! SECOND of all we didn’t even like the food! The place made us feel uncomfortable because every two minutes someone came and asked us if we want anything or someone staring at us while we are eating. THIRD!I would love to give out tips but the service I got was unexplainable! It was so rude that you stop a customer for tips! By the way! When he asked for tips. I GAVE HIM TIPS! So I did my part but they were so unprofessional. I don’t recommend this restaurant to anyone. Spend your money wisely. you don’t have to listen to me.But just think! Not everyone has the same experience but make wise decision. Thank you!
Total reviews rating 3.5
199 Reviews for Panna II Garden 2023:
Review №1
2021-12-07I’ve been meaning to explore this restaurant for a while. I finally did it and was disappointed.For starters the place is at the top of a very steep staircase. Once you enter it’s the size of your grandmother’s living room. The wait staff aggressively pushed us in without checking our vaccination cards.The place was packed to the rim with no room to comfortably seat or hang our coats behind the seat.The flood was bland and not the rich Indian food we’ve expected. The wait staff is extremely inattentive and forgetful.The food is fairly priced. Dinner for two runs you up about $55-65 dollars.Establishment allows BYOB (Bring Your Own Bottle). Alcoholic beverage.Establishment is cash only.Establishment has a beautiful and tasteful decor with the lighting, flashing lights and music.Three stars is awarded because of the cash only option, the blandness of the food and the inattentive wait staff.
Review №2
2022-06-19STAY AWAY IF YOU HAVE 6 more peopleWas charged a most $300 dollars for this food with bread. No one mention it was $30 per person if you have a group of 6 more. Worst birthday dinner ever. When we asked for water, or when the food arrive kept saying it’s coming. Waited 1.5 hours till food came . You don’t even get a regular menu or menu option which is crazy. Goes straight to group or prion. This was a terrible birthday dinner. No one mentioned the extra costs. The people next to us had 6 people and only paid $112. Were living in a recession it would be helpful for customers to know all the costs of the restaurant. Couldn’t afford to eat here 7 people for almost 300 For this food is crazy. If it was Tao or catch steak I understand but the food was below average.
Review №3
2022-01-08Very cool place, comfortable and Nice music!I was waiting more flavor, Indian food is very special.The chicken Massala a bit sweet style, Mango Lassi espectacular also the breads. I think they also need a bit of salt on the bread and rice.Good price and good service.
Review №4
2022-07-07My favorite East Village Indian restaurant. Ive been coming here since the late-1980s and it has never disappointed.I always get the mixed appetizer. I particularly like the samosas and the fried banana.As for the entrees, Ive never had a bad meal here.
Review №5
2022-04-23An interesting place to say the least. The decor is iconic. Perfect for taking photos. It’s also BYOB which can make for a GREAT party place. If you’re trying to get rowdy with friends, come here. Just know that the food is very average and it’s cash only. You can get much better Indian food elsewhere. At least it’s cheap. Be prepared to fight off hosts from the neighboring restaurants that are begging for you to sit down.
Review №6
2021-10-02Colorful and bright atmosphere in a quaint little spot. The outdoor dining is open and has a wonderful festive air. The food is delicious, and although the service is alittle slow that just gives you and friends more time to enjoy the atmosphere. You can bring your own wine or drinks as there is no alcohol served inside. Come and experience the explosion of colors and fun.
Review №7
2022-03-16Want to impress your date or a friend for dinner on an affordable budget? THIS IS THE PLACE! The cool lights, great food and cozy vibe will make a visit to this place unforgettable. Appetizers are between $4 and $5 with sizes big enough to share. Main courses $10-$15. Plus you can bring your own wine! My full dinner with 4 appetizers and an entree with a friend was $35 with tip and I still took food home🥰 Panna II on 93 1st Ave is very famous on Instagramand have inspired many celebrities to come over for a bite. I certainly had a fantastic time and hope to see you there next time for some delicious affordable Indian food🙌 Want more foodie ideas? Visit my Instagram @food_vivant
Review №8
2022-06-29Don’t listen to the low rated reviews, this place is a gem. The service is extremely friendly and efficient. The space is well kept and vibrant. The food is absolutely explosive with flavor and fairly priced for the portions! 5/5 all around. I’m leaving with a happy stomach and smile on my face!
Review №9
2022-02-13Very basic Indian restaurant. Food isnt great, its not too expensive. The decorations are cool and the staff are friendly. If its your birthday theyll put on a show and give you ice cream. Good place to try once.
Review №10
2022-05-14My friend went with a group here. The restaurant did not have her reservation recorded, so they had to wait 15+ minutes outside in the cold for a table to open up. After that, it took 30+ minutes for them to be given the menu. At first, the waiter told them that for groups greater than 5, there is a fixed menu that costs $30 per person. This fixed menu included chicken, but several of the group were vegans/vegetarians and also could not afford $30 per person. After spending several minutes trying to convince the waiter that this would not work for them, the waiter offered to give them the fixed menu for $25 per person. After explaining again that this would not work, the waiter agreed to give them the regular menu. It took another 30+ minutes for the waiter to return and take their order. They were continually rushed throughout the evening, with the waiter even taking one persons plate away as she was actively eating from it. They were served a check as they were eating that already had tax and an undeserved 40% tip factored into it. Overall, my friend and her group were extremely disappointed with the experience.