Every afternoon at Bungalow in the East Village, chef Vikas Khanna stands under the marigolds that frame the entrance and arranges fresh flowers in the stone basins flanking the doors. A small crowd usually gathers to witness a 4:30pm ritual honoring the collective divine feminine energy with a drop of water from the sacred Ganges River.
For Khanna, these mindful practices aren’t mere routine; they are woven into the fabric of Bungalow. “The moment we light our clay oven, I put a tiny piece of dough into it,” he says, describing another practice. “My grandmother always did that, saying the first piece was to exalt the fire god. It’s small, but it makes you mindful of the generations before you.”
This sense of continuity is a guiding principle for the Master Chef India host, who opened Bungalow with restaurateur Jimmy Rizvi, of GupShup, in March 2024, on what would have been Khanna’s late sister’s birthday. The restaurant’s decor channels old-world charm, with wooden furnishings and brass fixtures, softened by a skylight in the back dining room that bathes part of the area in natural light. The space is luxe yet personal—curated with Khanna’s cookbooks, family photos and the aforementioned touches inspired by the social clubs of colonial-era India.
Khanna’s cooking at Junoon earned that restaurant a Michelin star for its modern Indian cuisine, and Bungalow extends that success, evidenced in part by a recent three-star New York Times review.
“We didn’t create these dishes; we inherited them. Our role is to honor them,” says Khanna. “If I wanted to cook French food, what would I represent? My purpose is to raise my people’s confidence, to show that our cuisine is amazing,” he says.”
In addition to upholding the integrity of the cuisine, Khanna incorporates events that have religious or cultural significance for the Indian subcontinent into the restaurant’s calendar as well. For example, the team celebrated the birthday of a legendary singer with petit fours shaped like musical instruments and gave out fresh dates for the prophet Muhammad’s birthday.
For Diwali, a festival marking the triumph of light over darkness at the start of the Hindu New Year, Bungalow is preparing something extra special. There will be no reservations, and guests are invited to dress in South Asian attire. Lamps and sweets will be on every table, and even the scent permeating the restaurant will change to sandalwood and rose.
These three dishes on Bungalow’s regular menu illustrate the past and present:
Ghee Roasted Plantains
The ghee-roasted plantains stand out as simple yet deeply flavorful. Ghee gives the starch a rich, caramelized exterior with a tender center. “Ghee is quintessential in all prayers,” says Khanna.
“New York really inspires you to keep things fresh,” he says. “You are adding [to the dish] but keeping that main soul of it totally intact. We smoke our chilies to make that spice rub. The mango chutney is done fresh the same day, because I want that texture. It’s not sitting in the syrup.”
Spice Roasted Pineapple
Chunks of golden brown pineapple bring their natural sweetness and slight acidity to this pairing with a spiced coconut curry sauce. Roasting the fruit concentrates its sugars, enhancing the flavor profile. The curry is balanced with a blend of spices alongside the richness of coconut milk.
“Coconut is the first auspicious thing that goes into prayers, the first thing offered to the gods,” Khanna says. “From the leaves to the sap to the fruit to the bark to the roots, every part of a coconut gets recycled. And coconut has been used in all the mythology nonstop.”
Rose Kulfi With Butterfly Pea Rabdi
Kulfi is a frozen dessert that’s thicker than ice cream. At Bungalow, it’s infused with rose water, giving it a subtle floral aroma that marries well with its smooth texture.
“Roses are important to Indian culture,” says Khanna. “They’re used in ceremonies, desserts, drinks, biryanis. In India, the celebration of rose is next level. They candy the rose petals; they make sweets out of it.”
As the candles are lit and the dishes are served, Bungalow will stand as a testament to the balance chef Khanna has perfected—honoring the past while pushing the boundaries of what Indian cuisine can be.