Saravanaas Bhavan

(212) 684-7755

81 Lexington Ave (26th Street)
New York, NY 10016 40.7414 -73.9833

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Neighborhoods: Kips Bay, Midtown

SARAVANABHAVAN.COM

Hours:

Mon-Fri 8:30am-3pm, 5:30pm-10pm

Sat-Sun 8:30am-10:30pm

Last updated 5.13.12

Category:

Restaurants

Payment Methods:

American Express, Visa, MasterCard

Restaurant Special Features:

Lunch Spot, Cheap Eats

Cuisine:

Vegan, Vegetarian, Indian

Editor's Tips

What People Are Saying About Saravanaas Bhavan

Featured Review

Kara Zuaro

Contributor

The Scene – A glass facade, silver tableware, and blond wood seating lend a modern feel to this streamlined space. Homemade art--magenta canvases with fake flowers neatly pinned on in rows--adds a bit of whimsy to the walls. Servers struggle to explain the menu to those who can't tell an idli from a chapathi, but the mostly Indian clientele is completely at home with the vegetarian South Indian fare. – – The Food – The plantain bajji, fried in lentil batter and served alongside rich sambar and coconut and mint chutneys, is love at first bite. To avoid repeated flavors,…

Editor's Tips

What to Drink:
The $6 glasses of wine are on the small side, but all the bottles are priced at $22. Take note: The Dr. Loosen Riesling is as sweet as it is cheap, and the thick mango lassi does a better job of balancing the spicy dishes.
The Extras:
The dense badam halwa, ground almonds steeped in butter and honey, makes a filling dessert.
ambiance
100.0% positive
  1. “The food is awesome and the prices are very reasonnble, the service aint that nice, and the ambience is ok also, but then its all about food here for us.”
  2. “The ambience is not bad either - there is usually a long wait during lunch especially in the summer, but the trick is to get there at the right time when there are fewer people.”
  3. “Granted, the service and decor here leaves a lot to be desired but the staff is sweet enough and the food is good enough to make it bearable.”
drinks
100.0% positive
  1. “The food was very delicious and the filter coffee reminded me of my hometown, we will go again to satisfy my south indian craving.”
food quality
96.42999649047852% positive
  1. “This place is like a local South Indian resturaunt you would find all over the south--good food, no pretentiousness and the servers slightly slow.”
  2. “amazing vegetarian indian food.”
  3. “Food was fresh and tasty, but authentic south Indian taste.”
  4. “The food is really, really good and i dont know what the other reviewer was saying about the portions--they seemed healthy enough, especially considering the price.”
  5. “The smell is intoxicatingly delicious.”
  6. “highly recommend this place for the food.”
  7. “All the main dishes are served on these great divided metal plates.”
  8. “they have the best indian food in nyc ,any time when u go this people are packed always there is a long wait for this restuarant but it makes lot of sense we had been seated because there food is great and the service is fantastic even though they are pac”
  9. “This is a vegetarian restaurant, and the cooks are authentic south indians.”
  10. “The food was very delicious and the filter coffee reminded me of my hometown, we will go again to satisfy my south indian craving.”
  11. “The food is awesome and the prices are very reasonnble, the service aint that nice, and the ambience is ok also, but then its all about food here for us.”
  12. “Granted, the service and decor here leaves a lot to be desired but the staff is sweet enough and the food is good enough to make it bearable.”
  13. “great food for great prices”
  14. “Great food”
  15. “Good authentic food”
  16. “Authentic food”
  17. “Authentic, tasty and inexpensive”
  18. “The food is delicious, healthy, and very reasonably priced (downright cheap).”
  19. “the creepy crawlies I saw in the establishment, and the mediocre food served in this place, I will never ever ever return.”
  20. “And the food is outstanding.”
  21. “The food is authentic and tasty.”
  22. “at lunch time on weekends), the food is authentic and very good.”
  23. “Love the food!”
  24. “came to Saravanaas the other day for breakfast and it was by far the best Indian food that I have ever tasted.”
  25. “have never had a bad experience here, and love the food.”
  26. “Once again though, the food was fantastic!”
  27. “Great food, crummy service”
  28. “best indian food and great service”
overall
100.0% positive
  1. “have had breakfast and lunch here, and dinner pick-up, and this is by far my favorite South Indian restaurant.”
return potential
0.0% positive
  1. “the creepy crawlies I saw in the establishment, and the mediocre food served in this place, I will never ever ever return.”
service
90.0% positive
  1. “This place is like a local South Indian resturaunt you would find all over the south--good food, no pretentiousness and the servers slightly slow.”
  2. “best indian food and great service”
  3. “The place can get extremely busy, and that only exacerbates the poor service.”
  4. “The ambience is not bad either - there is usually a long wait during lunch especially in the summer, but the trick is to get there at the right time when there are fewer people.”
  5. “The food is awesome and the prices are very reasonnble, the service aint that nice, and the ambience is ok also, but then its all about food here for us.”
  6. “They could use a little refinement on their service, but if you really want service go pay for it while sacrificing authenticity--i can recommend devi, tabla, etc.”
  7. “they have the best indian food in nyc ,any time when u go this people are packed always there is a long wait for this restuarant but it makes lot of sense we had been seated because there food is great and the service is fantastic even though they are pac”
  8. “Granted, the service and decor here leaves a lot to be desired but the staff is sweet enough and the food is good enough to make it bearable.”
  9. “The service is not bad either - but then I have never been here on weekends.”
  10. “Great food, crummy service”
value
100.0% positive
  1. “Authentic, tasty and inexpensive”
  2. “The food is really, really good and i dont know what the other reviewer was saying about the portions--they seemed healthy enough, especially considering the price.”
  3. “The food is delicious, healthy, and very reasonably priced (downright cheap).”
  4. “great food for great prices”
  5. “The food is awesome and the prices are very reasonnble, the service aint that nice, and the ambience is ok also, but then its all about food here for us.”
wait time
100.0% positive
  1. “The ambience is not bad either - there is usually a long wait during lunch especially in the summer, but the trick is to get there at the right time when there are fewer people.”
  2. “they have the best indian food in nyc ,any time when u go this people are packed always there is a long wait for this restuarant but it makes lot of sense we had been seated because there food is great and the service is fantastic even though they are pac”
  3. “This place is like a local South Indian resturaunt you would find all over the south--good food, no pretentiousness and the servers slightly slow.”
5 Star Rating: Highly Recommended

03/06/11

The best South Indian in NYC.

by vladya

This is the best South Indian eatery in New York.

I highly recommend getting Medhu Vada as a starter followed by either Mini Meals, Thali or Masala Dosa(or any other of the many they have) and Masala chai of course.

I've been eating almost exclusively Indian food for many years, having lived in Jackson Heights for years, i can tell you - this place is one of the few best ones in New York. If you think that East 6th street has any good Indian eateries - you don't know authentic Indian food. The crowd says it all, this place gets packed with Indians. And the staff has been great in my experience, especially female staff :) no, both actually.

I currently reside in South Korea and this is the place i miss the most.

5 Star Rating: Highly Recommended

02/19/11

Delicious food!

by GoDuke

Had a great couple of vegetarian dishes and a bottle of mine. I'd definitely recommend this Indian restaurant and will be back again.

1 Star Rating: Poor

02/07/10

Disappointing ~ Not much to Expect

by mpatel1950

Some people told me to check out Saravanaas....so I went. The food was "okay". It truly could have been much better. Not to my expectations, and I've been a lot of restaurants in Little India. Some MUCH better choices in the area.

  • Pros: Nice Place to Hang out
  • Cons: Overrated
1 Star Rating: Poor

04/01/09

PLEASE DON'T GO HERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!

by frequentdiner12

This was THE worst dining experience of my life!! Put aside the fact that I was ignored by my waiter, the busboy and a man who seemed like the manager when I asked for a plate (I literally had to go to the kitchen and get it myself, seriously?), the creepy crawlies I saw in the establishment, and the mediocre food served in this place, I will never ever ever return. I was warned about this place, and even heard a few people making complaints as I was being seated and I still ate there-boy, am I sorry!! Please heed my warning and stay away-with the variety of restaurants in the area it would be a shame to give even a dime to this place-please spare yourself and your wallet and go elsewhere!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  • Pros: the area-plenty of OTHER restaurants to choose from
  • Cons: everything
5 Star Rating: Highly Recommended

03/10/09

Satisfaction

by RomeoFoxtrot

I came here for dinner on a cold night recently and had one of the most overall satisfying meals I've had in a while. After about twenty minutes of pouring over the menu, I settled on the mini tiffen, a meal with assortment of sample on it including a small version of one of the potato filled dosas, the rava kichidi (one of the rice dishes), and a few other chutneys, as well as daal. I had a small Taj Mahal beer, which in addition to the onion raita, helped to temper some of the heat from one of the spicier condiments. All the main dishes are served on these great divided metal plates. Alll in all I found the meal to be very balanced in terms of flavors and textures. The cold Taj Mahal really went perfectly as well. Yum!

  • Pros: Great Food, Cold Beer
  • Cons: Bright! Odd signage inside.

The Details on Saravanaas Bhavan

Place Categories:

  • authentic food
  • great crummy service
  • big place
  • authentic south indian
  • best indian food
  • inexpensive authentic
  • poor service
  • cold taj mahal
  • amazing vegetarian
  • that nice service aint
  • really big meals
  • intoxicatingly delicious smell
  • worst dining experience
  • particularly liked kaima idli
  • not bad ambience
  • recommend devi
  • great divided metal plates
  • mediocre food
  • favorite restaurant
  • big smile
  • never bad experience
  • great prices
  • not bad min
  • full owner
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