Chef Vikas Khanna’s Bungalow Receives Michelin 2024 Bib Gourmand Award
- Along with being recognized for serving good quality food for a good value, the eatery is also named in The New York Times ‘Best 14 Restaurants’ in NYC.
Vikas Khanna’s newest restaurant Bungalow in New York City has received the Michelin 2024 Bib Gourmand Award, distinguished as offering “good quality food for a good value.” The eatery was also listed among The New York Times ‘Best 14 Restaurants’ of 2024 in the Big Apple.
The Indian celebrity chef and filmmaker opened Bungalow on March 28, coinciding on the day his late sister Radhika Khanna would have turned 50. She died on Feb. 28, 202 due to multiple organ failure at 48. She had been battling Lupus, renal failure, and a HUS (atypical hemolytic uremic syndrome), a rare disease that causes tiny blood clots in the small blood vessels of the body for years.
The Michelin Guide said the celebrity Indian chef has “struck out on his own” at Bungalow, “a warm and welcoming dining room where pale pink walls, colorful murals, and a bar with carved panels set a stunning tone.” Getting a reservation may be difficult at the restaurant, the guide says, but once you find a seat, “start with one of their unique cocktails, then tuck into contemporary Indian cuisine that showcases the diverse culinary traditions of India’s 28 states.”
Reviewing Bungalow in The New York Times, Priya Krishna said Khanna “brings playfulness and creativity to regional Indian dishes, with a level of ambition that shows just how much Indian dining in the United States has evolved in recent years.” Describing Khanna as “anything but a distant celebrity chef, Krishna notes how “he strolls through the restaurant on a nightly basis, greeting each table in an ornate dining room that feels more like a wealthy ancestor’s home.
One of the first Indian chefs to receive international acclaim, Khanna started his first restaurant, Junoon, in New York City in 2010 which got its first Michelin star the following year and went on to acquire many more. He has hosted events for former president Barack Obama, His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Pope Francis, Narendra Modi, and many other world leaders and celebrities. He is the goodwill ambassador for the Smile Foundation and supports the cause of fighting malnutrition in India.
When India underwent a strict lockdown due to the Coronavirus pandemic in 2020, the New York City-based chef took it upon himself to help the needy and poor in India through his Feed India initiative which was a success.
In 2015, he became the first chef to launch his book “Utsav: A Culinary Epic of Indian Festivals” at Cannes. He also directed a documentary called “Kitchens of Gratitude” at the renowned film festival and produced a documentary series “Holy Kitchens,” which explores the bond between faith and food. In his latest book titled “Barkat,” he shares his personal journey, from spending his childhood days in Amritsar to becoming one of the most beloved Indian chefs in the world.
In 2020, Khanna made his directorial debut “The Last Color.” Set in the ancient Indian city of Varanasi, the film follows the life of a 70-year-old widow Noor, played by actor Neena Gupta, and her special bond with 9-year old Chhoti (Aqsa Siddiqui), a homeless girl who aspires to go to school and makes ends meet by performing stunts as tight-rope walking and selling flowers. He then directed “Barefoot Empress,” about a 96-year-old woman in a Kerala village, who pursued her dreams of going to school.
He is also executive producer of the Oscar-qualified animated short “American Sikh.” The film tells the true story of an American-born, turban-wearing Vishavjit Singh, “who after a lifetime of facing prejudice, self-doubt, and violence, finally finds acceptance in a superhero costume,” according to the film’s website. Based in New York City, Singh is an illustrator, writer, performance artist, diversity speaker, and creator of Sikhtoons.com. He is publicly known for his Captain America persona armed with a turban, beard, and humor to tackle fear, anxiety, bigotry, and intolerance.