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5 Best Indian Restaurants in New York (2026)

Independently ranked by our review of ratings, reviews and reputation · How we chose

Thorne Savarin
By Thorne Savarin, Culinary Explorer · ✓ Data verified August 2026 · 8 min read

New York's Indian restaurants split hard between two crowds: the Penn Station dinner-deposit destinations built for groups, and the small East Village and Nomad rooms chasing something closer to fine dining. Every business on this page holds at least a 4.4, and between them they've pulled in over 16,000 Google reviews, which tells you how deep the demand for Indian food runs across Manhattan alone. The name at the top isn't the smallest or the fanciest; it's the one that's fed the most people at 4.7 stars and kept them coming back.

Short answer: Patiala Indian Grill & Bar leads with 4.7 stars across 5,189 reviews, a Chelsea room known for its lunch specials and tableside hospitality near Penn Station. For the highest rating on this page, Cloves Indian Cuisine holds 4.8 stars, and dinner there runs roughly $30 - $50 per person.
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New York's Indian Restaurants, Compared

# Business Rating Reviews Best for
1 Patiala Indian Grill & Bar 4.7 5,189 Groups near Penn Station View ›
2 Cloves Indian Cuisine 4.8 1,988 Seafood-forward Indian View ›
3 Bungalow 4.4 2,759 Chef-driven modern Indian View ›
4 Masala Times 4.6 1,829 Late-night Indian street food View ›
5 Red Onion Royal Kitchen To Table 4.8 1,209 Rajasthani fine dining View ›
5 Best Indian Restaurants in New York (2026)

Where to eat, and why

Patiala Indian Grill & Bar logo
#1 Overall🕑 Open 7 days↩ Responds to reviews

Patiala Indian Grill & Bar

4.75,189 Google reviews

Patiala Indian Grill & Bar serves authentic North and South Indian food in a large Chelsea dining room near Penn Station, positioned as upscale yet affordable with regular lunch specials. The restaurant runs a deposit-based reservation system for parties, a sign of how busy it gets, and its menu covers everything from paneer dishes to tandoori classics. It's built to handle groups efficiently while still turning out food reviewers call genuinely good, not just convenient.

What people praise

  • Garlic naan and chicken tikka repeatedly praised
  • Servers named individually and thanked for attentive recommendations
  • Handles large groups without losing quality
  • Complimentary appetizers and desserts mentioned by multiple reviewers

Worth knowing

  • Deposit and cancellation policy for reservations can catch first-timers off guard
  • Automatic gratuity added to the bill
Reputation scorecardrank in New York
Rating4.7 / 5
Review volume5,189 · 98th
Confidencevery high
Recency5 weeks ago
Info completenesssite · phone · hours
Rating breakdown88% 5-star
✓ VerifiedSource: Google

Our take: The most-reviewed Indian restaurant on this page by a wide margin, and the rating holds up at that volume. If you're near Penn Station with a group, this is the safe, proven pick.

240 W 35th St, New York, NY 10001

Cloves Indian Cuisine logo
#2🕑 Open 7 days↩ Responds to reviews

Cloves Indian Cuisine

4.81,988 Google reviews

Cloves Indian Cuisine is a Nomad restaurant from owner Syed Haider, built around Northern Indian fare with an emphasis on seafood dishes like shrimp biryani and salmon tikka, alongside a full wine and cocktail program. The consulting chef previously worked at Raga, a Midtown Indian restaurant that earned a three-star review from the New York Times. It's a smaller, more polished room than the Penn Station grills, with a reservation-forward setup.

What people praise

  • Butter chicken called out as tasting properly authentic, not Americanized
  • Shrimp dishes and seafood biryani specifically recommended
  • Complimentary desserts and wine offered by attentive servers
  • Fresh, strong-flavored chutneys instead of watered-down versions

Worth knowing

  • Reservation-heavy, walk-ins may face a wait
Reputation scorecardrank in New York
Rating4.8 / 5
Review volume1,988 · 83rd
Confidencevery high
Recency4 weeks ago
Info completenesssite · phone · hours
Rating breakdown92% 5-star
✓ VerifiedSource: Google

Our take: The highest rating on this list at 4.8, and reviewers specifically contrast it with more "mediocre, bland" Indian spots elsewhere in the city. Worth the trip for seafood-forward Indian food you won't find at every Midtown grill.

66 Madison Ave Store B, New York, NY 10016

Bungalow logo
#3🕑 Open 6 days/wk

Bungalow

4.42,759 Google reviews

Bungalow is a modern Indian flagship restaurant from Michelin-starred chef Vikas Khanna, serving dishes that draw on cuisine from across 28 Indian states in an elegant East Village dining room. The menu runs from yogurt kebabs to a mango three-way dessert, and Khanna is known to personally greet tables during service. It's the most ambitious kitchen on this page, built for a special-occasion dinner rather than a quick meal.

What people praise

  • Yogurt kebabs and daal Bungalow named favorites across multiple reviews
  • Chef Vikas Khanna personally greeting guests noted repeatedly
  • Elegant, warm dining room reviewers call worth the hype
  • A small nostalgic touch at the end of the meal, a candy in a red packet, gets mentioned often

Worth knowing

  • Some dishes served cold or inconsistent temperature according to a few diners
  • Getting a table is notoriously difficult
Reputation scorecardrank in New York
Rating4.4 / 5
Review volume2,759 · 93rd
Confidencevery high
Recency5 weeks ago
Info completenesssite · hours
Rating breakdown76% 5-star
✓ VerifiedSource: Google

Our take: Ranks fourth here mainly on review volume rather than quality; the rating still sits at 4.4 against real scrutiny from diners who came in with sky-high expectations from a Michelin-recognized chef. Worth it if you can get the reservation.

24 1st Ave, New York, NY 10009

Masala Times logo
#4🕑 Open 7 days

Masala Times

4.61,829 Google reviews

Masala Times is a Greenwich Village Indian restaurant and takeaway spot on Bleecker Street serving North Indian street food staples like pav bhaji, kathi rolls, and vada pav, with hours running past midnight on weekends. It leans casual and fast, aimed at the late-night and delivery crowd as much as sit-down diners. The kitchen is known for Mumbai street-food dishes that are harder to find elsewhere in the neighborhood.

What people praise

  • Pav bhaji and kathi rolls called authentic Mumbai street food
  • Staff bring a mango lassi unprompted if a dish runs too spicy
  • Open until 4am on Fridays and Saturdays
  • Warm, welcoming service repeatedly mentioned

Worth knowing

  • Spice level can run hotter than requested
Reputation scorecardrank in New York
Rating4.6 / 5
Review volume1,829 · 78th
Confidencevery high
Recency5 weeks ago
Info completenesssite · phone · hours
Rating breakdown76% 5-star
✓ VerifiedSource: Google

Our take: At 4.6 stars and open later than most of its competitors on this list, it's the pick if you want real street food after a night out rather than a formal sit-down meal.

194 Bleecker St, New York, NY 10012

Red Onion Royal Kitchen To Table logo
#5🕑 Open 7 days

Red Onion Royal Kitchen To Table

4.81,209 Google reviews

Red Onion Royal Kitchen To Table is an East Village restaurant specializing in Rajasthani royal-family recipes, serving tandoori barbecue, biryani, and butter chicken in a halal, vegetarian-friendly dining room. Reviewers describe an attentive owner who personally explains dishes and recommends pairings, and the restaurant has been open since early 2023. It sits at the higher end of the price range on this page.

What people praise

  • Butter chicken and spinach chaat singled out as standouts
  • Owner and waitstaff personally engage with tables
  • House-made mango lassi called the highlight of the meal by more than one reviewer
  • Halal, vegetarian, and vegan options clearly available

Worth knowing

  • Prices run higher than average for the neighborhood
  • Can get loud during a busy dinner service
Reputation scorecardrank in New York
Rating4.8 / 5
Review volume1,209 · 68th
Confidencevery high
Recency3 months ago
Info completenesssite · phone · hours
Rating breakdown93% 5-star
✓ VerifiedSource: Google

Our take: The highest rating on this page at 4.8, though on a smaller review base than the others. If Rajasthani specifics over generic North Indian menus matter to you, this is worth the premium.

277 E 10th St, New York, NY 10009

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Watch: 5 Best Indian Restaurants in New York (2026)

How we score these restaurants

Rating is the live Google average, review volume tracks how many diners left a review compared with the others here, and confidence weighs the two together so a small sample doesn’t outrank a proven track record. Recency checks how recently people are still leaving reviews. No restaurant can pay to change any of these numbers.

How much does Indian food cost in New York? (2026)

Prices climb with ambition: casual street-food spots like Masala Times run cheap, while chef-driven rooms like Bungalow and Cloves charge closer to a full night out.

JobTypical price
Street food (kathi rolls, pav bhaji)$10 - $20 per person
Sit-down dinner, mid-range$30 - $50 per person
Chef-driven tasting menu (Bungalow)$90 - $100+ per person

Prices compiled from reviewer-cited receipts and price-per-person highlights, verified August 2026.

Indian restaurants across New York

These five span Chelsea, Nomad, the East Village, and Greenwich Village, all within a short subway ride of each other in Manhattan. If you’re searching “Indian restaurants near me” from Midtown, Patiala is closest to Penn Station; from downtown, Red Onion and Masala Times sit minutes apart in the East Village.

What to ask before you book

  • Does the restaurant require a deposit or minimum spend for reservations?
  • Can the kitchen adjust spice levels on request?
  • Are there halal, vegetarian, or vegan options clearly marked on the menu?
  • Is gratuity automatically added to the bill?
  • What’s the wait like for walk-ins during peak dinner hours?

Frequently asked questions

Are these rankings paid?

No. Rankings come from public Google data. A business can pay to be a Featured Partner (badge and top placement), but that never changes another business’s score or position.

How did you choose these Indian restaurants?

We pulled real Google ratings and review counts for Indian restaurants across New York, then ranked them by a mix of rating, review volume, and how recently people are still reviewing.

How often is this updated?

This page was last verified in August 2026 using live Google data, and we refresh it periodically as ratings and review counts change.

Is there a difference between North and South Indian food on this list?

Most of these restaurants lean North Indian (tandoori, butter chicken, naan), though Patiala explicitly serves both North and South Indian dishes.

Do any of these restaurants require reservations?

Patiala and Cloves are reservation-heavy, especially for dinner. Masala Times leans casual and takes walk-ins, including late at night.

The bottom line

Patiala Indian Grill & Bar is the safest default for groups near Penn Station, with the review volume to back it up. If you want the single highest-rated meal on this page, Cloves Indian Cuisine and Red Onion both sit at 4.8, so pick based on neighborhood: Nomad for Cloves, East Village for Red Onion.

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