Lunch with my son in one of the trendiest Indian restaurants in NYC – at least this was plan A. Unfortunately, it was fully booked, so we ended up in the cheapest Indian restaurant I have ever been to! How did that happen? I’m not sure, but we did not regret it at all!
Bengal Tiger is located on the second floor of a building in Midtown, 58 W 56th Street. Neither the front door nor the stairs were overly welcoming. The double shabby grey doors upstairs were not any more attractive, but the reviews on Google were extremely good with a 4.4 out of 5 ratings. We looked through the little door’s windows to see plastic plates and cutlery on people’s trays. We were puzzled, to say the least!
Nevertheless, I opened the door and was delighted by the delicious smell that filled the restaurant. It reminded me of my Indian friends’ houses and I was taken by nostalgia. I decided we would be having lunch at Bengal Tiger. The restaurant is quite small and the decor is extremely simple. Colorfully painted squares adorn the grey worn walls to give a warm and friendly atmosphere to the restaurant.
Now it’s time to order, and a self-service system is set up for lunch. But as you are reading this article Bengal Tiger has changed the concept. From now on “real” servers will replace the self-service as the employee at the restaurant was telling me with a very strong Indian accent. Dinner has always been served at the table. They have regulars who come every day since the opening of the restaurant five years ago.
The concept is simple; the lunch set is $9.95. Brown or basmati rice with naan and you can choose two dishes among the vegetarian, chicken, or lamb dishes. Nothing fancy but so tasty and flavorful. Many people come for take-out and the restaurant delivers with a minimum of $20. They told me that the price will not change but their website shows an increase of $2!
Chicken Tika Masala and bharta (eggplant) for my son and Chana Masala (chickpeas) and curry lamb for me. $1 extra for the lamb and the total for both of us was $22.76! Quite cheap for NYC!
Sometimes it feels good to have a delicious meal without spending too many $, € or ¥!
I will go back to Bengal Tiger to find out how the new concept is working! Stay tuned!
Bengal Tiger
58 W 56th St, New York, NY 10019
📞 212-265-2703
Price:$
Open daily
Monday to Thursday: 11:30am-3pm, 5pm-10pm
Friday: 11:30am-3pm, 5pm-10:30pm
Saturday: 11:30am-10:30pm
Sunday: 11:30am-10pm
