I tried their food in 2019 for the first time. Was absolutely in love by their authentic south Indian cuisine. One of the best places to enjoy South Indian delicacies. In 2022 their food standards remains the same. The quality of food is great and the price is reasonable. Highly recommended for all Indian food lovers. Staff is friendly. The quantity is more than sufficient.

By far the best South Indian food you’ll get in New York City! Friendly staff, very clean place and quick service. All the dosas, idli, vada were delicious. I was a little disappointed with the coffee, it was not as strong as I expected it to be. But the waiter noticed my disappointment and Instantly offered to make a stronger version of the coffee. And for the next few days he remembered this and made a custom version of the coffee for me, impressed at the level of service.

Ohh man food was good Got to go again. Definitely 💯 hot crispy masala dosa was mouth watering and so was soft idli and hot vada. Tomato chutney was was lil hot for me n I missed the green chutney. They told different days different chutneys. Yesterday moong dal chutney was there which was ok But sambhar and coconut chutney were tooooo gooood

Check in was very quick , ordering was a breeze. We got our orders in less than 10 minutes which was awesome. Food tasted amazing, reminded me of my 20s in Chennai, and the original saravana bhavan. Went back for breakfast the next morning and ordered my self a strong filter coffee which tasted almost like a Tamil Nadu filter coffee . Will definitely visit when I have an opportunity.

If you want to eat like how the locals do, how can you miss out on this place. Yes, it’s only vegetarian but probably the most authentic South Indian flavors you can ever get. Service can get a bit iffy but that’s part of the authenticity:) Order anything on the menu, you can’t go wrong. Some hits IMO - weekend Upma - vada sambar - milgaipodi dosa - onion rava dosa - Madras coffee

Nice place ! Food tasted good and was served well. I had the business lunch combo for lunch and dosa for dinner. I can surely recommend!! Overall experience Food: 5/5 Quantity: 5/5 Ambiance: 5/5 Taste: 4/5 Staff: 5/5 Waiting time of food: 5/5 Overall: 5/5

The no.1 Authentic South Indian restaurant - wow! We had a mouth watering experience when we had the sambar Vada.. whole family was fighting for the sambar Vada absolutely yummy 🤤.. Everything else we had was amazing we went for a breakfast 🥞 it was amazing experience.. although for parking 🅿️ we paid $13-15 for an hour or two 2️⃣.. for the taste 👅 you get you can ignore the price we paid - lol 😂

This place is a vegetarian South Indian restaurant. They open at 9 so I went for breakfast. We ordered dosa , idli Vada combo and onion Uttapam. Food was freshly made however all chutneys were disappointing. Sambhar was also lacking some taste felt very blend and more like a daal.

Love this place. Saravanaa never disappoints. The service is so quick. I got seated right away. They have no outdoor seating. Lots and lots of gluten free options. It’s definitely a smaller place than most of their other locations. It’s located on Lexington avenue with lots of other Indian restaurants. I went with tried and tested as I was really craving a good dosa / idli and vada

Authentic South Indian Food | Canteen Vibe | Slow Service The food was pretty good - in fact, it is as authentic as it gets for South Indian food in the US. Ordered Mysore Onion Masala Dosa, Idli Vada, Poori and Filter Coffee. Perhaps only a couple of tables were occupied when I reached there. Despite that, it took nearly 20-25 minutes for them to take order. Had to request at least 3 times for my order to be taken - each time the response was that they’re sending someone to take my order soon. Also, the tables are extremely small - tiny in fact.

Totally worth the wait! I was craving some authentic Mysore masala dosa today and this place certainly did not disappoint. I ordered the Mysore onion masala dosa and my husband ordered the onion chili masala dosa. both were equally delicious. However, on the downside, expect long wait times to be seated as the place does fill up fast and long wait times for food delivery.

Saravanaa Bhavan is an authentic South Indian Restaurant chain actually based in South India. Their food revolves around vegetarian South Indian food. Their dosas and Uttapam were really good and fresh. I think the South Indian Tali was a great choice because you get small amounts of like 10 different dishes. The coffee is also famous and worth a try. Prices I think can be on the high side, but this is Manhattan and I have nothing to complain about the food.

A great restaurant for South Indian food. Ambiance: It feels very hole in the wall and sometimes those are the best places for authentic and delicious food. Food: The Mysore masala dosa, chutney, and sambhar was delicious. It's probably one of the best I've had in the city. As an appetizer, we ordered the fried idli which were excellent, I do wish they were a little crispier. We also got the pav bhaji which I found to be underwhelming, it's not something I'd recommend. Price: Prices are very reasonable and it's easy to get a meal for less than $20. Instagram: @TheShahLALand

The food was way too spicy for my palate. If the food is that spicy, it will be difficult to know the exact taste of the food. I had taken a vegetarian thali and at $23 it was quite expensive. It was not value for money with that kind of spice level.

Good food and taste was great too. We had dosa, and south Indian thalli. I believe Mysore dosa could've used more spice but this is subjective. Overall I was very satisfied and seating was fairly good for NYC, so I don't see why everyone is complaining about this. Chutneys were also on point the sambar seemed legitimate!!

Typical Sharavana Bhavan. The taste of the food is awesome as usual authentic south Indian. Ordered Vegetable Biryani, Masala Dosa and Mysore Masala Dosa all are delicious. But one thing to point out is no buffet option like the one we have in Toronto, Canada. Also, the prices are so steep. Surprisingly in Canada every item is within $15 but here in New York everything is in range of $15 to $20 and when we convert into CAD it will be even more pricey. The portion of vegetable Biryani they served is funny. It came in a small cup just a little bigger than a chutney cup which is just unacceptable. When you are charging such steep prices please provide customers reasonable quantity of food.

I wasn't to familiar with what I was ordering so I decided to Google what I wanted so I would know what I was getting.... but I'm pretty sure the waiter gave my order to the table next to me....I ordered the mini idly. But I decided to keep what I got because everything there is tasty. But I will be more careful next time and show him a pic if I have to. Very reasonable prices..... there are 2 rooms for dining in.... both different in atmosphere.... clean bathrooms and attentive waiters..... will definitely be back.

The food was delicious! The staff was very nice; although, it didn’t always seem the kitchen and staff were on the same page with what was able to be prepared. Luckily, our dosas were able to be prepared! Highly recommend the Mysore Masala, Kesari, and Paneer dosa. My husband is from India and he LOVED it! We had the best Vada! The filter coffee and chai were not the best though.

I honestly don't under why this restaurant has such low ratings. The dosas here are incredible. I've never been to India, but have heard from friends that their dosas taste just like they do in India. Easy 5/5. Recommend the rava masala dosa, but they're honestly all good.

The atmosphere was very basic - it’s obvious that everyone comes just for the incredible food! The dosas are the star of the show. We also ordered vada and idli, but they were hard and dry and seemed like they had been sitting out for quite some time. The service is prompt.

Really delicious and satisfying. We had the masala dosa and mini idli. This place is definitely on the pricier side and I wish a small side of Chana was an option (otherwise it’s $16 for Chana with poori). Service very friendly and straightforward.

For all things dosa, this place is a must go. Idli, medu vada and pav bhaji are the worst of quality when compared to the quality of dosa served here. So use this as a sign and don't order anything else but dosa. Also rice is fantastic. I took bisibele rice and it was delicious. Mango lassi, filter coffee are delightful.

Excellent, extremely consistent dosas, with the best chutneys in the tri-state area. This is a branch of a venerable South Indian chain, and has an encyclopedic dosa/uttapam selection, as well as decent medu wadas and idlis. I haven't tried the Chana Bhatura or South Indian Thali, but see lots of folks ordering them and they look tasty.

The dosas were so nice and crispy. All the chutneys tasted amazing. And the filter coffee was delicious. Lovely service through and through!

Worst experience and none of their food tasted like South Indian food! Ordered few items along with meals. One of the side dish that came with the meals got spoiled and smelled really bad. I made a complaint with the waiter, neither he nor the person he reported showed any repose. Up on asking for Manager, we were told he left early for the day. We were given two cups of sambar as compensation for the rotten side dish! The waiter was busy and brought a person to hear my complaint but seems to be he is not in a position to say anything and was just telling the same thing again and again that these are made for lunch and will get spoiled by dinner time!!! I don’t know why they served it knowingly! We will not visit here again and don’t recommend this place to anyone. I think this place is like North Indian (taste) version of Saravan bhavan! Really disappointed:(

This restaurant has a variety of items. They have all varieties of dosas utappam etc which are very tasty. South Indian meals @22$ is worth the price. Bisibelibath is the best. It was hot and very tasty. Curd rice was average. Badam halwa, gulab jamuns also tasted good.service is very good.

I ordered South Indian thali, my husband ordered uttapam. Thali was great, enjoyed everything. Uttapam however was burnt on the outside and somewhat uncooked on the inside. I would say go with Dosa, thali, or other options and skip uttapam.

The food was good, but service could improve. Ordered combo which comes with filter coffee and had to ask thrice for the coffee after we had the food and sat there for a while waiting. The rava chilli dosa was filled chopped green chillies. The idly vada plate was delicious.

The food was amazing, capturing the authentic flavors. It stands out as one of the top South Indian restaurants in the city. I tried the Onion Rava Dose, Idli Vada, and Filter Coffee—all were excellent. The Sambhar was particularly noteworthy, maintaining its exceptional taste and the service was fast

An amazing place to eat Indian food in New York. It is located near 20th Street and Lexington Avenue. It's a great place to eat some authentic South Indian food with Dosas, Pav Bhaji, Bisibele Bhat, etc. The filter coffee is a must try :)

Things that haven't changed in the last four years - Service. We waited and waited and waited for anyone to acknowledge us. All the while, people coming in after us just walked past us and got seated 🤷🏻‍♀️ Things that have changed - Kaima idly. Absolutely not the same. Not in terms of taste or texture. Couldn't see the onions and tomatoes as I usually did, back in the day. I used to dig their Kaima idly and was so disappointed to have dry-ish crispy idli that weren't a match to what they served before. - Kara dosa. The presentation and the taste. While not bad, it wasn't the one I used to die for. The gulab jamuns weren't properly warmed up. The rava kesari didn't have that perfect texture. I'm not sure if the change in taste was only for that day or temporary, owing to staff shortage but I was disappointed, to say the least. We always went there for the good food, knowing the service will not be as good. Not sure about the food there either, now.

As someone new to South Indian fare, I could not get enough! We ordered the thali, masala dosa, and channa bhatura. Every dish brought a host of unique flavors and textures that was so wonderful both by itself and when mixed & matched with the other dishes. We all left stuffed and satisfied. My only complaint about the food was that some of the thali was notably salty, as if someone had spilled salt into the dish. That being said, the dosa and channa bhatura were delicious, and I would order them again. Also, as mentioned by other reviewers, the service was lacking. We (a group of 4) stood around for quite some time without acknowledgment from the staff. They didn’t seem in a rush to seat us despite there being two empty tables. Luckily the food was well worth the wait!

First time trying and it was delicious we had the poori bhaji , mirchi pakoda, dosa, potato wada pao bhaji. Everything was fresh and good. Staff were nice even had questions answered . Will definitely be back!

This restaurant was so good! I will definitely come back. It did not close down in between lunch and dinner like some places. Also it served bhatura, which I have not been able o find in years. The waiter was nice as well as the kitchen staff. Can’t wait to go back!