Great service, great food, and most of all a clean table and place to sit! You won't find this combo very often in Jackson Heights! The food is exceptionally delicious, with different levels of spice so you don't have to sacrifice flavor. Their biryani options are top notch, and not too dry! And their meat stews and curries are full flavored and nuanced. The tables and seating are spacious and comfortable and very clean. I cannot stress enough HOW RARE this is for Jackson Heights. You can not ask for a better location for a group dinner! We paid about $50 per person and had enough leftovers for 2 more meals. Would love to come back here again! read more

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Just homely Bengali food. Not restaurant types... Don't go with so many expectations I have heard about this from my Bengali friends, though I am not Bengali I just love Bengali food, much much variety which I never saw in other cuisines. Don't get me started on fish types and their various preparation. I knew it's not a proper restaurant so my expectation was not like that. We went there with 3 other Bengali friends. You have to go to counter to see all the food items and then you can choose whatever you want. We ordered so many things, alu-chokha-baigan bharta- alu bhaja- mutton curry- ilish mach-prawn curry- some fish with gobhi- fish fry Out table was not sufficient for keeping all the dishes. My fellow Bengali friends were really happy to see this and we liked the food. Yup, we liked it. As it was more like home food and not fancy Bengali restaurant type. Everything was bringing memories from Kolkata homes. And it is not even expensive. Every item was from $4-$12. We four were there and it was $72 only and we had 6-7 dishes. Only bad thing is that from Jersey City to Queens, we had to change 2 paths, so one person it is $11 for both ways. So we spent $44 to come here and have this food. Was it worth it? I would say NO. but yes, once in while you can come. read more

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It was 2am, I was in the area, and craving chicken korma - not caring whether it was Indian or Bengali, first I drove up 74th St. in the rain looking for one of those all-night Indian buffets that are one of the beautiful things about Jackson Heights....couldn't find parking near the 1-2 I passed. So down 73rd I went, realizing that the food is more-so Bengali on this street. That'll do. Not a biryani fan, or really a Bengali food enthusiast, I hoped that the all-night buffet on 73rd where I did find a parking spot near, would have a little of both Indian and Bengali, maybe some Paki & Afgan food too (?) to satisfy the multicultural cravings of the neighborhood. This was just a fantasy in my mind though...I had no idea what would await me... As I walked up the steps to the brightly lit, steamed-up buffet, I saw that the place was bustling with laughing groups of men eating at multiple tables at 2:30am on a Monday. To me it was a good sign - the food must be decent, since other options do exist nearby. Although people who dined & worked there initially looked at me like I had 5 heads when I walked in - for being a woman outside of their culture who was there alone @2:30am, I pretty much expected that reaction...as long as it wasn't a hostile one...which it wasn't. As soon as I approached the counter and scoped-out the hot food options, I noticed that I was assigned a woman to help before I asked anyone anything! She came out from behind the counter to describe every dish in excellent English and basically treat me in a genuinely sweet, hospitable way. I was surprised! She was the sweetest ever the entire time, and sadly, she is the reason I'm giving the restaurant any stars. While they did have the korma I craved, it was in 1/2 chicken form only, which I wasn't hungry enough to eat by myself at that moment...and since I had to go back to driving after that, I didn't want an epic meal. I looked for something else with smaller pieces of chicken, that I could possibly get a small portion of, that appealed to me. Even though it's kind of safe & boring, I was drawn to the chicken tikka, which I think the waitress tried to deter me from in retrospect. But it was the only other thing I felt like eating that was there...everything else was covered in heavy sauces & I was worried about getting food coma/itis.... The waitress microwaved my chicken tikka order (one size only was available-boo) along with the basmati rice I had to order separately....although I know it's probably standard procedure, I would've appreciated the option of it being put in an oven or something if it wasn't warm, because microwaving destroys taste in my opinion...I just really hate microwaved food. Not only did the microwave destroy the food ( even the rice got plastic-y), to make matters worse, it did not mask the distinct taste of OLD FOOD . It definitely tasted like chicken that had been sitting out with no refrigeration or heat - ALL DAY maybe even more than one day - then microwaved. Lawd knows I wanted to send it back. But she had been so nice, and I had chosen to take a chance on a random spot late at night....too many factors that made me not want to be that person... Plus I feared that maybe I just didn't like the way Bengalis make chicken tikka, and it was just wasn't my taste. It didn't help that they had no more chai, no iced tea, no coffee... Nothing not canned. They gave me sauces in teaspoon size containers with no refills...I poured everything on the chicken I could to improve the old & weird taste...nothing worked. Hungry, I just ate. I didn't get an upset stomach - was lucky. Later, I called my Indian friend to ask about that place & my chicken tikka experience there- he laughed at me for eating at that particular spot. He suggested a different all-night buffet around there that he says is good for us to try together next time. But since the waitress was super nice, helpful and sweet, and the staff were super cheerful and good natured - even at 2:30am on a Monday...which is probably why I just ate the food without complaining...I have to give them credit for that at least. read more

Khaabar Baari Restaurant - Chicken tikka (tasted old), side order of basmati rice....all microwaved... Nothing was good - Indian Near Me - Jackson Heights, New York

This review is for Fan #110. This was my first guided experience with Bangladeshi food. My ambassador held a program here, showing us his Best Bangladeshi and Bangladeshi-Chinese restaurant in New York City. Lots of fish are served here, as the culture is heavily influenced by waterways throughout the country. It's different from Indian because most people from Bangladesh are Muslim, therefore have no problem eating beef and other meats (no pork). This is a special restaurant though. The kebabs are pretty ridiculous, showing up as gnarly looking things potentially scorching your insides. I loved the chicken samosas - these curried things had sooo much flavor. You'll find lots of vegetable dishes because fruits have a hard time growing in the terrain - that's okay, because as something I don't normally eat, I was a big fan of all the mixed vegetable dishes. I learned about a dessert here called Ghorer Sandesh. It's extremely rare, nearly like a fudge of the south (Asia). It's not too sweet like many indian sweets, and makes me feel like I'm in one of those touristy sweet shops in Pennsylvania, "How quaint." The steam table selection numbers around 16 options, and there's plenty of room. You'll know this place from the bicycled rickshaw in front. I never was blown away by Spicy Mina, I dig it here. Must go back for more fish. read more

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I have eaten here 3-4 times in the last 1.5 years and have enjoyed every meal. I will say that not every single item I've had was mind blowing but if you choose the right items, you'll be happily satisfied. I recommend always ordering a variety of bhortas (smashed and spiced veggies and/ or fish/shrimp). I also really enjoy their korma, kala bhuna (beef curry) and seasonal veggies. The waiters are also very kind! read more

I had the Gawlda Chingri (giant river prawns aka Macrobrachium rosenbergi) , Shutki Bhorta (mashed dried fish), Begun Bhorta (smoked mashed egg plant) and Chicken Biryani (curry chicken fried rice :) ) . The river prawn was fabulous, large claws, head and all :). The Shutki and Begun were good. The Chicken Biryani was average. The side complimentary salad was below average. I picked this over other places because it had the prawn the bhorta and was relatively clean and empty. The staff was friendly and helpful. The prawn was a tad expensive, but worth it :) There is convenient sink with warm water to wash hands after the messy claw eating. read more

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I went there for late lunch with a friend. We ordered kacchi biriyani (half plate) and tehari (half plate) and as the side we opted for beef vhuri. The biriyani was okay, not the best in New York but we will gladly eat this again. However, the vhuri is the reason behind this review. I was SO YUM! perfectly spiced and felt as good as the home cooked food. My friend, she loved it too! The quantity of serving was very generous and the ambience decent (borderline nostalgic, like bangla restaurants in Dhaka). My only regret is not ordering more vhuri for take away. Vhuri (Beef intestines) is not commonly available in most deshi restaurants. As for the negatives, I must say that the service was a little slow and a bit confusing. I will recommend this place for a taste of some homely Bangladeshi cuisine. Both of us were famished and too indulged in conversations to remember to take photos that can be uploaded. read more

The place is nasty. Do not eat here. The food isn't clean. It took very long to get service and the tables were nasty. They had other people's food left on the table and the waiter told us to sit there before they cleaned up. Also when we got the food the food was frozen cold. When we received the bill they charged us for things that we never ordered. We ordered a naan but we never received it either. read more

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What a mess. Places like these embarrass me of my fellow South Asians. Food- Way over priced Quality- Way subpar For $22 I got 3 ras malai balls which I had to throw out because they went sour in the fridge after two days and Hilsa fish curry which was super poor quality and also thrown out, in other words I paid $22 for garbage. Contemplated some of the tandoori chicken items which were reportedly white breast meat, but I asked to look close up and saw it was all thigh meat. Dodged that scamming bullet. Contemplated the prawn but was quoted some ridic price (like $9 a piece, $9 for a piece of uncleaned maybe jumbo sized previously frozen shrimp?) They didn't have any chai (wtf?) The kicker, they wanted to up charge me for paying with credit card. One server guy was nice and semi-literate in English. read more

(Continued from the previous) Mixed Vegetables Curry The cauliflowers and carrots were sweet and tender, which, the head chef exclaimed as imported directly from Bangladesh. The chopped green onions added brightness to the aptly cooked vegetables, while the fried shallots deepened it with an extra layer of caramelized savoriness. Bharta The roasted eggplant bharta was very spicy with green peppers. The eggplant bharta was pleasantly edible, but the tomato bharta hit the palate with a pleasurable taste akin to an enriched ketchup, with a magnificently concentrated flavor of the tomatoes. After the forceful top note of tomato, one was left with a light, refreshing vinegar, whose acidity was rounded off by the sweetness of sugar and raisins. Beef bihari kebab The very chef of many specialties and decades of cooking experience introduced this tender Bangladeshi kebab to the United States for the first time. The rather lean beef was marinated for ten hours in a spice mixture of cinnamon, cardamom, black peppers and various other spices. But what makes it special and bihari is the addition of raw papaya, whose enzyme acts as a tenderizer of the meat (the same chemical reaction was adopted by Chinese cuisines as well). The long marinade and the enzyme made the beef tender, as to be expected; nonetheless, the meat itself was otherwise relatively flavorless. Ras Malai Ras Malai are sweet white balls of chenna (Indian cottage cheese), which have been steeped in condensed milk and flavored with either cardamom, or in Bangladeshi, pandan* (regrettably, I could not confirm as to which of the spices of was used, if any, as the sweet, condensed milk overpowered any trace). The soft but bouncy balls were sponges, which soaked up the decadently sweet condensed milk to an unstable and wobbly equilibrium, which broke as it landed in my mouth and exploded into a milky flood. The textures and flavors of the spongy chenna and syrupy milk were different, and yet, they were united by the hypnotizing sweetness of the milk, which coaxed out the innermost child and brought back all the tender memories. Together with gurer sandesh, these two sweets opened my tightly shut eyes to the world of Bangladeshi and Indian sweets. * Many Asian cooking calls for the leaves of pandan, especially sweets. Gurer sandesh (shondeshi) - Special cheese dessert with nalen gur During the winter months, the sap of a date palm is collected before dawn. And gurer sandesh is made with this special natural brown syrup and the ubiquitous chenna, which must hold a similar place like the Japanese azuki bean paste. The uninitiated to both would not be able to readily discern the subtle and nuanced varieties and, thus, hastily conclude them to be all the same. Not so; not the same at all. The café-au-lait colored sandeshi was crumbly and cool to the touch, which melted instantly upon touching the tongue, leaving a gently sweet dreamy residue - the dew tasting of a sweet, lingering night - and the simplicity of the ingredients allowed the nalen gur to permeate the mouth with its elegant complexity of caramel, spice and nuttiness. One would be most reluctant to wake up from such a sweet dream. Rosgolla (rasgulla) - homemade cheese balls cooked in sugar syrup After the flooding of the milky ras malai, the similarly prepared rosgolla had no fair fighting chance, because, instead of sweet condensed milk, it was merely stewed in a plain sugar syrup. Chom chom is the dry version of ras malai, similarly made of chenna and sugar. Its texture is grainier than the ras malai and denser with a consistency quite similar to anko - the Japanese red bean paste. The pronounced flavor of milk solids counter-balanced the sweetness of the small white balls. read more

Well since I've started reviewing Jackson Heights I might as well finish what I started. My family and I stopped by here for a quick meal, and it was pretty lackluster. I mean from outside the cheesy decor, and the bright neon signs should be a clear sign to just stay away. But instead, inside are throngs of Bengali males, some young some old. Sitting there. Some are eating. Most aren't. Usually they're just sipping away at their chai's. Watching tv, talking politics, etc. To be fair to the guys, the food isn't worth the purchase imo. We stayed mostly conservative with our orders, just getting biryanis and some curry. Nothing came out great. My parents had the look of disapproval in their eyes. Fortunately, I wasn't the one who brought them here, haha. But, yeah. Just don't come here. read more

I like this place. 1) Great place to get some good South Asian snacks. 2) The food is very affordable. However, not the tastiest. 3) The service is pretty quick. read more

My first time eating here. Came with the family, and I regret to say, it was a terrible decision. We ordered the Thai Soup with chicken and the "Especial". Nothin' "especial" about it. It came to us at room temperature. Boo. Then we ordered the naan, chicken curry, Bihari kabab, and chicken kabob. Everything was undercooked, except the Bihari kabab!!! It even looked unappetizing. I was so turned off. Considering all the competition in the Jackson Heights area, would've thought this place would be AT LEAST so-so. The only reason I'm giving this place 2 stars is because their tea is OK. read more

During one of my final business meetings of the year, as we discussed the upcoming initiatives and media releases, the chief executive paused to wax poetic about the virtues of Indian-Chinese food. "It is the best food in the world," he said. Valid point. Fusing the flavors and cuisines of two subcontinents works well in theory. In the back streets of Calcutta, wallas will whip up a fresh wok of noodles, chicken strips and sliced vegetables for about 50 cents. Each bite will contain a dry, curry and chili rub, one that combines the spiciest elements of Indian and Chinese food into one fiery bite. So a neon sign on the ground floor of a converted turn-of-the-century home on a Queens street convinced me to pause my Christmas pashmina shopping: "We have Bengal and Indian Style Chinese Food." We went inside (my roommate Zack, who also accompanied me to Calcutta, was in tow as well) to a dining room that held a dozen or so tables, with a covered buffet at the end of one table. "I'll take chili chicken please," I said, referring to the most common Indian-Chinese dish. The person behind the buffet, a man in his mid-20s with a Victorian-style mustache, began to fashion his lips into a "no," but he was interrupted by his manager. Of course we have chili chicken, he said, and gestured to a tray of chicken chunks floating in a brown sauce. "That's not chili chicken," I said. "Yes, yes! Chili chicken, right here." "Look, I know what chili chicken is, and that's not chili chicken." "Yes, here it is," he said. "Chili with chicken. Chili chicken. How many portions?" He mute apprentice finally spoke up as this game was heading into a third round. "You want the Indian Chinese food?" And suddenly the manager remembered that he served the real product downstairs. He escorted us to the basement, where a sign indicated that we'd just missed Anil's Birthday Party. Some of the guests remained, large Bengali families with several children under the age of 10. An American Bengali channel played a very old movie obviously sourced from a poor videotape -- large black sections filled nearly half the frame. Every ten minutes the viewing stopped for some of the most provincial advertisements I'd ever seen. Blueprints for a mosque, pleas to vote in a local cultural board election, a takeout place in Houston. The station is a petri dish for what will make it on the air if the price drops low enough. I ordered three Indian-Chinese mainstays: chicken lollipop, chili chicken and a beef fried noodle. The lollipops came first -- chicken wings de-boned with the meat reconstructed, breaded and fried with the bone exposed at one end to the give the dish its titular shape. Then came the chili chicken, which was a normal Chinese stir fry with a few blobs of red sauce. Finally the chow mein showed up, with resembled the chow mein at any of America's 100,000 or so other Chinese restaurants. All of the dishes were mediocre -- overcooked and therefore dry while simultaneously containing too much grease. The chicken lollipops were drowning in breading. The distinctive curry notes and dry rubs in the chili chicken and chow mein were absent. I left disappointed, realizing that I should have listened to the mute apprentice -- they did not serve chili chicken here. read more

I am really impressed by their prawn curry, it is full of concentrated shrimp flavor and tastes so good with naan. Their fish curry is also fabulous. Vegetarian dishes and biryani are less good but still OK. The restaurant is very clean, but the service is terrible. They need to be more organized. read more

Don't waste your money. You can see a lot of variety, but not a single dish is going to satisfy you. I am a bengali and well conversant with the cuisine they offer but it really doesn't taste anywhere near authentic. For example, bhapa ilish (hilsa in mustard sauce) tastes sweet!!!!!! (This is the moment in the restaurant when I determined to write a negative review about the food). Only edibles are the bhartas and don't even dare to taste the sweets. One star only for the a lot of variety under one roof, helping anyone missing bengali cuisine for decades (yes!only worth it then!!). And if you are a bengali - , read more

Employees are nice and friendly but foods are bad ! Never had samosa with plain red beans inside and gave ketchup packet for samosa sauce on the side , REALLY !!! Had more Horrible experience which this page will not be enough to write!! Don't go here read more

Bengali is my favorite cuisine and I love the food here .The place is clean and the waiters are always attentive.I have been here few times and love their tea,Bhorta platter and also they have good gola khichuri and Teheri. I like their food a lot better then haat bazar . read more

THIS PLACE DESERVED TO BE SHUT DOWN. One of the most nastiest, fake places I've been. I ordered a sesame chicken and they give me a Szechwan chicken. When I ask the waitress, who can't even speak English, she tells me I don't know my Chinese food. The seats are torn up. The area is covered in dirt and the tables are not cleaned. Do not go here if you want good food. I came with high hopes and am utterly disgusted. We also ordered chowmein, and we asked for no spiciness to a minimal spiciness. When it came out, it was covered in chili flakes! The chowmein didn't even use any traditional noodle types (like udon or soba), they used cup noodles! I am disgusted. I'd give this place negative stars if I could. read more

Khaabar Baari Restaurant - They're trying to tell me this is sesame chicken! Where is the sesame! This is 100% Szechwan chicken. I threw it away. - Indian Near Me - Jackson Heights, New York

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Their food is really great, hosts are very friendly, they give you their honest opinion, if you ask them about the food you don't have any idea. Relaxed environment compared to other Bengali restaurants. Their Indian style Chinese is also good. read more

This place is a complete rip off.we always go for take out and every time they quote a different price for the same thing. Once it so happened that the lady at the counter quoted a price really high and then during checkout, another lady charged $5 less. It's hard to trust them. Another problem is they keep cooked food unrefrigerated for days and then heats them up and keeps selling. The food really smells. Be careful especially in the summer. And the ladies working there really need to learn some manners. They are rude!!! read more

I started working in weekly probash on october 2913. From then i know this place. But i never been to there. Instead i used to go to Premium sweets. But one day with my friends i went there. I am a fan of biriyanis and goat meat. So as usual i ordered kacchi biriyani with goat curry. There service were awesome, foods were looking good. But unfortunately the taste was not so good. The kacchi is ok. I may give 6 out of 10. But the goat curry was smelling lamb. They call it goat curry, but it was basically lamb. I ate so many goat curries and lamb curries. I can easily differentiate that. So i called the waiter and he said that it was goat!!! Whatever, i tried to eat a small piece, but failed because it was not well cooked. It was smelling real bad. My other friend took Vorta, Dal ( lentils) & hilsha fish. I just tried a spoon from those items. Those were really good. Then what to do, i changed my order and asked them for Boal Fish. That fish was just amazing. After that we ordered sweets. Those were ok. My overall experience for Service 6/10 Decoration 7/10 Cost 7/10 Taste 5/10 Goat curry 0/10 Goat biriyani 8/10 Hilsha fish 7/10 Boal fish 8/10 Lentils 9/10 Vorta 10/10 So... If you wanna try then must try Bangladeshi Local food items instead of indian biriyani items. But be careful, those Vortas are too Hot n spicy!!!! read more

This deserves only one star better yet zero star because at the time I was there, I specifically told the guy that was taking my order that I wanted lamb biriyani a gazillion times , I had to keep repeating myself, and then It took ten to fitteen minutes for the food to come so the waiter brings me goat biryani with a lot of gravy and oil on top and I told the waiter I asked for lamb then he gives me such an attitude and tries to argue with me on what I ordered .. And he takes my plate and in a angry tone he told me you know its extra if I take if off and put lamb instead right? like.... okay I can give a rats ass if its extra like how hard is it to just replace it with lamb ? I'm not telling you to move the fucking moon and the customer is always right and I am not going to even bother dignifying with what he said with a response . So to sum it all up this restaurant sucks the food sucked as well , was not even worth a penny and not to mention once again that the waiter was a piece of shit. read more

If you are looking for authentic Bengali food, this isn't the right place.. Haatbazaar is the best in this area