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‘Shah Rukh Khan felt it was like a temple': Chef Vikas Khanna recalls SRK's visit to his New York restaurant Bungalow
Chef Vikas Khanna spoke about how Shah Rukh Khan praised his New York restaurant, Bungalow, describing it as a temple of culture.
Chef Vikas Khanna’s New York restaurant, Bungalow, has become known for presenting Indian cuisine and culture in a way that goes beyond food. Several celebrities, including Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone, Shah Rukh Khan and others, have visited his restaurant. Recently, during a chat with Shekhar Suman on his show Shekhar Tonite, Vikas recalled Shah Rukh’s reaction to Bungalow and revealed that the actor saw it as much more than just a restaurant.
What Shah Rukh Khan said about Vikas Khanna's Bungalow
Recalling SRK's words, Vikas said, “There are so many restaurants in the world, but Shah Rukh Khan said, ‘Every restaurant I’ve visited until today has felt like a shop to me, just a transaction. But when I came here, it felt like I had entered someone’s temple. It felt as though you were trying to represent our rich culture, our parents, our ancestors. That’s an incredibly difficult thing to do.’” Vikas said that SRK's words stayed with him.
In 2024, Vikas took to Instagram to share a deeply personal account of Shah Rukh Khan’s visit to Bungalow. Recalling the moment, the chef wrote that his life revolves around three people: his mother, Chef Sanjeev Kapoor and SRK. Khanna then recalled how SRK asked him to sit with him during his visit to Bungalow. The two spoke about Khanna’s childhood memories of watching Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge. “When SRK visited Bungalow & asked me to sit with him. As we spoke about me going to the cinema every day to watch DDLJ with my sister, and every movie of his. He became my hero for who he is. His voice. His patience. His confidence. His compassion. His friendship.”
He added, "To hold back my tears, I looked up the glass ceiling & saw the clear crescent of the moon watching over me. People who lose the ones they loved the most always find signs of them watching over us. Today is dedicated to you, Sir. You holding my hand and saying, ‘Bungalow represents us. Our parents. Our ancestors. Our India’. This is everything to a scared-paranoid-failed child from Amritsar.”
Apart from Shah Rukh, Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone also celebrated Dhurandhar’s success at Vikas’ restaurant. Priyanka Chopra has visited the restaurant with her daughter Malti Marie and friends. Anne Hathaway dined at Bungalow in December 2024, while Neil Patrick Harris visited the restaurant in 2026 and praised its food.
About Shah Rukh Khan’s upcoming movie
Shah Rukh is currently awaiting the release of his upcoming film, King. Helmed by Siddharth Anand, the film also stars Deepika Padukone, Suhana Khan, Abhishek Bachchan, Raghav Juyal, Jaideep Ahlawat, Arshad Warsi and others in key roles. The film is scheduled to release in theatres on Christmas this year.
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