Chef Vikas Khanna's Bungalow wins Michelin Bib Gourmand Award; chef says it will shut down in “9 years and 3 months”
Chef Vikas Khanna's Bungalow has hosted Mukesh Ambani, Isha Piramal Ambani, Shah Rukh Khan, Aamir Khan, Priyanka Chopra Jonas and Nick Jonas lately.
Having bagged eight Michelin stars during his more than 40 years of cooking professionally, Chef Vikas Khanna's New York restaurant, Bungalow winning the Michelin 2024 Bib Gourmand Award is even more special, the chef tells us. Being featured as one of the best value-for-money Indian restaurants, this eatery, which is an ode to India’s country clubs, is a dedication to his sister, late fashion designer Radhika Khanna, who died in 2022.


Having opened only nine months ago on March 23, they have served 1 lakh guests and was recently featured on the Top 14 list of new restaurants by The New York Times. But Khanna already has a closing deadline for this restaurant - nine years and three months. While this is usually unheard of, the chef tells us, “After Junoon, I wasn’t planning on opening another restaurant. The five years of trying to save my sister – my best friend and my twin – it killed me. This was her dream and I am just keeping my promise to her. This will be my last restaurant. We do a fixed 300 dinners every night and will do this for another 10 years. I have 9 years and 3 months to go.”
The Masterchef India judge, cookbook author and restaurateur has hosted some of the biggest names, from businessman Mukesh Ambani and his daughter Isha Ambani to actors Shah Rukh Khan, Aamir Khan, Sara Jessica Parker, Priyanka Chopra Jonas with her husband, singer Nick Jonas, comedian Vir Das, and more.
He doesn’t measure his success with the number of restaurants he has, in fact, he is against this notion and has no plans on taking his award-winning restaurant to other parts of the US or the world. “Neeraj Chopra (javelin thrower, who's a double medallist at the Olympics) ko kahoge tu school mein kyun nahin khel raha hai? Nahin na? Tum kahoge, ‘Tu world ke sabse bade stage pe, India ka naam roshan kar’. People have to come here to experience this place. Mukesh Ambani flew to New York City to eat at Bungalow. When Priyanka was coming to the city, she said, ‘Mere schedule mein aur kuch nahin hai, bas bhai ke haath ka khana, khana hai’,” says Chef Khanna.
Khanna took to Instagram to share his experience of cooking and eating with King Khan. “As we spoke about me going to cinema everyday 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. To hold back my tears I looked up the glass ceiling and saw the clear crescent of moon watching over me (sic),” he wrote.
Khanna moved to the US 30 years ago, but still considers this a “miracle” and a “gift”. He tells us, “From a kid who sold aachar and bhatura in Amritsar to reach here, [with a restaurant in] Manhattan, the most competitive city in the world, I know that there is more to life; this is only one chapter of my life.”
The chef goes on to add, “We have been selling out since the day we opened. I get emails from the smallest towns and villages of India, Asia, and even Africa, telling me they want to visit and this is inspiring them. People come in and they see me cleaning, cooking, serving, and talking to guests, every single day. They see me performing on this stage, making everybody feel that they matter, it is a lot of work and I will continue to do it. I think that is why it has people feel like this is a personal victory because, for me, it was more than just opening a restaurant, making money and getting awards; Bungalow is unique.”
