Bhanu Indian Cuisine & Market — Restaurant in East San Gabriel

If I am craving Indian food, I always like to eat here. The food taste fresh and the staff is friendly. Inside is a grocery store, they carry spices, drinks, yogurts, rice, and lentils, etc. I recently discovered that they also sell fresh Turmeric Root. I like to make my own chili oil so this is where I purchase the chili flakes. If I want something extremely spicy, they sell dry Ghost Chile which is the World's Hottest Garlic Pepper, it is rated with 1,041,427 SHU (Scoville Heat Units). Now they also have the dried Trinidad Scorpion Chile which is rated 1,463,700 SHU (Refer to Periodic Table of Scoville Units Table). If you are up for the spicy challenge you can request for these two chilis on some of the curry items (additional fee) and they also have you sign a waiver. During the summer, they sell the Ghost Pepper Chili plant. There is also a dinning area to enjoy their food.

Drinks I've tried the Mango and Strawberry Lassi; they prepare it from scratch. It's made of Indian mango, diary, and sugar; it's creamy, and sweet.

Food I like to order the meals for lunch which comes with Curry Chicken, Butter Chicken, or Tandoori Chicken (2pcs), I get the Butter Chicken. The meal also includes, Veg, Lentil, Naan (Garlic Naan extra $.50 cents) and Yogurt. Their Chicken Samosa is crispy on the outside, inside it's stuffed with Chicken and peas. It comes with two sauces, the green one is made of cilantro and Jalapeño, the red sauce is sweet tamarind. My favorite dish is the Butter Chicken,Garlic Naan, and Strawberry Lassi. I love to dip the garlic naan in the curry. If you want something spicy, tell them you want it spicy and it will be HOT!! Another highlight is the staff. Everyone is friendly especially Richard and Anil!!

Dessert The most popular one is called Kuji (round), it is made of milk and cream. I got the Burgee (green) which is made of pistachios, Kalakand (square), contains milk and pistachio, and Pede (triangle) has saffron and pistachio. From these four, my favorite is Kalakand.

Customer Service This place is family owned. Anil is kind and very helpful, whenever I have questions he is always happy to help me. Richard is friendly and he makes good suggestions on what to eat. Everyone is welcoming and nice.

Notes -Inside...

The menu at Bhanu is somewhat closer to "Delhi and Bombay style" Indian cuisine than the "contemporary, Westernized, and Indian-fusion" that is common in the Pasadena area. This restaurant does not offer a buffet but serves several types of Punjabi-style thalis. That means the food is fresh, not days old. Non-vegetarian types include a choice of curry chicken, butter chicken, lamb curry, or tandoori chicken, and the vegetarian thali consists of two seasonal sabzi and one lentil.

Bhanu's menu is fairly basic and most of the a-la-carte options represent Punjabi cuisine, although I have heard that the owners had previously operated restaurants in Mumbai. You won't find anything exotic or regional vegetables, the menu consists mainly of familiar north-Indian curries, paneer, and tandoor items which are most commonly served in US Indian restaurants. It appears the most popular items at Bhanu are American and British favorites: chicken tikka masala, butter chicken, and tandoori meats.

In terms of variety, unlike most local Indian restaurants, Bhanu extends its menu to include a few items from various regions of India. There are several types of South Indian dosas and idli (probably due to Mumbai's proximity to Udupi), a short list of Punjabi & Gujarati chaat (roadside snacks), and Indo-Chinese delicacies.

What I liked about Bhanu is their commitment to prepare fresh food. Dishes and plates appear to be cooked either individually or in very small batches only after they are ordered. I've had the masala dosa and vegetarian thali several times. The vegetables in the thali are fresh, and the curries do not seem to have much trace of chemical additives. The grease level is much lower than most Indian restaurants in the area. The masala dosa was made crispy on the tawa with spiced potato fillings. The included sambar was hot and spicy, definitely not watered down, and a tad bit sweet from the choice of vegetables.

If you like spicy food, you have to make the request or else the default spice level for the thali dishes is very very mild. You also have to request if you don't want additives to the bread, or else the naan or roti will come coated...

If you're looking at the price tags of groceries, then you're missing one of the most enjoyable meals available within the pantheon of Indian restaurants here in LA. The food is peerless, unless you want to fly to the four regions of India that find their way on Bhanu's menu. This is no superlative, but to be fair as I write this, I'm still under the influence of their kitchen's handiwork and I must say, it's hypnotically delicious. I've had the good fortune of sampling Indian dishes since 1990 in greater Los Angeles and in multiple regions in India--to say nothing at my own hands. Against that wide range of experiences, Bhanu's is now my main reason I stay within driving distance of San Gabriel.

Go for the food. You will easily forget about groceries.

My wife and I had the chicken korma, perfectly light, not greasy, delicately cooked; then the thali, with moist, fresh, soft & crisp naan, mild savory sambar, channa masala, veg masala, light raita, I think dal makhani, and veg samosas. All lovely. One clue after eating here, instead of the often lethargic, gassy, irritated from heavier mixes of food, I felt energized. Seems rare in Indian restaurants these days..

We found the service at Bhanu's more considerate and responsive than 5 star restaurants (whose wait staff are pleasant only to angle for a bigger tip). No miffed attitudes here. In fact, one of the southland gringos was knowledgeable, enthusiastic and attentive. The food came in 10-12 minutes--half the time what you'd expect from a homemade meal.

And that's what this is, believe it or no. We always hear the cooking is from "a family recipe.", but where most use that homestyle image as a marketing phrase, Bhanu's is the real thing.

(BTW, no other Indian restaurant which I've experienced (except in India) motivated me to express what you, sad reader, may miss if you don't give this place at...