Explorations

This is the tagline to one of the coolest dining options in all of New York City.  Sunday evening after The Seagull, Mary, Mitch, Katie and myself decided to try Panna II. Personally I really enjoy Indian food to begin with; sadly this post has almost nothing to do with how awesome the food was. Totally tasty. But no, this is not about how ridiculously awesome the atmosphere and people were.

From the moment our little group approached Panna II, you could hear a loud, fast beat pulsating down the street. Then we happened upon the restaurant; I say ’happened upon’ because if you blinked you would miss the 8 foot wide store front it occupied. Missing Panna II would be understandable if not for the massive(and I do mean massive) amount of glowing, and blinking Christmas lights and chili peppers in the window. Then there was the doorman. Yes, there was seriously a doorman. But not in that uppity snobbish way-no no, he was there to ‘cat call’ customers into the restaurant. And we quickly understood why: there were 2 other Indian restaurants right next to him, and 1 below him. The other restaurants(though clearly impostors) had attempted to put up chili pepper lights and Christmas lights too: competition was fierce. He convinced us that we picked “The right Indian place to eat at”, and opened the door to a space 8 feet by 40 feet. Tables were packed in very tightly and lights hung so heavily from the ceiling that even while sitting they touched the tops of our heads. The music was also really cool, and it gave the room a vibe. The waiter seemed to be having a lot of fun, and towards the end of dinner  sang “Happy Birthday” to the man next to us, with a light show as well(duh). The food was amazing. At a point Katie realized that the whole resturant was tilted(Mitch confirmed this) and the truth is, it only added to Panna II’s charm. Uneven, blasting music, crazy doorman and staff, delicious food, and more lights than the fire department would say is safe…

This place is just so alive.