Bananas Restaurant

I had an incredible dining experience at Bananas! The NOLA BBQ octopus was perfectly tender with a rich, flavorful sauce, and the crab fried rice had the perfect balance of crispiness and garlic. Dessert was a standout as well, a creative take on Elvis Presley’s favorite peanut butter sandwich, blending sweet and savory flavors in such a fun way. Beyond the food, the restaurant’s modern and clean decor created a great ambiance. The service was excellent, attentive but not overbearing and their wine selection paired beautifully with the meal. A must visit spot for both great food and a great atmosphere!

Had dinner here and everything was so good! The fusion of favors in every dish was wonderful. My favorite dish was the crab fried rice and octopus. The meatballs in tomato tom yum sauce were also delicious. The restaurant itself was beautiful and can sit big parties if needed. There is also a kitchen counter where you can watch the chefs cook as well. Overall a great experience and can’t wait come come back to try more items.

This place is amazing! The theme and decor is modern, cool, and thoughtful without trying too hard, the staff was friendly and attentive at all times and knowledgeable about food items since some in our party had food allergies. We tried a bunch of different dishes, everything was so tasty, it was hard deciding which was my favorite. I loved the fried rice! This is definitely going to become a staple restaurant in the city I go to, and would definitely recommend to family and friends. Can’t wait to go back and try more dishes!

I have been back to Bananas at least three times for dinner and enjoyed everything about it from the appetizers, shareable, and all the way to the deserts if you have roof left to indulge. All the plates were well prepared and delicious. Make sure you save some room or come back again to trying something new. Bananas also has an excellent selection of Sake which is to die for!! I will definitely be back!

Homie Food just opened, and it’s already a standout spot! The vibes are great—relaxed and welcoming, perfect for a casual meal or catching up with friends. The location is super convenient, making it an easy choice for dinner. The staff is incredibly friendly and attentive, which makes the experience even better. On top of all that, the food is absolutely delicious—fresh, flavorful, and packed with authentic tastes. If you’re looking for a new favorite spot, this might just be it!

Bananas was a wonderful dining experience. I highly recommend the grilled octopus and the mushroom tempura! Both were delicious and perfectly cooked. The highlight of our meal however was the oysters, they were so fresh served with a melted cheese topping. 😊 Besides the food, the ambiance and the service was great! The restaurant is cozy and our waitress was the sweetest girl.❤️Wish I got her name. It’s clear that this place is committed to quality, and I’m already looking forward to my next visit to explore more of the menu!

A very welcome new addition to the East Village that has a really creative menu that does Asian takes on American classics - very reminiscent of Golden Diner but without the hour long wait. Pad Kra Pow on a cheese burger is an inspired idea, and I want a big bottle of their miso Caesar dressing. The onion dip with shrimp chips was also great. I enjoyed the dynamite rice less than others here, and while there were some gluten free options there weren’t many and I wish there were more. Ambiance is creative - be sure to get a spot at the bar that’s right next to the action of the kitchen. Though I hope they’ll make the booths more comfy as it’s hard wood seat and backing. No cocktail menu yet but I’m sure they’ll add one. Will definitely come back as this new restaurant settles in!

I recently tried out a new spot in the Lower East Side, and it was fantastic. From the moment we walked in, the atmosphere was warm and inviting, with a perfect balance of elegance and comfort. It’s perfect for a date night or friends gathering! We started with the grilled octopus—perfectly cooked and full of flavor. Next up was the étouffée, featuring Cajun shrimp wontons that were just as delicious. To top it all off, I ordered the Poached Pear for dessert to celebrate my friend’s birthday. The staff even added a sparkler, which was such a thoughtful touch! If you’re looking for an unforgettable dining experience, this is the place to go. I can’t wait to come back to try other dishes!

Go bananas for Bananas! We enjoyed a lovely dinner here. Vibes, staff, and food were beyond our expectations. First off, food had amazing flavor with unexpected twists. I'd definitely be getting the following next time: 1) onion dip - just get it. Shrimp chips were crispy to perfection and this onion dip was ADDICTING! 2) dynamite fried rice - soooo flavorful without being overwhelming; I've had a lot of fried rice in my life and this did not disappoint 3) Char Siu Banana - if someone told me that caramelized bananas and char siu are the perfect marriage on a dinner plate, I'd be giving you strange looks. But it actually was one of the most memorable dishes I've had in awhile. I'll be definitely bringing friends back to try this unexpected but delightful combo. We also got the wonton etouffee, miso Caesar salad, and krapow chopped cheese. These were quite good as well. We ended dinner with the homemade ice cream - very refreshing and light flavors. Drinks: I enjoyed a nonalcoholic drink, the unified ferments soba. It's a little sweet with a familiar taste of soba noodles - unexpected concoction of deliciousness. I feel like non alcoholic drinks are often after thoughts at casual and fine dining places. But not here! Wow, I'll be getting this drink again when I come back. Staff were phenomenal. So attentive and so kind. Ambience is great for date or friend hangout.

My friend heard about this new Asian fusion place that popped up recently, so we dropped by to give it a try for a recent Friday dinner. Our res was at 6pm and there were still plenty of tables when we arrived; while never full, it did get busier in the next hour or so, so probably best to plan ahead with a reservation. We ordered a few dishes to share: - tom yum meatballs: biggest issue was that the sauce barely tasted like tom yum. the tomato flavour was incredibly dominant, and while it wasn't your typical marinara, the typical hot/sour flavours of tom yum was muted, if at all present. the meatballs were fine, but nothing special. Overall it felt like a generic dish you could find at an average Italian restaurant, except billed as fusion cuisine. - dynamite fried rice: I did quite like this dish, but not memorably so. Overall the savouriness of the scallops, roe, and mushrooms worked together well, albeit a bit too salty overall. Portion size was definitely a bit small (esp for the price and for a rice dish). - char siu: the roasted pork was quite good -- very savoury and tender -- and I liked the slightly-sweet sauce. the caramelised bananas were also fine, although I think a little bit too sweet for my taste. The confusing part, to me, was that the juxtaposition of the bananas and the pork felt very haphazard to me. We tried eating them together (in one bite) and separately, and it didn't really feel like either of them enhanced the other (or, in particular, like the bananas were necessary for the dish at all). I find that Asian fusion is a hard cuisine with which to please everyone, and to that end I don't feel as though the food was lacking in terms of execution or intrinsic quality, but rather that (in my opinion) there was a bit of a more fundamental disconnect in these dishes in terms of the cultural background/fusion and their actual manifestation. It also contributes, I think, that the price point seemed to be really quite too high for not just the aforementioned quality, but also the portion size of the dishes we ordered, which definitely tended to be on the small size. (tl;dr it was quite expensive for what amounted to be a pretty average meal.) On the bright side, the service and ambience were fantastic. Everyone we interacted with - the servers, host, etc. - were all very lovely and checked in on us regularly throughout the meal. The place is decorated really nicely (you can tell it's relatively new) with a light, natural, minimalist style with interesting contemporary art on display. It seems that other reviewers were all thoroughly impressed by their experiences here, which make me wonder if perhaps we ordered the wrong dishes this time haha. Still, I'm not jumping at the chance to come by again, but perhaps another visit someday to try other parts of the menu may be a good idea.

I came here for a friends birthday and it was such a nice vibe! The food was a combination of Asian classics with a twist taking inspiration from various countries as well! They were able to accommodate a large party (there were 8 of us) and we were able to share some great bites and some sake as well! The staff is super knowledgeable and gave great recommendations for us! Personal favorite was the caramelized onion dip (the shrimp chips it comes with was addicting) and the etouffe! Highly recommend this place if you're in the east village!

Cuisine: 8 Service: 8 Decor: 8 Value: 7 Overall: 8 Let's start with the name "Bananas", which applies to Asian Americans who are culturally adapted to the US, but still "yellow" on the outside. This concept is apparent in their restaurant, helmed by chef/owner Chris Ng (formerly Blue Ribbon & Bond St) and Kyaw Lwin (formerly Yakiniku Futago, Hasalon, and Shmoné). As you walked into the long, narrow, white space adorned with banana and tropical theme, you will notice a few tables upfront, followed by a nice looking bar stocked with various sake. Due to a local school nearby, they have a license for beer and wine, but not hard liquor. Continue further into the restaurant, there is an open kitchen with about 10 seats that overlooks the chefs at work. To the left and back are more tables for mostly 2-4 patrons. For the evening, I would say that the meal just kept getting better, with the last savory dish being the climax and the reason why I know I will return. Below is a rundown of what we received in order. Char Siu (7/10) - This 48 hour marinated piece of relatively lean roast pork had a lot of savory flavor. Not as sweet as most of what you'll find in nearby Chinatown, though I thought the caramelized banana pairing might take the sweetness level over the top, but it didn't. However, was the banana necessary? Probably not imho. Chopped Cheese (5/10) - Tbh, this is a fun fusion concept that needs better execution. I love krapow and had it almost daily while I was in Thailand. Don't be shy, a bit more birds eye chili and some extra Thai basil would really improve the flavor profile. Also, please make sure the ground beef is not dry and it definitely needs more white cheddar. Lastly, the fries lacks that crispy and airy texture I seek, as well as a hint more seasoning. Meatballs (8/10) - Excellent sauce made with tomato and tom yum. Without telling me, I may not have recognized the tom yum flavor that distinctively. However, the tender and fluffy pork meatballs were elevated immensely by the kick of spice. Delicious! Fried Rice (8/10) - I was told that Chef Lwin's background from Burma was the inspiration behind this dish. It's really not a fried rice, more of a stone bowl rice (no crispy bottom though) topped with crabmeat. I would almost called it crab floss due to its dehydrated nature after being fried to a crisp. Such intense crabbiness. So good. NoLa BBQ Octopus (9/10) - Wow! Bananas! First possible entry for my top 10 list of 2025 and the year has just started. Having my fare share of NoLa BBQ shrimps, this sauce was outstanding. I would have loved a little char and smoke on the octopus, but the interior texture was perfect, with the right amount of chew. Poached Pear (7/10) - It was just something sweet to end the night. The restaurant plan to have more dessert options after fully open. Nothing special, but also not bad with the blue cheese pairing. I do wish there it was more Asian inspired - maybe add some Asian spices or use a Korean pear. The owner and staff were all very friendly, including the chefs behind the kitchen bar that were sharing their preparation process, cooking methods, and other details of what we were eating. Only small gripes would be for the servers to learn not to reach over customers to serve or remove plates, and to refill water more diligently. These small kinks will likely be worked out over time anyway. In the end, I would consider this new restaurant a cute little neighborhood spot. They have a few dishes that were memorable for me, and hence, I'll be back soon to have them again and try other interesting items on the menu. I'm rooting for you Bananas!

I finally ate at Bananas in the East Village. The space is cozy, with a cool, kitschy modern vibe that feels fresh and inviting. The menu is filled with familiar Asian American dishes, each given exciting, creative flavor twists. Every dish I tried had elevated flavors with mouthwatering combinations that I found both comforting and inventive. I can't stop thinking about the shrimp chips with onion dip, octopus, crab fried rice and shrimp alfredo. Based on what everyone else has said that has been to Bananas too, it seems that every dish on the menu is crave-worthy too. I have so much more to try! The service was also top-notch. Everyone was friendly, attentive, and made me feel right at home, contributing to the overall positive vibes I felt the whole time I was there. Overall, I'll definitely be back again and again! I think Bananas is a perfect spot for a week night dinner, for a special occasion or if you just want to impress someone. Tip: Bananas is on Resy so it was super convenient to reserve a table. -ACK, NY

Food was amazing and my family and I enjoyed all the dishes. ! My favorite dishes were the Karage Pancake, Nola style Octopus, Crab fried rice, Caramelized onion dip, Shrimp Alfredo and for desert we had the Poached pear.

My wife and I went there recently with some friends. The place is nicely and whimsically designed and decorated with artwork in the front comprised of many different, tiny bananas! Their offerings were all yummy, especially the marinated steak frites and fried rice. The char siu was a tasty and novel pairing of delicious pork and caramelized banana. Service was very friendly and attentive. Will definitely go back!