The good news is that Indian cuisine has returned to Banana Leaf's old basement premises on Kozitsky Pereulok in central Moscow.
With new owners, management, menu and a much less fruity interior design, Banana Leaf has turned into Bangles. Instead of Indian and Chinese cuisine, it now serves Indian plus European and Japanese -- seemingly in an attempt to appeal more to Russian tastes.
This apparent repositioning away from sport-loving expats to a more sophisticated Russian clientele is reinforced by the changes to the design and entertainment concept. The sports bar image has been abandoned, the big screens are gone, and now the place is calling itself a restaurant and lounge bar.
In the larger room, which now hosts DJs and parties on Friday and Saturday nights, the old chairs and dining tables have been replaced with sofas and low coffee tables. The fake palm trees that were once the signature design element have been banished, and the former sports bar section now seems to serve more as the main dining room.
The prices remain low for Indian cuisine in the center of Moscow: vegetable samosas for 150 rubles, palak panir for 270 rubles, chicken tikka for 260 rubles and dal makhni for 320 rubles.
But two months after Bangles' opening, service remained spotty to say the least. If you go, remember that it always pays to be pedantic when double-checking that the waitress got your order right; and don't forget that in Indian eateries, the Indian food is always by far the best choice.
12 Tverskaya Ul., Bldg. 8 (enter from Kozitsky Per.), 200-0229, noon-last customer, M. Pushkinskaya.
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