r/nyctakeout • u/emily_m101 • Aug 17 '26
Indian Food
When did Indian takeout get so expensive?? $25 for a basic dish, $8 for naan? I see prices raising for inflation across other takeouts like Chinese but the Indian takeout price seems extreme
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u/banallthemusic Aug 17 '26
Indian food is not readily available at Sysco or be made Sysco style. Everything has to be prepped by hand
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u/Independent-Army5755 Aug 19 '26
I’ve covered NYC dining for over a decade and the suggestion that Indian takeout is more expensive on average than Chinese takeout is wrong.
Do you know how labor intensive it is to make naan? Or how much a license to install a tandoor oven costs? Or that Indian cooking uses expensive ingredients ghee and saffron? Yet I’d bet you wouldn’t flinch paying $8 for a coffee and a croissant.
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u/Thedarklordess Aug 17 '26
Why does Indian and Asian food HAVE to be cheap, compared to like say continental options? You expect french food to be cheap? No? Guessed so.
It takes so much work and quality ingredients. People making it have just started realising that.
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u/emily_m101 Aug 17 '26
If the French restaurant is doing takeout only then yeah I would expect it to be cheaper. Also it comes down to made to order vs mass prep as well. What made Indian food originally affordable is you can make a vat of curry and serve it over an entire opening it’s not necessarily made to order. Chicken is cheaper than beef, up charge for lamb.
Also Indian food takes time and care yes, but ultimately uses more affordable ingredients. Rice, flatbread, chicken, cumin, tumeric, etc.
I also don’t think a to-go burger or Italian sub should cost $25 either
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u/Independent-Army5755 Aug 19 '26
Right so all of Indian food isn’t a “vat of curry.” Plus, the chicken you’re referring to is usually cooked separately and freshly added to curries to order. Certain dishes require this method.
Interesting choice to mention ingredients like turmeric and rice and skip out expensive ingredients like lamb, cardamom, rosewater, imported whole spices, or, ya know, labor costs.
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u/B0yW0nd3r Aug 17 '26
Indian food has immense amount of preparation and the current generation got sick of doing it for cheap. I’m Indian and I’ve listened to a bunch of the chefs tell me this. It makes sense. My mom used to take a long time to make roti and curry growing up.
You know what’s more expensive and often less labor inducing? Japanese food.