Tulsi
“I can't afford a Michelin meal like this too often but next time they do a Groupon prix fix deal, I'm soo going!”
“we ordered the gobi manchurian, chicken tikka, lamb chops, butter paneer, black daal and garlic naan..”
“I had been to the owners' previous restaurant, Devi, and I know Hemant Mathur's reputation as one of the city's best Indian chefs.”
Tulsi
Takes Reservations: Yes
Delivery: Yes
Take-out: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
Caters: Yes
PokéStop Nearby: Yes
Price range.
$$$ Price range $31-60
8 reviews
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Nice little upscale Indian restaurant. The food and service are decent. I had a nice relaxed meal with a friend and we sample quite a bit of the menu. Everything we ordered was excellent. Will definitely try again.
As a Michelin star restaurant chaser however not really interested in Indian food myself, restaurant week would be a perfect time for trying Tulsi. I got a bit disappointed to be honest.
Food quality was acceptable and I actually liked the mango/strawberry soup as well as the marinated lamb chop. However service was something they indeed need to work harder upon. Before we had even finished our dessert, the waiter came by again and again asking whether we have finished or not. We have not.
Ok not come back, and not really recommend it. Don't understand why it has been rated one star.
It's very good quality but overpriced for what it is. There's some high expectations with this place that haven't been met.
The inside of the restaurant is spectacular! Great job decor team!
Restaurant week menu details…
I had the Aloo Tikki which I enjoyed a lot despite it being quite spicy. I wish they gave more rice for the main course because we ran out fast! The Basundi desert was great; much better than the mango cranberry ice cream, but then I'm not a big fan of ice cream.
Service was fantastic and on point too! They were very patient and accommodating of our late friend, which was nice.
A beautiful restaurant with great service and great staff and service to boot! We had a mixed dinner group of carnivores, vegetarians and kosher "lite" individuals so it wasn't hard to please all.
Most memorable for me was the young jackfruit biriyani! The presentation was intriguing since they bring it to the table with a big puffed dough casing on top and then they do this whole preparation in front of you to serve it. I forgot that I was eating fruit at one point because jackfruit, when not quite ripe, has a very meaty texture to eat. Ordered the usual Indian suspects from the menu from 3 preparations of paneer, dahl, chicken Tikka masala, a goat dish as well and everyone felt nothing lacked in seasoning, flavor or portion size.
Most definitely will be back.
Came here during work for lunch with colleagues. The service was great and our glass was instantly filled. We had the 3 course for restaurant week at $29 each.
Ordered the crab cake, lamb follow by desert. Also came with rice and bread which made it a fairly filling meal.
Drinks menu were very limited, 3-4 red and 3-4 white wine selection.
Good were fine but lamb was a bit dry.
Overall a good experience
Lapin and I came here after we saw a Groupon deal advertising a Michelin star dinner for a fraction of the cost. Typically, we try to avoid Groupon deals as we end up paying more than the deal was worth. This one of those "Oh, I am glad we had Groupon, otherwise I would have been annoyed at what I paid". Granted, the Groupon deal did have a special menu so they "actual" menu could have been better.
We made reservation for a Friday for 6:30pm. The place was rather empty, which was nice since we were seating at a table inside this cabana looking thing. Our servers were quick, attentive, and pleasant. The space was decorated rather beautiful and the level of care that was exhibited when each dish was bought out and while we waited for our food was impeccable. Although, towards the end Lapin got a rather spicy dish and he drank all of his water and no one came to refill it.
After we ordered, they have a small round cauliflower appetizer (roughly the size of a bubblegum you get from a 25cent machine) while we wait for our dishes to come. We shared an order of Shrimp Balchao, which was really succulent and delicious. Probably the highlight of the entire meal. Lapin got the Jhangazi Boti Kabab (lamb dish) and Murgh Chettinad (chicken dish), both we felt was lacking in taste. We were served a generous portion of naan and rice with our meal. I should say, that I am a bit spoiled when it comes to Indian food as I been eating it since I was a tot and my mom makes her own curry powder along with other spice mixes she cooks with.
Now, the great disappointment. We could choose between the Pistachio ice cream or the Flan. The waitress let us have both. The serving size of each….was just plain… sad. We barely could have two bites of each dessert..granted…they weren't that tasty…. but it was still embarrassing to be serve that to say the least. The inside of a teaspoon was bigger than the size of these desserts.
While I wouldn't come back here again, the only reason I gave this place three stars was because of the impeccable service.
This was the best Indian food I have ever had in this city. I have had a couple of upscale meals by the UN, trendier meals in Curry Hill, casual meals in those places with all the Christmas lights on First Avenue around E. 6th Street where they're so enthusiastic when you come in that your date whispers to you, "Did we just win a new car?"
That last couldn't be further from the zen-like calm that awaited me at Tulsi. I was hungry when I got there after walking from Grand Central and passing its Indian buffet in the food court, then Darbar and Joy.
The hostess seated me on a Jonathan Adler-esque aqua banquet in a canopied tent, and the music was of the new age variety that I'm used to in spas. Immediately, menus and water came out. A tall, dark and handsome man in a suit that I presume was the manager promptly took my order. I ordered pinot noir, great with papadams.
I got steamed idlis to start. They were soft and light, not starchy like many dumplings, and they came in a savory sauce. The coconut chutney in the center was a little cold, but that wasn't a problem for me, just unintentional I suspect. There were two dumplings to a serving.
Then I got the shrimp. I was tempted to get the lamb, because this is what my Indian acquaintances speak of with the most longing when they talk about their home, and it is the standard by which they measure New York restaurants. I remember a coworker mentioning Tulsi.
I was happy with my choice, though, because the shrimp came with a special ingredient. I had never had betel leaf before, but it is a ceremonial offering and also a mild stimulant. The taste was like nothing I'd ever had, kind of bitter, kind of spicy in a way, very fragrant. One bite would fill your head and seemingly surround you so that well after you bit into the leaf, you could still taste it with your food. For this reason, it is added to cigarettes sometimes, to enhance the buzz.
The two butterfly shrimp were large and delicious in a cucumber yogurt sauce. The restaurant week lunch comes with rice and beans that I thoroughly enjoyed. For dessert I had the litchi kulfi, a small molded sorbet cut into quarters. The manager asked if it was cold enough for me, the cheeky bastard. I said yes, and it was cold enough to turn my fillings into tesla coils, thank you.