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New York Indian Restaurant Reviews
Spice Fusion
MidTown West Manhattan, New York
(Scroll down to read the review)
Manhattan, Queens & Long Island Indian Restaurants
Address & Telephone No:
Spice Fusion Indian Bistro
777 Eighth Ave
(Bet 47th & 48th St)
New York, NY 10036
Ph: 212-757-8100
Accepts Visa, Master & Discover Credit Cards
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Reviewer's Summary: Cheap Service; Awesome Food
Spice Fusion is an odd fusion of fine Indian food and pathetic service.
Located on 8th Ave near Times Square in New York City, Spice Fusion is a fairly new Indian restaurant that delights with its charming food as much as it disgusts with its charmless service.
As we entered Spice Fusion about 5PM the other day, we were airily told the restaurant would open only at 5:30PM although the board outside clearly said 5:00PM. When we tried to clarify, we were dismissively informed by our waiter Manoj that the 5PM opening applied only for Summer.
But after Manoj quickly informed us that we could sit down and have a drink, we realized that these guys were trying a cheap tactic on us. As every restaurant goer knows the margins on liquor are far higher than on food. Although irritated by the restaurant's cheap tactics, suckers that we are for Indian food we sat down and dutifully ordered some drinks until the restaurant "opened" at 5:30PM.
Unlike many other Indian restaurants we've visted in New York City, Spice Fusion - to our surprise - lacks a drinks/cocktail list as well. How are we to know the price of the drinks? Worse, our waitress was clueless when we asked her the price of our drinks and had to rush to the kitchen to find out the price.
The whole thing - the issue with the opening hours, lack of a drinks menu and a waitress ignorant of the price of the drinks - smacked of cheap tactics and poor service.
Once we ordered our drinks, which came with fried peanuts and Pappadums, our waiter Manoj turned into an epitome of friendliness.
If you ignore the shoddy service at Spice Fusion, you are bound to enjoy your meal here.
Almost all of the food we had at Spice Fusion was a class apart from that served at most Indian restaurants in Manhattan, Queens or Long Island.
Shanghai Spring Roll, Chicken Tikka Masala, Vegetable Korma, Regular Naan Bread, Garlic Naan, Saffron Pulao, Vegetable Biryani - We had them all and more. And loved 'em all.
Boy, even the humble Cucumber Raita that accompanied our Vegetable Biryani and the Green Chutney that came with the Pappadums were pretty impressive at Spice Fusion.
In a meal with so many tasty items, our favorite was the Vegetable Biryani.
A mouth-watering fusion of Basmati Rice and aromatic Indian spices, our flavorful Vegetable Biryani was a work of art. Neither too oily nor too spicy, the subtly-flavored Vegetable Biryani sent us into raptures. To use one of our favorite French expressions, it was non pareil.
Mixed Vegetable Korma (Assorted vegetables simmered in almond and yogurt sauce) was a sheer delight. Although a bit less spicy than our fiery Indian palates would have preferred, it was still very good.
But the Samosa was a bit of a disappointment, crisp outside but the filling inside was barely warm suggesting that the kitchen had done a sloppy job in reheating it.
The thick spinach-peas curry came hot to our table was not spicy but nevertheless tasty.
Proving that its kitchen is equally competent on the non-vegetarian side, Spice Fusion served us Chicken Tikka Masala that has us salivating at the mere thought of it. With tender chicken pieces set in a medium-thick gravy, the Chicken Tikka Masala was delicious with both Naan Bread and Saffron Rice.
We also loved the Shanghai Spring Rolls (crisp rolls filled with chicken & vegetables) with its accompanying hot garlic sauce.
Both the Naan Breads we tried - the Regular Naan and Garlic Naan - turned out to be soft and flavorful. Alas, very rarely do we get decent Regular Naan these days in Manhattan.
Perhaps to compensate for his earlier action, our waiter Manoj was solicitous and repeatedly inquired about the food.
Ginger Mango Mousse was a sweet treat that we dug into with mucho gusto unmindful of our diabetes.
But Gulab Jamun turned out to be a disappointment.
While bringing us the Gulab Jamun, our waitress spilled most of the sweet syrup on the floor and some on the spoon. Of course, mistakes happen in a restaurant. However, if you don't make an effort to fix the mistakes in a restaurant, then it becomes a big deal and shows contempt for diners.
Our waitress did not care to bring us a different plate of Gulab Jamun or spoon. With much of the sweet syrup on the floor, there was very little on our plate depriving us of any joy in the Gulab Jamun. To make matters worse, Spice Fusion serves Gulab Jamun in a flat plate rather than a bowl unlike most other restaurants.
By now, we were convinced that Spice Fusion has scant respect for its diners.
Another irritating aspect of Spice Fusion's service was that the restaurant did not care to provide us with an itemized bill. Also, the restroom at Spice Fusion could have been cleaner.
Isn't it a shame that three Manhattan Indian restaurants - Spice Fusion, Yuva and Salaam Bombay - that serve good Indian food spoil it all with lousy service.
Even with all its service problems, Spice Fusion is one of the few Indian restaurants in New York City that we would consider returning to. Simply because the food at Spice Fusion is awesome. - © Rekha Inc.
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