Tuome
“The hype of the pig out though shouldn't overshadow some of the other menu items, especially the blue crab mac and cheese.”
“The octopus was well-cooked, but aided immensely by the pork XO sauce that was on a few other dishes.”
“I'm not a big fan of either dishes, however Chef Thomas Chen's asian flair and influence made me into one.”
Tuome
Takes Reservations: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Bike Parking: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
PokéStop Nearby: Yes
Price range.
$$$ Price range $31-60
8 reviews
Rate and write a review Cancel reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
Excellent date spot nestled away in alphabet city. Tuome delivers the perfect Asian-American fusion inspired dishes.
I've sampled all the appetizers/small plates, which you can actually make a very decent meal out of all of those, and they're probably the highlight of the restaurant! The deviled egg is definitely the best! Don't think i've ever eaten a more delicious egg! Steer away from the chicken liver… the texture was a little much for me and tasted super rich. The other small plates are more average to above average dishes (octopus and steak tartare).
Overall, if you're targeting a a trendy atmosphere for a fun date night, Tuome is definitely a great choice. Your date will be super impressed. Be sure to split the pig out for two, you'll be absolutely stuffed but super happy with your decision.
Wines and cocktails felt a little on the pricey side but complement the meal very well.
Oh Tuome. It seems like just yesterday that I read Pete Wells's enchanted review about your intrigue, your splendor and your creativity. I've walked past your heavenly gates dozens of times in my life but have never had an occasion to step inside and stay awhile. But thank the good god of all things epicurean, all that fantasy became reality on Wednesday night. Tuome was simply divine and if you're willing to shell out a bit extra for a special meal, please come here.
Tuome is fantastic for splurging for a special occasion. Such was our experience Wednesday night. Special occasions of any kind get me very excited. Doesn't matter if we're celebrating for me or for someone else–celebrating means bountiful food. Trust me, I have my priorities straight. In any case, the space is cozy, simple and elegant. They don't need to go bonkers with the decor here though–the food is loud enough on its own.
The menu here is quite small, but that should not be mistook for a negative. I actually prefer small menus for several reasons. First, the glutton in me always wants to try as many dishes on the menu as possible. Fewer options, more of the menu can be covered. And fewer decisions to be made. But more importantly, at a critically-acclaimed restaurant like Tuome, I interpret the small menu to mean that serious thought and care goes into each dish. I'd rather a chef cook a handful of things to perfection than try his or her hand at an unnecessarily expansive with just a "pretty good" ceiling. The dishes at Tuome are inventive but the menu doesn't give much away. But again, I'd rather the description be vague and the food tell the story any day.
Drink-wise, I can only speak to the beer/cocktail offerings. They offer a small but solid collection of beer (I went with the Tripel Karmeliet because when am I not going to get a Belgian Tripel?) as well as some wine-based cocktails. I typically only order liquor-based cocktails but I figured I might as well ask about them. After hearing about the general spice of most of the drinks, I gave the Fire in the Sky (sake, Thai chili, yuzu) a go. Because…Thai Chili. Refreshing, spicy and super yummy (see picture).
We knew we were in for a magical night after receiving our amuse, which was a delicious pickled baby beet–a delicious pickled baby beet that did exactly what an amuse should do: perk up the palette, get a bunch of the tastebuds involved, and give us a little preview of how tasty and creative our meal was going to be. And while it'll be hard to put it into words, I'm certainly going to try.
Beef Tartare: Wagyu beef, three-hour yolk, lemongrass: A+
Just look at that majestic picture. The yolk is served atop the fluffy beef and you get to stir that baby in yourself. This dish comes with broccoli chips for your scooping pleasure and to add a little crunch to the mix. This dish is light but still uber flavorful and is a fantastic starter for a meal that is bound to get richer as you get deeper into the menu.
Quack on Brioche: Duck confit, daikon relish: A++
I don't even know what to say here. Whatever the chef does to make this duck taste so good, well, I don't even want to know. This is a serious flavor bomb. Take your time with these two sliders because they'll be gone in 15 seconds if you're not careful. These are rich, flavorful and utterly perfect.
Watermelon w/ ricotta, farro, crysanthemum: A
What a gorgeous, creative dish. Aesthetically stunning. The watermelon, as it always is, was sweet and refreshing but paired really nicely with the farro which brought some interesting earthiness to the dish. The crysanthemum added a teensy hint of bitterness to round out this thoughtful dish.
Octopus w/ pork xo, brown butter, fingerling potato: A+
Sometimes I don't know what I did to deserve so much good octopus in my life. And Tuome gives me yet another octopus dish to rave about. Cooked perfectly, this octopus is served with some delicious and delightful "potatoes" which are "served" right in front of you. The quotations are due to these particular potatoes being foamed out of some fun gastronomic contraption as the dish is served. My one issue with this dish–which I often have with octopus appetizers–is the actual amount of food one gets for the price. Feels a little stingy. But that's a minor complaint.
Snow crab w/ noodle, summer squash, dashi butter: A+
Honestly, this dish was almost too rich. The dashi butter was just verging on overpowering but I still inhaled everything. Snow crab, along with octopus, is one of my very favorite foods. This was almost like if that bomb Thai dish you love got a series Princess Diaries makeover and you could still kind of tell the original was there but otherwise DAYUM. Pretty sure my eyeballs were popping out while eating this. Share it with someone who's willing to take the plunge with you.
Absolutely LOVED this place; we went with a group of 5 for a birthday dinner, and after every dish came out, everyone couldn't stop exclaiming, "omg so good." One of my friends even coined Tuome their newly crowned favorite restaurant in NYC 😉 It's a good walk into Alphbet City, but trust me, it's worth the trek! The reservation was for 6:30pm and we were seated promptly. Not sure if it's because it was a week night, but the restaurant stayed relatively empty for the duration of our meal.
Here's what we ordered to share:
Egg [deviled, crispy, chili] $8
Tasted like a perfect scotch egg with a slight asian flare with the chili
Tartare [wagyu beef, three hour yolk, lemongrass] $17
Slightly expensive, but I loved how this was different than regular beef tartare you would get at another restaurant. There were infused lemongrass flavors, and it was sweeter in general. The sous vide egg was amazing too, binding it all together.
Snow Crab [noodle, english peas, dashi butter] $31
Oh man, what can I say……..these noodles are glorious, definitely tasted hand-pulled (I hope they really are, or else these are some pretty fantastic premade noodles!). The butter is so rich, but the english peas give it a nice contrast. Crab is also cooked perfectly.
Pig Out for 2 [berkshire pork, spicy peanut noodle, condiments] $52
Pretty expensive, but made well – there are 10 pieces of crispy skin berkshire pork belly pieces, and two bowls of peanut noodles. THOSE PEANUT NOODLES ARE TO DIE FOR. I could eat bowls of these!!! Same noodles as the Snow Crab dish, but completely different flavor profiles. Berkshire pork had a really nice crispy skin, and the condiments really brought out the flavors in the meat :).
Brussels Sprout [grape, pork xo, raisin] $10
These were good, but I think it's pretty hard to mess up brussels sprouts 🙂
Rice [kale, chinese sausage, duck fat] $9
Ahhhh! The day we went also coincided with dragon boat festival, which meant we had to eat chinese tamales (zongzi)…so this was seriously perfect. The glutinous rice was so yummy with the duck fat and chinese sausages! Pretty oily, but completely worth it.
Dessert
They don't have a menu, but it seems like they have one item every day. We got these lovely deep fried buns with ice cream and red bean. AHH SO GOOD.
A little expensive, but the food is incredible. Will come back for sure!!!
This is good food a great vibe perfect date spot for a price tag. It is beautifully prepared and thought out. Spot on service. Nice they take reservations. Menu split into small big and sides section. They recommend one each per person and they are not cheap! It's was almost too pricey that I almost gave them 3 stars. But they're really trying on all levels to give you an excellent dining experience. Could use some warmth and heart but oh well. The highlight was the rice. Entrees are very small. That's why they recommend the three plates.
Wow, from the apps and entrees to the decor and service, everything here is done right. Alphabet City has really changed over the past 10 years and this addition only improves it.
The service here is great and the ambiance is trendy without being obnoxious.
I visited with a group of 4, which was great because we were able to share and try multiple items. We each started with a drink. Honestly, each one we ordered I would order for myself but my favorite was the one I chose, which was the Fire in the Sky.
For food we started with the delicious deviled eggs. I'll admit I think we were all a bit surprised when they came out deep fried… but sooo good. Then we were treated to the phenomenal fried chicken. We loved them so much that we immediately placed another order. The best way to describe them is similar to the original Bon Chon (before Bon Chon was legit and operating out of that 2nd floor space on 5th and 32nd) but better!
Finally, we shared the Branzino, which came out fluffy and filled with bright citrus flavors. Also, we all enjoyed the Pit Out, which, imo, is a must. It is a deceivingly large dish and incredibly decadent. Each piece of pork is like eating a slice of super fatty pork belly, seared, giving it a nice crispy texture.
PS We also ordered a side, the asparagus or the Brussels sprouts, whichever one, it was a delectable as the other dishes.
This review is purely for the snow crab noodles with dashi butter, which I sampled at the Lucky Rice event. I had never been to Tuome before, nor had I heard of this little gem of a restaurant in the East Village in all my years of East Village noodling.
How is that possible?!
Those were the best, chewiest, most mush-defying noodles I've had in a long time, and I am a noodle FIEND. And who would have thought to infuse butter with bonito stock? The snow crab, delicately sprinkled on top, was fresh and bright. Me thinks the addition of few slices of shiitake mushrooms would have sent the dish straight out of this world, right into the galactic center of our wonderful milky way.
I do get ahead of myself…
Looking at the menu, which is elegantly abbreviated, I think I might need a quadruple bypass after a meal at Tuome. But then again, I can't think of a better way to die than dying from Tuomitis, the most special of ailments, where the soul takes flight from the body, a body that is enveloped by whirls of buttery chewiness, pillowed by flakes of crustacean goodness, forever frozen in eternal bliss.
I've waited so long since this meal (and post-meal fun at Ace Bar) that my memory isn't perfect but I'll give you the average.
For one, I was incredibly impressed my friend recommended this place and I hadn't heard about it. Needless to say, when i read the pedigree, I was very intrigued.
It's an unusual space, really two rooms with a bar but feels like one small depending where you are seated. When we left and the lights were on, I could appreciate the decor so much more. Oh yes, they close early so make note.
One of our four was a bit surprised they do not have a full bar. Yes they have cocktails but they are wine or sake cocktails. We went with bottles of wine for the table.
As we were an adventurous group of four, we asked for recommendations on how to order and followed suit, minus one or two small dishes. Let me say, we left a decent amount on our plates! My rating of the dishes was either very good or not my style, not much in between. Interesting though, while I didn't enjoy the octopus (a fave of mine in general), one companion said it was his favorite.
The deviled eggs were fantastic. Unfortunately, as a massive persimmon fan, the dish didn't work for me. The persimmons were not very ripe and the quinoa didn't add any flavor to the dish, although the burrata was very nice and with the prosciutto could have stood on its own. The texture didn't work either. The pig out was worth ordering, a novel presentation and fun with each of the pieces though I preferred the spicy peanut noodles to the pork! The pork has a nice crispy cracking but was just above average in taste. The brussels as sides were good but the rice, better!
And my favorite, in a once in a lifetime event (probably), I LOVED the chicken. I mean, when the others wanted the last bites of the octopus or the duck, I took the chicken. Even the porridge, which sounded really strange, worked.
While I had some hits and some misses, I enjoyed the atmosphere and the food is definitely above average and worth 4 stars. And, a major plus to one of the staff who volunteered his ipod for the music of the evening. 90's playlist was perfect for my liking! My top 'surprise' restaurant of the year.
This was one of the best meals I've ever had. A relaxed, romantic ambiance, attentive friendly staff, and unreal food made for an extremely memorable experience.
We had the 8 ingredient salad, the cod, the chicken, and the beignets for dessert. Everything was awesome. A ricotta with toasted sesame amuse bouche was heavenly – seriously I could eat that with an ice cream scoop. The 8 ingredient salad was different, tasty, and plated like a piece of art. The cod was also beautiful, and it had a subtle Asian flavor. The chicken was perfect – great flavor, well cooked, and the sushi rice porridge was really unique. The dessert beignets with goats milk caramel, red beans, ice cream and marmalade were complex, delicious, and the perfect way to end one of the most delicious meals of my life.
I will definitely go back.