Devi (Reported Closed)

Recommends

Amit R.

Joined 7 months ago

absolute charm, beauty of ambiance, supportive staff and lovely food to have with family..cheers!!

Doesn't Recommend

sgdfire

Joined 2 years ago

I HAD A BAD EXPERIENCE WITH THE MANAGEMENT!!!!!. Guess what - the food is good but they broke my heart! Here is what happened:

I had lunch one day with a vendor but I left my camera there by mistake. The girl who answered the phone told me in a sarcastic tone that no camera had been found. Something did not sound right. When I went back, the waiter remembered me and told me he put my camera in the lost and found. That was in the desk where the hostess/phone answerer was stationed. I am certain she took my phone. I spoke several times with a manager who was NO help. Then I spoke many times with another manager, Jeff who took a copy of my receipt and promised to follow up. I found out tonight he no longer works there.

There has been NO FOLLOW THROUGH in assisting me with my loss. Only talk. I think a conscientious management would have resolved this issue months ago. It is still unresolved and I am still VERY unhappy. I hope Devi's owners will pay attention and take care of this situation.

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neelamchachi

Joined 2 years ago

To Devi or Not. I agree with the past few post I wished I had read them before we went there. I was disappointed - not bad but at this level I expected better, and all I had heard about the food was for naught . The ambiance is required cliched old haveli style it's ok lacked richness. The Food main reason we were there for was creative but taste was lacking in the crossover indian dished.

We debated about the 3 or 4 course tasting menu - but since the 4 had 2 snacks and the menu choices were limited to chose from we went with 3. The traditional Indian dishes were good but the western influenced dishes were neither here nor there. The presentations were also not special - since we eat with our eyes first; nothing I cannot see on most foodtv show. I used to love the cucumber kachumber at Table so decided to have the cilantro version of it - it was ok they could have muddled the cilantro leaves so the flavors could seep into but the gin was abundant and good top shelf.

Since this is NYC and all the table are so close we had the benefit of overhearing other conversations. patrons on my left asked the wait staff about a their dry white wine selection - offered a suggestion of a sweet white wine - its not his fault - its probably their lack of proper training and or a sommelier, on my other side I overheard a patron asking if there had been a change in chefs because the food wasn't up to par or as they have had it before. Our staff was witty and attentive - it was a nice evening in all.

Doesn't Recommend

bornandraisedherenyc

Joined 7 years ago

This restaurant should be ashamed. Incredibly disappointing.

This restaurant obviously doesn't believe it can attract business through any method other than deep discount websites (which is fine) but they've significantly raised the prices to compensate. Dining at Devi without a discount is like paying the full walk up airfare for an airline ticket at Christmas (when everybody else on the aircraft bought their ticket in advance and paid much less).

$60.00 for a three course dinner with wine pairings sounds extremely reasonable considering one would expect the food to be of a grade comparable to its peers. It is obviously the cheapest grade they can procure.

One server for the entire restaurant - he ran around barely able to maintain his composure. The rest of the staff stood around and chit chatted with each other while the waiter made it known to customers he was very rushed (and not happy).

The wine pairings were probably the most disappointing aspect. The very last drops of whatever was left over in old bottles - who knows where they came from. Really disgusting and extremely disappointing.

The decor is not particularly appealing and the restaurant is so bright it has less atmosphere than a fast food joint.

I rarely regret spending money on a nice meal but this was just such a disappointment.

Doesn't Recommend

Travisreview

Joined 3 years ago

inconsistent food and service. We had high hopes for this restaurant as we love Indian food. They claimed a Michelin star, but I can't believe they still have it. Some of the food was good, some was very bad - honestly I've had better sauces out of a can - not at all fresh and full of sugar and salt. The cauliflower appetizer tasted like cheap Chinese sweet & sour.

The service was terrible - our waiter would be better suited to a diner (though we could see that there were many very polite Indian waiters for other tables).

Any good reviews would be from people who chose well, had one of the good waiters and didn't have to wait for their table. Unfortunately there were too many inconsistencies for us.

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nyny1981

Joined 6 years ago

Exceptional food!. It is not often that you end up going to a place with sky-high expectations and yet, it manages to tick each and every box in your list. Devi does! The only reason I have given it 4-stars was because the ambience was the only thing where I felt it would be more hep. Having said that, I won't say its bad by any means but I suppose I had expected it to be more trendy and it turned out to be a bit more plain (albeit elegant), but that probably was just an expectations issue.

But let that not take away from the food in any way. There have been occasions when I've felt let down by Indian fusion mainly because the chefs have experimented to the point where the food does not feel Indian anymore. This is where Devi totally stands out.

We tried the samosas and the chicken apricot seekh kebabs and they extremely flavorful and really well presented. For the entrees, we had the lamb chops and tandoori shrimp with the eggplant side. It was all perfectly spiced and everything was served with a twist, yet it retained it's Indian-ness which was the best part. Not one bad dish. In fact, not even one average dish. Everything was just absolutely spectacular including the shrikhand which we had for dessert.

All in all, we are definitely going back to try the other menu items. A must-go.

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snapsnap

Joined 7 years ago

phenomenal food and service. simply great food, great service.

not your typical indian menu and flavors. menu is a mix of traditional and fusion options.

we go a few times a year... have taken many of our out of town guests and large groups on special occasions.... always a hit. haven't had a bad dish yet.

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jakey33

Joined 4 years ago

wonderful and full of flavor. the ambiance is a excellent and romantic. Great lighting and service. I found this place to be everything that I wanted in a cozy romantic restuarant. We sat in a private booth where it seemed that the place was completely ours. The food was mouthwatering. I loved the lamb. There is really nothing bad I can say. Service was perfect and attentive but not intrusive. 5 stars all the way+++

Doesn't Recommend

chieffoodtaster

Joined 4 years ago

Avoid Devi If It's A "I Want Everything to Go Just Right" Evening. My boyfriend and I had a very poor experience at Devi. The food was fine -- not exceptional, but creative and ably executed -- but when the bill came, the manager acted as rudely and unprofessionally as I've seen a restaurant manager in New York act.

I'll explain: My boyfriend had been given a $100 giftcard to Devi as a present for Christmas. When the bill, for $85, arrived, my boyfriend presented the $100 giftcard, plus $3, to make for a 20% tip. But when the waitress returned with the bill, it only noted an $86 withdrawal from the giftcard. My boyfriend asked the waitress if the tip could also be placed on the card. (How else were we going to spend $14 at Devi?) The waitress -- who, while very nice overall, became a bit foggy here -- said she didn't think so, and that she didn't think the manager allowed it. My boyfriend then asked politely, but firmly -- he knew it was an awkward situation, but not one of the waitress's making -- if he might speak with the manager.

A few seconds later, the manager came thundering over and asked, in a hugely sarcastic tone, what seemed to be the problem. My boyfriend explained the issue, and the manager said, with unbridled pissiness, that the giftcard could not be used to tip: the computer wouldn't allow it. My boyfriend said that this didn't make much sense -- still politely, but slightly more firmly -- and the manager said, reverting to the sarcastic tone, that he would be sure to take it up with someone. Then he walked away. My boyfriend and I both felt embarrassed and silly. (We used the extra $14 on the card on a tasty double order of garlic naan for the road and paid the tip in cash.)

The whole incident was handled so unprofessionally, I thought I'd put this out as a warning. I'm sure almost most any visit to Devi will go well, but if its an evening where you want to make absolute sure that everything goes well -- big date, client dinner, parents in town for one night -- you might want to try somewhere else.

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Avious

Joined 4 years ago

Overall Impression : Quite good. Went last night, Jan 27 2009, for my bday dinner with family.

Had reservations for 8 o'clock, wasnt seated until 8:35. Then we were seated at a broken table which nearly fell over. The Maitre'd /Mgr was a big help over all. Fianlly a waitress came over and took our drink orders at 8:45 by 9:10 the drinks had still not arrived. Again the Maitre'd / Mgr , whose name I did not catch, was very apologetic. I have to say they more than made up for the very rocky start. From that point on all of our drinks were covered by the mgmt and they kept coming one after another the moment each one was finished. Btwn the 5 ppl at our table we had a combined 17 drinks all of which were free. In addition they brought out 2 free appetizers aside from what was ordered and brought one of each of the 6 desserts they offer as well. The biggest redeeming quality though was the food. All of the appetizers were out of this world, I strongly recommend the bhel purhi, the seared scallop, and the tandoor chicken stuffed with lamb, they each left us begging for more. The real Knockout of the night though was the tandoori grilled lambchops, they were cooked to absolute perfection and errupting with wonderful flavor.

Try and get there during restaurant because the $35 dinner deal is awesome. If not its a bit on the pricey side but the food is definately worth it. If u like indian food definately check this place out.