Fulgurances — Restaurant in New York

We recently had the pleasure of enjoying one of the most vibrant, special, and beautiful meals at Fulgrances Laundromat, thanks to their incredibly talented resident chef, Rasika Venkatesa. Fulgrances is a truly unique concept—a cozy, intimate spot that features gifted resident chefs for a few months at a time. Each chef presents a carefully curated tasting menu at a reasonable price, and you can elevate your experience even further with a wine pairing that is also thoughtfully priced.

Let me start with the wine pairings because they deserve their own standing ovation. I’ve been fortunate to experience a lot of great food and wine in my life, but this was on a whole other level. The wine pairings were special, surprising, and perfectly harmonious with each dish. They didn’t just complement the food—they enhanced it, letting each flavor shine. One standout was a peppery red wine with rose notes that I cannot stop thinking about. I’ve been replaying it in my mind ever since and am determined to find it again.

Now onto the food, which was nothing short of divine. Chef Rasika’s tasting menu exceeded all my expectations, beautifully blending Indian flavors with refined, elevated techniques. We opted for the extended tasting menu with the supplemental chutney starter, and every single bite was exquisite. The courses included chana dal with persimmon chutney; scallop, bottle gourd, and Asian pear; idly with beetroot, pomegranate, and ruby grapefruit; ash gourd, ginger, black-eyed pea, and coconut stew; confit duck meatball with “mochi”; smoked duck “curry” with sweet potato, lavender, and pesarattu; rooahfza ice; and badam halwa tart with sunchoke and cardamom. These dishes were a masterclass in flavor, texture, and execution. Each course was a testament to Chef Rasika’s ability to showcase Indian cuisine in an elevated and inventive way while still delivering the bold, nostalgic flavors that brought me back to my childhood.

The highlight of the evening was the chance to meet Chef Rasika herself. She was kind, humble, and personable, and her passion for her craft shone through in every dish. Her residency at Fulgrances lasts for three months, and as the menu evolves, we are already planning our return visit to see what she creates next. Beyond that, we are incredibly excited to visit Mythily, Chef Rasika’s own restaurant, which promises to be a stunning ode to Indian culture presented in a new and innovative light.

Fulgrances Laundromat delivered a dining experience that went beyond just food—it was a celebration of flavor, creativity, and hospitality. The meal was a perfect 10 out of 10, the wine pairings were a mind-blowing 20 out of 10, and the service was impeccable.

If you’re a food lover or simply looking for an unforgettable dining experience, don’t walk—run to Fulgrances Laundromat to experience Chef Rasika Venkatesa’s residency. And once her tenure ends, you can bet we’ll be back to see what other brilliant chefs take the stage at this...

Got the 6 course tasting menu with the wine pairing and a cheese plate. Overall pretty disappointing.

Highlights: all the wine was great. Some of it very unusual. Far better than the food. The Georgian wine they gave us was pretty wild in a good way. really nice anchovy salad. Salty and briny. great service. Somme was very knowledgeable about each of the wines. second dessert of red wine and an upside down chocolate tart achieved the tasty PB&J thing they were going for.

Lowlights: I don't know why some high end chefs feel the need to torture perfectly good seafood. Raw scallops had been turned into a gluey and flavorless gruel as part of some kind of savory jam. Why? What did the scallops do to deserve this? the tiny little radishes we got needed more of whatever yeast was supposed to turn them into something more than just a cold radish with butter on it two limp noodles of broccoli rabe with the saddest "tempura" I've ever seen. The aoli was good though The duck dish wasn't bad but surprisingly stock. I can get the same thing at probably 10 other restaurants in this neighborhood in far greater quantities cheese plate was good but didn't come with enough bread or varieties of cheese -- it had one cheese (and for some reason was filled out by... lettuce???). Put another kind of cheese on there and double the quantity of bread! First dessert of yogurt was just ok. It basically tasted like just yogurt and citrus fruit without anything to make it more than that overall the portions were far too small given the high cost. My date and I were still hungry after the meal so we each got a slice of pizza. The pizza was a small fraction of the cost and we both agreed tasted better than most of the things we had eaten here.

I'm hesitant to leave a critical review for a restaurant whose gimmick is different guest chefs because maybe the one before was better or the next one will be great. But if the premise of Fulgrances is that coming here necessitates taking a risk on the food, then it shouldn't cost 400 dollars for 2 people to take that risk. I would love to know whether the next menu they make is any good, but it's not worth $400 to find out. Likely...

Ok so I get it. It’s fancy schmancy dining where we’re supposed to take a bite with a deeply thoughtful look on our face and then look up and say, “ah, absolutely delicious” and then use various words to describe why it takes so good. I’ve eaten in nice restaurants all over the world so I wouldn’t consider myself some backwater rube. That being said, I felt pretty uncomfortable in this place. You end up having several servers, but our main one was extremely cold and kind of rude. Nice to my wife, but I sensed she had an issue with me from the jump but I swear I don’t think I did anything to deserve it, granted I’ve always suspected I just have one of those faces people wanna hate. I had asked to change our seats because they sat us right next to the busy server station. Didn’t think it would be a big deal since the place was mostly empty. Maybe that did it. These types of meals you’re expecting a description of each course you’re being served. The server very briefly told us what was in it, she mumbled under her mask, I couldn’t tell what was being said 80% of the time. The food was…ok. Kind of bland, a little over thought / overly complicated, and frankly expensive as hell. When you’re paying that kind of money for tiny curated dishes, your expectations on not just the flavors, but the staff, the atmosphere, the whole experience, maybe is a little higher than is deliverable. That being said, I’ve had dinners where I wanted to give them all of my money because it was so damn good. I had this feeling everyone who worked there just got yelled at by the manager or something. We left and immediately went across the street to 99 Franklin where the bar tender greeted us with a huge smile and made us feel welcomed. And everything was a fraction of the cost. Sorry for the long post, but it’s a week later and my wife and I are still talking about how put off we were by...