Turmeric Kitchen For The Win!
Flavor So Good You'd Never Know It Used To Be A Gas Station
I know this is not the first article written for Turmeric Kitchen, but I’m not sure if enough was said the first time. This quaint Indian cuisine has become one of our regular favorites in town. Even our kids like eating here!
I had several people tell me how much they enjoyed this place before we tried it. My initial thought was, Indian food, how good can it be? The flavors are magical and spot on, so much so that I crave them at least once a month.
There is plenty of room inside for bigger parties. We ate in December with our party of 8. The service is always fast and friendly.
These are our go-to favorites: Garlic Naan, Chicken Korma, and Tandoori Chicken. The naan is soft and just the right amount of garlic. Sometimes it does get a little burnt on the bottom. My guess is that it is hard to control the temperature in the clay oven in which they bake it.
The Chicken Korma is my husband’s fave. It is boneless chicken bites in a buttery, nutty, creamy sauce. My favorite dish is the Tandoori Chicken (pictured twice above). It is bone-in chicken baked in the clay oven and marinated in lemon, yogurt, and herbs. It is brought out on a skillet like your fajitas at Chili’s.
It has roasted onions and peppers at the bottom, which sometimes have a charbroiled flavor. They bring a side of this sauce, which must be like the Butter Chicken sauce. It is creamy and adds just the right pairing of flavor to the chicken. Both entrees are served with heaping bowls of rice. Also, my drink order is the Hibiscus Citrus SWEET tea. You can order it unsweet, but we are southerners, so why would you do that?
Things we have tasted before, is of course that staple dish, the Butter Chicken. This is probably the best dish for any first timer. The Fish Korma is also very delicious. It is Mahi mahi in the creamy, nutty sauce. Its sauce is creamier and yellower than the chicken korma's creamy orange. Appetizers we have tried: Samosas, which are pastry filled with spiced potatoes, peas, and spices.
It is served with a green dipping sauce, such as cilantro chutney. It was an ok flavor. For one, we didn’t order it! It was given to us by accident. For two, we don’t like peas, so we picked them out. The other bread appetizer we tried was the Roti. Not great at all. I prefer Green Papaya’s Roti over this one. We ordered the house salad one time and never again.
It has cucumbers, beets, pomegranate, feta cheese, carrots, and some lettuce hiding at the bottom. The house dressing is a garlic vinaigrette. But I think it was more of the cilantro chutney. It made the vegetables wet but also dry at the same time, somehow.
I forgot to take a picture of the actual drink, so sue me for false advertising. We had the Mango Lassie. It looked like this. It is a non-alcoholic yogurt drink with mango and lemon. We have never ordered dessert from Turmeric Kitchen…. yet. This drink is so good that it tastes like a dessert. Your kids will love it too, as ours do!
Turning this building from a gas station into a pretty popular restaurant, especially on nights and weekends, is quite a feat! They added the patio bar and seating last summer. I will say that there are some things that could be done to make it look more aesthetically pleasing. During our most recent visit, one of the outdoor ceiling fans was falling.
They have live bands come and play on the patio on certain nights. With the lights and the atmosphere, having live music really makes this restaurant come to life.
If you have ever been hesitant about Indian food, you need to check it out! You won’t regret it!
3075 Highway US-17
Green Cove Springs, FL 32043
Hours:
Tue - Thur 11:30 am - 9 pm
Fri - Sat 11:30 am - 10 pm
Sun 11:30 am - 9 pm
Mon 10:30 am - 9 pm
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