Tulum - Balaclava

Highly recommend as a date night venue, perfect for sharing and slowly enjoying. We had a handful of meze dishes, I especially enjoyed the borek it was so tasty... read more Highly recommend as a date night venue, perfect for sharing and slowly enjoying. We had a handful of meze dishes, I especially enjoyed the borek it was so tasty. Make sure to ask the waiters for wine recommendations!

Had a great first experience here. They really brought the flavours of Turkey to Melbourne! A fine dining experience everyone has to experience at least once in... read more Had a great first experience here. They really brought the flavours of Turkey to Melbourne! A fine dining experience everyone has to experience at least once in their life. Will be back for sure!

Read a lot about this place in the usual places and thought we’d take advantage of The Fork deal. The food is very presentable and Instagrammable and a modern t... read more Read a lot about this place in the usual places and thought we’d take advantage of The Fork deal. The food is very presentable and Instagrammable and a modern take on Turkish food. The Turkish bread with dips was full of flavour but it was the Tulum cheese starter served with lavosh that rocked our world. The fava bean pate was odd but interesting and the octopus dish was amazing (this dish wasn’t covered by The Fork deal). Our meat dishes were the chicken which reminded us of rilette and the beef which was presented as a pie and was delish. Service was good but a little hap-hazard. We waited 20 minutes for bread to mop up the sauce. It’s definitely somewhere worth trying for the experience.

There were some clear highlights in our 7 course degustation meal (which costs about $100pp excl. cocktails):<br/ <br/ BREAD: Tulum’s warm and crispy bread was... read more There were some clear highlights in our 7 course degustation meal (which costs about $100pp excl. cocktails):<br/ <br/ BREAD: Tulum’s warm and crispy bread was so addictive that I had to stop myself from finishing more. They mentioned something about the customised butter there the description escapes my memory! <br/ <br/ SEAFOOD: Tulum executes seafood well. The oysters were paired with watermelon foam and pickled juice was an innovative and refreshing combination. The octopus dish was also my absolute favourite I really enjoyed the flavours and texture.<br/ <br/ LAMB: The lamb rump was topped with a little too much oregano, but was otherwise tender and paired well with the eggplant puree. Loved every bite of the kibbeh kofte too.<br/ <br/ DESSERT: Even though it’s been 2 years, I still remember enjoying the rice pudding dessert that Tulum had. Just an absolute winner!! Unfortunately, this time we were served something else I loved how palate cleansing the wild thyme cream was, and the bread pudding was delicious, but the texture of the candied pumpkin didn’t quite work for me. <br/ <br/ Where the meal experience fell a bit short of expectations was in the service. We felt a bit rushed to finish the meal before the next seating, even though it was the kitchen that took a long time to prepare the dishes (rather than us being slow in finishing our courses). It will be helpful for the restaurant to understand the general duration of a 7 course degustation meal and adjust their booking slots accordingly so that everyone has a good dining experience. Towards the end of our meal, the waitresses seemed a bit rushed and did not explain the dishes we were having. Given that this was a birthday celebration, I expected more from Tulum! I have, however, been here for a Xmas dinner, and my experience then was much better. <br/ <br/ Taste: <br/ Ambience: <br/ Presentation: <br/ Price: <br/ Service:

Another to add to the stable of contemporary takes on cuisine from the Middle East, Tulum is adventurous in its offerings. The menu is broad, and there’s a rang... read more Another to add to the stable of contemporary takes on cuisine from the Middle East, Tulum is adventurous in its offerings. The menu is broad, and there’s a range of raki and Turkish wines available too. Staff are friendly and attentive. Food is good