Inspired Turkey

I have recently used Inspired Turkey venue and catering for my husband’s 40^th surprise birthday party, and it was a huge success. I liked the venue a lot. It’s not your typical generic party hall; it has charm and character. The walls are painted gold, and they are decorated with deep red velvet curtains. It also has crystal chandeliers hanging from the ceiling that can be dimmed to achieve the desired atmosphere. It has an electric fireplace that adds a lot of charm, and it is also equipped with a PA system and a projector, plus disco lights as an option for those who want to have dancing at their party. Walls are decorated with vintage posters, and so are the bathrooms. I just loved the combination of all of this. My husband was blown away by how classy the place looked and how we were able to achieve a very laid back atmosphere for our party at the same time. We and our guests had so much fun at the party which took place on Saturday night, that people who I guess were looking for a fun club/​bar to hang out at were stopping by and peering through the windows. I picked a James Bond theme for our party, which worked so great! We didn’t have a DJ, I just downloaded music on my iPad and thanks to the awesome PA system and the disco lights we had complete control over the music we plaid, the volume of it, and our guests were even able to play their favorite songs off of their phones. It was great.
The food was very good, and there was enough of it. It was a buffet style set up, but it was served by the employees of that place on ceramic plates with real silverware. Kitchen was very well equipped. The staff was available for our entire event, and the owner was there to help and oversee everything. We received phenomenal customer service with every wish and demand being met. I was stressing a lot about this party since it was a surprise and I wanted to achieve a certain feel for it with decorations to set the mood for James Bond Casino Royale party. The owner went out of his way to make me and my guests feel comfortable, help me out with achieving the desired mood for the party, and even purchased martini glasses especially for my event. It was perfect.
Keep in mind that the place looks a lot better in the evening then during the day because the meed that the lights set really comes through then. I thought the price was accessible and comparable to other, less attractive venues.
The only minor drawback was that the place didn’t have at the time liqueur license. For a small additional fee the owner provided not one, but two bartenders for my event that were very professional, but I had to bring all alcohol with me (glasses, ice, mixing juices, sodas, etc. were provided by the owner), which was an inconvenience especially it being a surprise party for my husband. I had help and it worked out, but it would’ve been easier for me if I could just pay for an open bar. I had a lot of alcohol left after the party which I couldn’t return. I’m told that the owner works towards obtaining a liqueur licence so hopefully it will change soon. You could serve wine and beer without having to get a bartender, but I wanted martinis and drinks in addition to that.
Overall, the party was a huge success, and I highly recommend this place with complete and full confidence that you will enjoy your event there. I would and probably will use this venue for another event in the future. This place and the customer service is awesome.

Wonderful food, service, and atmosphere! We recently held a PTA event here, and the owners went out of their way to make our night special. They made us feel like family! And the turkey was amazing! We will definitely be back.

I stumbled across Inspired Turkey when I was looking for a space to rent for my boyfriend’s birthday party and I am SO thrilled that i did. Ide and Mel were fantastic and VERY accommodating. We had about 50 people for the event and everyone ranted and raved about how it was such a beautiful space. It is in a prime location downtown New Haven and the facility has everything you need to host a perfect party. Hats off to Inspired Turkey! We will be holding more events here for sure! HIGHLY recommended!

Great space, great hosts, great food. My wife rented the space for her mother’s 70^th bday party. The food was great, as was the overall can-​do attitude of the hosts. Highly recommend.

I have worked with this group for a few of my catered events and overall we have been very pleased. Everyone really loves the Turkey, and the customer service has been great! As mentioned in some of the other reviews, there are potentially a few things that can be improved with their business model, but the food so far has been great.
I would love to see a cart from this place. I would also love to see turkey/​chicken sandwiches, especially ones with options like stuffing, cranberry sauce (which is phenomenal btw), and gravy. Maybe even some soups and an expanded menu.
I have not yet tried their event space, but I have been there on off hours and it looks like a great place for a small to medium size event.
Overall, I would definitely recommend trying with them for catered events year round.

all I can say is WOW! they really do a great job at providing a venue for entertainment and open collaborative efforts amongst the attendees. this is a highlight of any and every downtown excursion. Michael balotin’s nephew is very charming and sincere try the popcorn!

Just called and was told they are only open for «events». The next event being this Sunday. The lady said no more take out and can only get food at an event. This is a perplexing business model. Is this a business or what?

The owners are very nice, but have day jobs elsewhere so are not really focused on this as a restaurant. The turkey was delicious. However they serve sides, many of which seem to come from a can. And a small commercially-​wrapped cornbread portion straight from the box? Please. This is not a restaurant. Not sure what it is. They should focus on doing take out, make sure every side is cooked in house from fresh ingredients, and get full time staff to make this a serious effort. Apart from the turkey which is a unique and well-​crafted product, there is no focus. Hopefully they will get together a sound business plan and remake themselves.

We ordered a turkey for Thanksgiving and it was a hit. The owners are super nice. It does seem like logistically they may have been overwhelmed by the orders around Thanksgiving as we were lucky to come in at the right time and there was a frozen turkey available. The turkey itself was well loved. The only part that was a little on the dry side was the breast, but that may have been the reheating. Otherwise it was really excellent and everyone loved it.
I think their strength will be as a competitor to a Honey Baked Ham type establishment. As a lunch/​dinner spot, the space almost feels a little too «unofficial» and possibly dimly lit. Almost like it was a caterer set up in an event space vs. being a permanent establishment. While I have no doubts the food is good and the owners are awesome people, I can see how others wouldn’t feel the environment was inviting enough.
Overall a good experience and I’ll be back for Christmas needs.

The owners are lovely people but unfortunately I had almost the exact same experience as Jason L. The owners need to realize that they are on the edge of a highly competitive upscale restaurant area. Canned vegetables, pre-​packaged corn bread and dry turkey are not the way to stay in business. It was like eating at my grade-​school cafeteria on an off day. They need to hire a real chef who can make the concept work, otherwise they won’t last long. Fresh vegetables dishes, gourmet style mac & cheese and mashed potatoes, and turkey sliced per order are their only chance. I think the basic concept is sound so let’s hope they can turn it around before it’s too late.

Amazing pressure fried turkey! Just give it a try and I’m sure you’ll be back. They have deLicious sides, we had turkey with mashed potatoes and collard greens. The owners are great people.. Oh and did I mention this place is BYOB? Can’t wait to go back!

It’s truly is good turkey, and you get a complete meal. Not chips and fries as sides, I’m talking mom’s potatoes and green beans sides. Plus, the Yale discount is amazing. I am always on the hunt for a healthy meal, trying to cut back on carbs etc. Usually for this price, everything is carb heavy and processed. But this, this is just great

I’ve technically never eaten here, but we did a wine crawl in New Haven on Friday and they were on the list. Not sure how new they are, but I’ve never seen/​heard of them and I’m in New Haven (and stalking new places on Unilocal) pretty frequently. It’s not fair of me to review their customer service or food, but they were giving out samples of food for the wine tasting and the little piece of turkey I had was phenomenal! My entire group tore the samples apart, and definitely plan on going back in the near future. The prices looked more than reasonable and that turkey was just so damn good. I’ll give a full review when I actually go there to eat.

My favorite downtown New Haven restaurant. If you like turkey and chicken this place will satisfy. I have been to this restaurant several times and it keeps getting better. The food is excellent. I have tried both the Turkey and Chicken and most of the sides. It’s pretty simple menu so that was pretty easy. I think the simplicity must be how they keep to prices so reasonable. They are wonderfully low for New Haven.
Good food,
Fast, friendly service,
high quality,
very reasonable prices,
I recommend this restaurant.

I don’t think I’ve ever felt so strongly about a meal deserving a 1-​star review.
There is NOTHING inspiring about paying $ 7 for dry, flavorless turkey, frozen mixed vegetables and clumpy mac & cheese with a broken cheese sauce.
I walked into the newly opened storefront which occupies the old Nini’s event space. 4 tables were scattered about. In the back of the room set a unused carving table, a hot box, a steam line & chill chest.
I was greeted by the lone employee after wandering in, unsure if they were actually open. I was the only person there at 12:15.
I inquired about the food, because it actually smelled somewhat good. She explained and I decided on turkey with 2 sides. The sides were «homemade mac & cheese», «rice» & «vegetables». She pulled the steam table lid on the rice, and it was just plain, white rice. No Thanks.
So I went with the mac & cheese and vegetables which i would later find out were straight out of a freezer bag or can.
The mac & cheese looked homemade, unfortunately it also looked like it was made as someone’s 1^st attempt at mac&cheese. The sauce was absent, it was like boiled pasta mixed with cheese shreds and baked. Eventually the lump congealed into one solid mass around my fork. I’ll pass.
The dark meat turkey was palatable, with some added salt. The white meat was like eating sawdust, I immediately choked and reached for my water bottle. Whoever decided it would be a great idea to pre-​carve turkey and hold it on a steam table needs to go back to the drawing board.
I’ve gotten better meals at the Anchor Bar & Strip Clubs around the state, and to say i’d rather eat those meals again over this, is an understatement. I read my foam container it’s last rights, and put it in a better resting place… the trash. Not a place that would even be on the lowest parts of my radar for dining out again. Rotten.