In the past few months I have had several opportunities to visit The Tulip (formerly The Black Tulip) in Cocoa Village. At least I think they have changed the name...I'm not 100% certain as I have seen it both ways lately. I have not had cause to be disappointed in any of these visits.
The first visit was for a friends birthday. The Tulip arranged for the front bar area to be reserved for the group of about 20. They provided a limited menu at a fixed price, half price on wine and beer, and the organizer arranged for delicious appetizers to be served prior to dinner. Every single part of this event was handled smoothly, the food was delicious, and the service was impeccable.
Based on the success of that event, I decided to host my company's holiday party at the restaurant. We had 45 people and reserved the entire restaurant on a Sunday when they are normally closed. Again we had appetizers served in advance on trays and a limited menu that included soup or salad, entrée, and dessert. We offered an open bar. The staff, again, was perfect. Friendly, smiling, professional and apparently with amazing memories to remember what everyone was drinking and make sure glasses were always full.
After the event, the owner, Daniel, gave me a gift certificate as a thank you for having our event at his restaurant. For our anniversary, we went to the restaurant on a Friday night. Daniel greeted us at the door and welcomed us back. It was clear that he knew we had been there before, but he didn't specifically remember us. That was fine with us. We weren't looking for any special treatment, just a nice dinner in a good restaurant.
We had a nice dinner. I ordered the duck, which is not something I would normally order. It was good, but I probably wouldn't order it again. The other meals I had there were more to my personal liking. We had mentioned that it was our anniversary and they offered us a complementary dessert, but we declined. Daniel visited our table several times just to check on us and when we declined dessert, he brought us a tequila mix shot instead. It was very good.
After we left, having paid with the gift certificate, Daniel remembered who we were and was quite embarrassed that he hadn't remembered us. He called me on my cell phone to apologize and asked why we hadn't reminded him. He apologized repeatedly for not visiting with us more (although, the amount of time he spent checking on us was more than you would ever get most places). It was a super nice gesture. Something that would never happen at a chain restaurant!
My concern is this. Whenever I mention The Tulip to locals, they all say how much they love that place. But they also say, I haven't been there for years. When we were there, it wasn't empty, but it wasn't packed either. I worry that people take these nice places, locally owned, a part of the local history and culture, for granted. They think they will go there sometime, but they don't and eventually the business is gone and becomes an "I remember when" instead of a vibrant part of the community.
So, instead of thinking this is a special occasion place, just go. Our dinner, including a bottle of wine, was $100. It may not be Applebee's prices, but it isn't Applebee's food either.
Tips: http://www.theblacktuliprestaurant.com/
While we were out exploring we stumbled upon this place. Well, we actually used a smartphone app, because you would be really unlikely just to accidentally find this place out driving around. For one thing, it is at the end of the road. For another, it doesn't really look like a public restaurant until you are parked and walking in.
This place is pretty unique. We were there on a Saturday afternoon. There was a man playing good country music. Not too loud, just right. They actually grill their burgers outside on a real grill. And I'm here to tell you they are delicious.
