Cheesy tofu patty = love. There is no doubt about it. If you're going to dine at Martsa on Elm, you must try it. And love it. Really though - what's not to love? Two little pan fried patties. Potato, cheese, tofu and spinach. A little fruit chutney (apricot...I think) on the side. A-mazing. Their vegetarian menu is pretty extensive which is always nice when I need to meet my non-meat eating friends for dinner. My fave off the veg menu: Drupke Tse (I'm sure I butchered the spelling...). Broccoli, string beans, water chestnuts and other veggies in a spicy cheese sauce. Yum. The curries are also pretty delicious. I particularly love the lamb curry with yogurt (don't remember the exact name of the dish). No joke - the food is five stars +. The four star rating is for service (and lack of liquor license! tsk tsk). Very hit or miss. I've received the best service with a super great server and a really attentive staff -- but I've also had pretty lame service... forgotten drinks and dishes...being rushed out the minute I put my fork down. Regardless, it's definitely worth checking out. read more

Martsa On Elm - cheesy tofu patty. be still my heart. - Himalayan/Nepalese Near Me - Somerville, Massachusetts

I've been to this place more than 5 times in a month. No I'm not being paid to advocate this. This place is amazing !!! I hosted my friends birthday party here and graduation dinner with my dad here. The food is very Himalayan and Indian. Very close to how Indian food actually is ( not Americanized Indian ). Highly recommend! read more

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First time having Tibetan food. If you've never tried it before, think of the perfect combination between Indian and Chinese food. This place is BYOB and there is a liquor store very close by which is perfect. I loved the food but the service wasn't so good. read more

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such good food for vegetarians and omnivores alike, service is good, and a nice spot for a nice dinner.

Definitely really good food! The only gripe I have about this place is the amount of oil they use in their dishes and it's a personal turn off for me which is why I'm taking off 2 stars. It's way too much! However, the review for the flavor and that totally checks out. There are a few staples on their menu that always come back for: Chicken chili, Choco (which is basically pan fried noodles with veggies/ meat), bread roll (which is really yummy but dripping of oil). Their lassi is also really good and totally recommend it. read more

My husband and I stopped at Martsa's on our way to a concert at Somerville Theater. I had a vegetarian dish with ginger and honey and he had the chicken curry. Both were delicious, and the staff was super friendly and efficient. The restaurant was busy but we got a table quickly, which was helpful since we had to get to the concert. The theater is only a 3 minute walk, which was a plus. read more

Amazing restaurant! Not only is the venue nice and clean, they have delicious curries and appetizers. The momos are a must-have! The flavors are authentic really remind me of home. It's the one place I recommend to all my friends who want food recommendations near Boston :) read more

The food was fresh... but just not a lot of flavor to it. Its worth trying out once, especially if you're planning on doing the Tibetan Trifecta in Cambridge/Somerville, but honestly, I'm just going to go to Namska or Diva in the future. WARNING: Their Lassis are Salty Lassis. So if you're expecting a sweet beverage, you will be disappointed. I'm really glad I got one, just to try the difference, but I think its an acquired taste. So, no real complaints, its an interesting place... just not impressed. read more

Great place to go when it's Friday or Saturday night and you didn't make reservations anywhere. There's always room, and the food is tasty. Food can sometimes take a while to come out, so for the love of everything: 1. Decide immediately what you want to eat and order the first time the server comes around. 2. Order appetizers. Food is tasty. I particularly like the aubergine dish with yogurt. read more

My meal here was pretty easy to forget. All I can remember about it was that my rice tasted like it was straight out of an Uncle Ben's Rice in 30 Seconds bag. I found the service to be on the slow side: I was in a rush to eat and the check took awhile to come out. The food is cheap but cheap food and an exotic cuisine doesn't guarantee a good eating experience for me. read more

What a gem! The pumpkin curry was spot on but I don't think I am going to order that again as 14$ for pumpkin is a bit expensive. The Beef Shapta was worth every calories. Fried meat and potatoes, do you need anything else? The Aloo Paratha was authentic, it's a different interpretation on Punjabi Aloo Paratha but very good for scooping those delicious curries! The noodles with garlic sauce were not that great but I had not any expectations from it anyway! Looking forward to try more food here! read more

The hand pulled noodles are the ultimate comfort food. Do not pass up this place. Very reasonably priced. One of our favorite spots in the area read more

What a cute little place this is! I tried making a reservation for 8 for a Sunday afternoon. The person who answered the phone said that they didn't take reservations on the weekend. When I got there at 12 noon, I understood why. The place was totally empty and the buffet was just getting set up. We waited until about 12:15 to get food. I chose the lunch buffet for $9.95 and was pleasantly surprised. Many of the buffet choices contained curry. (Yum!) The Chili Chicken with stir-fried veggies was out of this world. Entree portions are sizeable. You'll probably have leftovers to take home. Service was a little on the slow side--even though the restaurant was mostly empty. read more

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Firstly - how many Tibetan restaurants do you see in town? Kudos to this place for bringing some flair to the neighborhood. It was my first time having Tibetan food and it reminded me of a cross between of oriental and Indian food, which is pure perfection! Food - flavorful, filling, and everything I want in comfort food. We had sha-kam-pa, aloo parantha, vegetable ne-zom, and chicken momo. Chicken momos were alright - the portion size is great value and the spicy sauces it comes with are good. Everything else was delicious! Service - food came out quickly and our waiter was great with recommendations. Very friendly and honest staff, which I can always appreciate. If you're a more adventurous eater who likes both Indian and oriental food, def check this place out! read more

Martsa On Elm - Vegetable ne-zom (back left), aloo parantha (back right), sha-kam-pa (front left) - Himalayan/Nepalese Near Me - Somerville, Massachusetts

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This place is pretty good. It was my first experience with Tibetan food. You should come here for lunch; they have a good lunch menu. I got the chili chicken, which has a decent kick to it. I believe it was just above $8, but I was a little disappointed with the amount of chicken they gave. I wasn't QUITE full at the end, but I guess it was close enough. Other than that, the taste of everything was really good! It comes with soup as an appetizer, which was really tasty. The chicken itself was great and the bell peppers were juicy. read more

How this place has four stars upon us coming here I have NO IDEA! Service was friendly and accommodating (brought us a bottle opener for our byob wine). The food was under salted, way too oily, small portions and OVERPRICED!!!!!!! Will not ever be returning. Save your precious money for a better restaurant with food at the same price point like Sarma! read more

I've come to Martsa on Elm a few times now and have had it delivered even more. The food is solid and there are so many great vegetarian options. The restaurant is BYOB and accommodating of large groups. Contrary to some of the other reviews, I've always had good service here. It's not a restaurant I'm crazy for, but it's a solid crowdpleaser. read more

This is my favorite Tibetan restaurant in MA. The price is reasonable and the food is just delicious and resembles what I ate growing up.

This restaurant needs to really learn how to serve better if there is too much crowd. We asked for in house service and they said 1 hour. We asked for take out and they said they will serve in 30 mins which we opted for. We paid for our food and was waiting. We waited for 40 mins outside and we called them up to which they said "they don't know". We went in and saw an empty table. Since we anyways waited for this long, we requested to be seated and get food served that we already paid for. We again had to wait and it was already 1 hour 15 mins since we ordered. We just had to leave our table and request food. To which they just gave a bag of our takeout and told us 'go eat and hurry up we are closing'. It was unbelievable! They expected us to unpack and eat at the table and still leave restaurant on time. We tried to make it easier for them by asking how much time and they could have set expectations. I went back to explain that this is not done and they should do the rightful act of setting expectations. Instead of looking up at my face, they were just giggling and not really concerned of how we were treated. They eventually shouted back saying ' the kitchen is busy, you need to understand'. Fine then they could have said so! I have seen numerous bad service reviews in Yelp and I've personally experienced it before when I went with a friend and weren't served or looked at for almost 25 minutes. I still went again for the food which is undeniably really good but now this is just appalling behavior that I cannot entertain. read more

Steer clear of Martsa on Elm if you have any food allergies or dietary restrictions! I am lactose intolerant, as well as gluten intolerant, and Martsa on Elm refused to make food for me. I selected an item on the menu that appeared to be safe for my dietary restrictions, and I was told that the item was naturally gluten and dairy free when I ordered my dish. However, the server then asked if I was fine with cross-contamination. As I am highly lactose intolerant, I told him that I could not handle cross contamination with dairy in my dish. The server told me that "it's very hard" because the cook would need to use a new pan and new utensils. He could not identify any item on the menu that I could eat without a risk of dairy cross contamination. The server checked with the cook and came back and repeated the same comment, saying it was "too busy" to take the time to ensure that my dish would be safe. My friends and I explained that we were fine to wait a bit longer if that would ensure that my dish would be safe to eat, but the server ultimately told me that the cook did not want to make my food. Throughout the conversation, the server was rude and unhelpful. When I asked to speak with a manager to explain the situation, he told me that she was too busy to speak with me. He also repeatedly acted as though I was simply being difficult in my concerns about dairy cross-contamination, though my concern is related to a valid health reason. Given this exchange, I would not recommend Martsa on Elm. While my friends enjoyed their food, the customer service was terrible. read more

Delicious food! Wonderful and tasty restaurant in davis square. We had chicken momo, cocunut eggplant and lamb delight... everything was delicious. It is also BYOB so we brought some beer. Only negative thing we can say is that we wanted to keep the hot sauce that came with the momo to use with the entrees and the server said we could not keep them because another table needed it. Perhaps have more sets of hot sauce containers? Just a suggestion and some constructive criticism; the food is so good we will definitely be back! read more

My friends and I went to this place for dinner. The staff was extremely rude and asked us to leave the place even though the meal was not completed. Inspite of us politely requesting him for 5 mins to finish the food his response was "I can't wait till you guys finish your food. You guys walked in through the door that has the hours written." Very disappointed with service. read more

All the dishes we tried were delicious, we got the lentil soup, chili chicken, beef soup with handmade noodles, and beef momos Beautiful restaurant. Easy to get to. read more

They have too many vegetarian and vegan varieties. Loved their spicy vegetables with ginger honey sauce and their jasmine rice was the best. read more

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I visited the new location today and it is a really beautiful space with the same amazing food and friendly staff. The restaurant now also sells beer and wine. I love Martsa. read more

Service was really slow. Chole was too oily. Chilli chicken was blend. Best part of the restaurant was momos. Really good chicken momo. Excellent masala chai. Aloo paratha was okay. read more

We ordered steamed pork momos (basically dumplings), spicy pumpkin curry, and pineapple chicken ... and everything was tasty. I think a first for me here: ordering a veggie entree! Wow! Oh yeah! Holy moly! My general bias toward veggies as a main dish has always steered me away but glad I was not being myself last night and ordered the spicy pumpkin curry. Delicious. I also chose to be chicken last night, deciding that, on this evening, I will play the role of a weak individual who can't handle heat, so I negotiated with the waiter on a spiciness level of mild, so basically I just got pumpkin curry. Did I mention it was delicious? Various options for the momos, but ultimately, my bf negotiated on: pork. Steamed. It came with 2 sauces we didn't know about so we couldn't negotiate: one smooth, one chunky. The smooth one packed heat, and tried to kill me. The chunky one did not try to kill me, so I spooned up a lot. Basically, I owned the chunky one. I dominated it. Do you get what I'm saying? No? My bf got pineapple chicken cuz he basic. **yawn** But this, too, was tasty. Got me some chai. My bf asked to "chai" my drink, then snatched the mug from me before I could even respond, OH NO YOU CHAIN'T! Basically our evening was full of tactical negotiations and warfare and I'm just glad no one got hurt. Martsa, we'll be back! read more

We went to Martsa On Elm last Friday evening and it was WONDERFUL! It's BYOB so we walked next store to bring in a few drinks to enjoy with our meal. The entire experience was great - we ordered the steamed momos, pumpkin balls, chicken and almond, eggplant curry, roti, and rice and WOW such a fun and flavorful meal to share with friends! Thanks for a really yummy and lovely evening adventure in Boston! read more

We're regulars here. What else can I say? Delicious food, reasonable prices. Somewhat understaffed but makes up for it with delicious meals and a friendly vibe. read more

We ordered the Fiery Pork Belly Chili and a beef dish as well as some momo's. Everything was good but the pork dish was the best. They have a bring-your-own-drink policy which is very convenient. read more

Wonderful flavors: love the Chole batura appetizer, chaat, the chicken korma, goat curry, mango lassis, eggplant.... can't get enough of this place. my favorite Indian restaurant and well worth the trip from Brookline. read more

Martsa? On the Elm (tree)? Too fancy of a name for a Tibetan restaurant. CONS: I went to this place with the Dalai Lama in my thoughts and expectations as high as the Himalayas that the great leader's golden blessings permeate throughout the world and also via the food of the mountain people; the very caring Tibetans. Apparently the food is too bland and not worth the money. Considering that Tibet is located in between India and China, I expected a unique blend of spices and flavors. Not a good place to take a date. read more

I like the Dalai Lama. He's a cool dude. He reminds me of the world's happiest puppy dog. Always happy to see you and make you feel good about yourself, and right there with a simple wisdom that sneaks up on your heart and makes you wonder how you ever missed the wonder of the world right before you. And since they won't let him into Tibet anymore, they've got him right up there on the wall at Martsa on Elm, watching over you while you enjoy your dinner. And enjoy you will. Family style is the way to go here. You want a little of everything. Vegetable momos, almond chicken, lamb with coconut curry, it was all good. Your choice of white or brown rice. Not blazing hot, but good spicy comfort food. They don't serve alcohol, so if you're looking for a consciousness raising experience, you'll have to get in touch with your own inner Buddha nature. The mango iced tea goes a long way in that regard. Prices are decent, and since you're not numbing your mind with wine, you'll get out of there with change back from ol' Andrew Jackson. I've never gone to Tibet and had the real thing, but I'm sure Martsa on Elm is as good as it gets anywhere near the Red Line. But like the Dalai Lama would say, don't take my word for it, go convince yourself. read more

Very reasonable lunch buffet! The variety is somewhat lacking, think there were around 5 main hot dishes, but I really enjoyed every single item there. Especially the veggies. Compared to the other Tibetan lunch buffet that I frequent, this place is a bit cheaper, but I think I'd rather pay a few extra dollars for more variety. Still a good option for when you're in Davis sq, hungry, and don't want to shell out big bucks. read more

Write it about a Himalayan place. Food is authentic - better than many of the other more expensive, pan Asian, Indian, Tibetan places in the square. Fresh ingredients. The chicken cashew hints at it's Chinese origins while using a richer curry heavy in turmeric. The menu has evolved and moved away from it's more traditional offerings to a simpler menu with no pork, seafood or lamb offerings. In it's heyday, the sweet and spicy lamb was brilliant - deep fried tossed in a chilli oil sauce served with vegetables. The GG Pork sauteed with seaweed and sesame seeds was similarly well prepared and unusual in its mix of Tibetan and Chinese cuisines. The momo are heartily wrapped and well flavored. Polite service. Please bring back the other sections of your menu. read more

So I work just down the street from this place. One a whim i walked by one day and the spices and yummy smells caught my attention. They have a lunch buffet that is reasonable cheap and offers a good bang for your buck. I ate here a couple times and every time was just as good as the time before. That is until I went and ordered some curry chicken to go. And it went dreadfully wrong from there. To my surprise I came back to work and opened the box only to find a new friend. A COCKROACH!!! still alive. Wiggling it's antenna's sitting on top of my delicious dumpling. :( I have to say, I wanted to like this place, i did like this place, but after that how could you possibly want to go back? Nonetheless because of this occurance, I was turned off from eating out for weeks. Paranoid on what may or may not turn up. Let us just say I will not be going back to this place anytime soon! read more

Spinach sauce for me please!!!!!! No seriously, that spinach sauce paired with their lamb is just plain awesome. I want a jar of that spinach sauce to go!! And by a jar, I mean one of those huge jugs!! Mmmmmm And pan fried momos too? Those momos (which are basically tibetan potstickers) are way better than their steamed ones, but that shouldn't be brain surgery to figure out, since anything fried is usually better and tastier than something in the healthier steamed alternative ha ha These orders of 8 disappear pretty quickly though, so come prepared to order at least two orders of these! But this place really is a bit pricier than I thought it would be....and I would definitely pass up their noodle dishes next time...We got the ChoCho dish which was noodles with chicken and veggies in a peanut oil sauce, but everything seemed way over and/or undercooked and there really wasn't one ounce of flavor in that dish....sad.... And their curry isn't quite as strong in flavor as I normally like it either, but that spinach sauce and those momos definitely make up for some of the slack in these other dishes. Plus, for a spot in Davis Square with such bright warm oranges and blues and decor on the walls, this place really feels like a mini escape from the normal Davis Square joint, which I definitely appreciate. I will be back, but next time only with pan friend momos, and perhaps two dishes in that spinach sauce!!!!!! read more

Yum yum yum! This is a great Tibetan restaurant in Davis Square. They have a variety of Tibetan fare as well as some Indian-influenced dishes. I really like the Tibetan bread - it's a thick round bread that is semi-crispy on the outside and soft and chewy on the inside. The portion is a bit small, so you'd need to order 1 per person if you're not having other breads or rice. Do not leave without trying the momos!!!! They are home-made and absolutely delicious. My only regret was not ordering more! I tried the veggie momo and was seasoned beautifully with greens and garlic. The skin is thick and chewy (just the way I like it). The okra never fails and the portion is very generous. It's nicely grilled and simply seasoned. I also had a tofu dish with peas and spinach and that was delicious. For drinks, I wanted to try something new and ordered the blueberry lassi. It was eh. I would stick to the mango lassi, it never fails. Lastly, the service is very friendly and timely. Will be visiting here regularly. read more

Whoa. How did we not find this place before? 3 years in Somerville and it took us this long to find what may be our new favorite spot. Out for a celebratory dinner in Davis Square on a Friday night, it was a little tough to find somewhere to squeeze us in. Wandering down the avenue, boo suggested we turn back but something told me to keep going. So glad we did, because Martsa was the next place we saw. The ambience was warm and the smells were enticing. I asked for a beverage menu after noting the excellent selection on other tables, and the charmingly snarky gentleman who seated us told me Martsa is BYOB. Say whaaaaaaaaaat? Boo dashed across to Downtown Wine and Spirits while I flipped open an incredible menu. The worst part about eating here was having to decide what to order--everything in the menu looked better and better. We settled on chicken momos, a special shrimp dish, and the lamb with squash. They were all amazing; between the lamb and the shrimp, I'd happily never try anything else on the menu again. But I must! What else is hiding from me? My mouth is watering as I type. I also had a ginger lime honey tea and it was truly amazing, spiced like apple cider. Can't wait to go back! read more

To those of you who knocking the service, I concur heartily. Brusque to the point of rudeness -- putting food down at the table without a word, not thanking you as you leave even though they're standing right there, that kind of thing. You're in their home and they don't make it the most warm of environments. But the food. Oh, the food makes up for it. In spades. I had the vegetable fritters in soya garlic sauce. I will dream about this tonight. read more