Turkish meze touches down in Crows Nest
A NEW Turkish meze bar has touched down on the north shore, serving up food fit for a sultan.
Mosman
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A NEW Turkish meze bar has touched down on the north shore, serving up food fit for a sultan.
The new eatery has taken over the corner of Willoughby Rd and Pacific Hwy, Crows Nest’s two main eating arterials.
Before it opened, the venue was given a souk-chic makeover, including antique Turkish-style lanterns and patterned wall tiling.
Doner kebabs are nowhere to be seen, with owner Alex Buharali hoping to introduce the community to his family’s home recipes.
“We serve the kind of food that Turkish people eat every day, the traditional home-style dishes that our family have been making for generations,” said Alex.
The all-day menu starts with homemade dips, from a tangy green olive and feta to a creamy cacik (garlic yoghurt) and a smoked red capsicum, served with simit — golden seeded bread rings.
There’s also cold meze dishes, including vine leaf ‘finger dolmas’, Ottoman smoked eggplant and marinated artichoke hearts drizzled in pomegranate molasses.
“When you arrive, you’re hungry, you don’t want to wait 20 minutes to get an entree. In Turkey, cold dishes like these come out straight away.”
The menu then progresses to hot meze, chargrilled meats and salads.
Specialities include the izgara kofta, ground lamb meatballs spiced with cumin and paprika, and golden soldiers of haloumi, lashed with Cypriot honey.
On a recent visit from Turkey, Alex’s mum insisted on adding a new zucchini dish to the menu.
It’s a summer dish that is growing in popularity back home,” Alex said.
“I wasn’t sure about it, I told her nobody eats courgettes here, but after I tasted it, I knew we had to serve it. It’s now one of our most popular dishes.”
The Aegean-style dish, called simply, “mum’s garlic courgettes”, sees zucchini gently sauteed, then topped with garlicky yoghurt, torn dill and sprinkled with walnut crumbs.
For those who love a big breakfast, Turka serve an extravagant breakfast board, designed for friends and families to share.
“In Turkey, breakfast is family time. It’s often a long experience, 2-3 hours, with new family members joining in all the time,” said Alex.
The epic brunch platter comes laden with Turkish cheeses, tahini and grape molasses, dried figs and apricots, pistachio halva as well as a skillet of fried eggs with sucuk and menemen, a just-set scramble of eggs, tomato and capsicum.
Like Alex’s family home, Turkish coffee and apple tea is always brewing, plus there’s raki, the national aniseed spirit and a wide variety of Turkish wines on offer.
Details:
What: Turka
Where: 4-6 Willoughby Road, Crows Nest
When: Mon — Thu 7am — 9pm, Fri 7am — 10pm, Sat 8am — 10pm, Sun 8am — 9pm
Web: turka.com.au
Instagram: turkacrowsnest