Cleveland, OH 44118
(216) 321-4400
www.anatoliacafe.com
Finally, Anatolia Cafe, the Turkish restaurant previously located at Cedar Center, has opened up on Lee Road, adding to the restaurant choices on the strip. As I have mentioned they have been under construction for some time and at last opened their doors on the 1st of March. I loved their previous location, but the new location is absolutely beautiful.
They did a fabulous job designing the space. The restaurant takes up four storefronts. One space is the bar area complete with a fireplace and about six tables. The next space over has glass counters stocked with their delicious desserts and an open kitchen. The third area is a dining room, and the last space is another dining area also with a fireplace to the rear of the room.
We visited this past Saturday when there were blizzard conditions, so only the bar was open.
We ordered a few drinks, and the barkeep offered us some Turkish wine, and said, "Americans usually like this wine, well Turkish people too, but Americans like it." After a tasting, I ordered some vodka. One of my companions liked it and ordered a glass, and after trying it again with some food it was a bit better.
We started with the mixed appetizer plate, offered in small, medium or large.
We chose small, and it arrived complete with, Hummus, Haydari, (yogurt dip with walnuts, garlic, and dill) Kisir, (cracked wheat with peppers, parsley, and onions) Babbagannush, (which is how they spelled it on their menu) Eggplant with sauce, (a spicy concoction with tomatoes and onions) Ezme Salad dip, (tomatoes, walnuts, onions, lemon and olive oil) and if that weren't enough, stuffed grape leaves as well, and served with never ending baskets of bread. Each selection was delectable, and the small was plenty, two of us could not even finish. We also tried the Turkish Feta and black olives plate. The Feta was tangy and refreshing, and the olives were nice and salty.Next, I ordered the Chicken Adana with Yogurt.
A delightful assembly of herb marinated grilled chicken, a tomato and onion sauce, and a yogurt sauce served atop of grilled and herbed croutons. Also ordered was the Lamb and Chicken Kabob combination. Each item was seasoned perfectly and the Kabobs were perfectly grilled and tender.For dessert, we of course ordered the tremendous, Kazandibi.
The Milk custard dish dusted with cinnamon, that I could eat all day long. Also, the rice pudding, served in its own crock arrived creamy and sweet. Again, like previous visits I also ordered the Apple Tea, which is a nice compliment to the sweet selections.Anatolia Cafe; the next scrumptious addition to the Lee Road restaurant row.
I will continue to visit them regularly, if not for the comfortable surroundings, for the tasty Turkish delights.
2 comments:
the new location sounds awesome. i'm excited to check it out soon, especially since (it sounds like) the food remains excellent. what a great thing for lee road.
I have to be honest. I have experience with a lot of cuisine from the Middle East, Asia, and the Mediterranean. Yet, when I order the red meat offerings at Anatolia, either beef or lamb, I can’t eat them. The meat is really, REALLY gamey. At first I thought it was just a one off mistake, I had ordered the grilled filet mignon. However, all subsequent red meat dishes, beef or lamb, had this same flavor. This has happened at both the old and new locations, every time I have tried. Maybe it is just too overcooked, but I wonder if it is just me or if the meat is really supposed to taste that way. The chicken dishes have all been great, and the apps are phenomenal. I would appreciate hearing about others who have had the same experience.
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