Anatolia Cafe

Revisited:

2270 Lee Road
Cleveland, OH 44118
(216) 321-4400
www.anatoliacafe.com


Anatolia Cafe continues to please. Since the post regarding my first visit, I have returned to Anatolia Cafe twice. Both times I tried new items, and both times I have enjoyed the service and mostly enjoyed their selections.
These past visits I tried the Falafel, the Zucchini Pancakes, and the Sigara Borek (Sigara Böreği, Phylo dough wrapped around Feta and spices). All of those were quite tasty, and I would order all of them again. I also tried their Red Lentil Soup, which was quite flavorful and had a nice texture.
During our most recent visit, my companion and I tried the Chicken and Okra and the Doner dinners. The first arrived in a shallow dish with onions, green peppers, okra and cubes of chicken. The flavor of the dish was adequate, but was definitely not overly pleasing or extraordinary in any way. The Doner is a dish similar to Greek Gyro meat, served with vegetables and rice. We were informed that the meat is house made, as in layered into a roll in their own kitchen. Being that they prepare their own meat for the Doner, I have to give them some credit. However, I have to say that the red meat dishes I have tried have had a weird gamy essence to them. The Doner was no different. The first few bites of the dish were very pleasing to the palette, and with the addition of the yogurt sauce were exquisite. Unfortunately, the next few bites of the Doner meat left a strange and unsettling flavor that was not satisfying or pleasant in the least. The flavor of the meat made me think of something spoiled or just not right in the meat's composition.
Of course, we had to order dessert. The Rice Pudding and the Kazandibi are still wonderful endings to the meals, and I have since been tempted to stop in just for dessert to go.
Anatolia Cafe's inconsistency with their red meat dishes is certainly a turn off, but fortunately everything else is fabulous and you still can't deny the beautiful space that just gets better with each visit.