Café Istanbul’s new brunch menu is sure to impress
Leilani Graham-Laidlaw, Staff Contributor
The elements of a Turkish brunch can be summed up in three words: yum, casual, elegant. Or at least that’s the case on weekends at Café Istanbul, two doors down from the Subway on the corner of Spring Garden and Robie.
Café Istanbul at noon on a Saturday is incredibly serene. There are only two couples in here and the calm makes a nice change from the morning Market bustle. I almost don’t want anyone to read this article for fear that next time there will be a line-up at the door—because that’s what I would expect for this kind of brunch.
Before we get into the food (which was way beyond expectations already set high by their lunch menu), can I just mention how damn nice they are in there? The gentleman who seated me deserved the title, and his overall hospitality was impeccable. The standard diner-style chicken sign outside advertising brunch shows a certain casual aspect while the people inside made you feel like you were in Europe, bundled away in some cozy Mediterranean version of a diner.
Only this diner’s hashbrowns don’t need slags of ketchup to make them taste less like cardboard. Main dishes aside, every starchy bit had impressive flavour—from the potatoes to their cheese scones. The fruit helped too; it was as fresh as Cora’s with fresher mains to match.
None of us had the Classic Turkish Brunch, unfortunately, though it was exactly what it should be from what I’ve had before of breakfasts from the region. The classic includes a sort of biscuit with jams, cheeses, sausage, olives, tomatoes, peppers, and a hard-boiled egg—a whole platter of good things.
For us, the Benny Turko (Turkish Eggs Benny with lamb kofte sausages), Meneman (incredibly light scrambled-egg and tomato dish), and Mediterranean Omelet (just plain incredible), were all too tempting.
The menu is rounded out with the Classic Canadian (your basic two-eggs-any-style breakfast), pancakes and French toast, plus something resembling huevos rancheros called a Durum that I will be going back for.
Overall, it’s an amazing blend of standard brunch fare with Turkish ‘twists:’ the addition of lamb to the eggs benny, or a hint of rosemary and something other than the standard steak spice in the potatoes. This is the place to bring parents when you want to show them just how grown up and cultivated you are, and it would make for a sophisticated and soothing post-party hangover brunch.
Prices range from $7.95 to $10.50 including coffee or tea, so at most you’ll spend $15 with tax and a hefty tip. Not bad for a place that will make you loosen your belt (as it did for one of my friends), as well as impress with the swirly cut of a kiwi that appears to be spooning a strawberry. The level of detail, hospitality and general deliciousness of everything in sight is well worth the price.
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