A tantalising taste of Turkiye
|Published
Arzu Turkish Cafe and Bakery
Where: 4 Swapo Road, Durban North
Open: Tuesday to Sunday 7am to 9pm
Call: 031 535 2535
I’ve always liked authentic Turkish food. While not exactly the same, it talks to my own Lebanese roots and evokes memories of family gatherings from the past. Each aunt would have a speciality dish, so when the family got together, it was always a feast.
So finding a new Turkish restaurant in Durban North was exciting. Food writer Ingrid Shevlin and her brother Pierre joined the Glass Guy and me for Sunday lunch.
The welcome was warm.
Arzu is in an old house with the front rooms given over to dining. At the back is the bakery with cakes and baklava on display and under cover outside is a large eating area. It’s cheerfully painted. We find a spot out of the cool wind and light drizzle.
Ingrid and Pierre are soon sipping on cups of complementary Turkish apple tea, while I relish a decent cappuccino. We debate the simple menu.
The restaurant is halaal.
First chef sends out two vegetable dishes for us to try. There’s a delicious plate of leeks stuffed with rice and cooked in olive oil, lemon and vegetable stock, and green beans cooked with tomatoes and a hint of chilli. Both are impressive. I could make a meal out of the leeks.
We opt to order a mezze platter (R240) which takes in all the various mezze options. There’s acilj atom, a lovely thick yoghurt with garlic and chilli oil, and barbunya pilaki, a salad of butter beans, tomato, carrot and potato with olive oil. I am always the last person to get excited by beans but these were brought to life by a good quality olive oil. I also really liked the saksuka or fried eggplant with tomatoes and peppers, and the tzatziki is lovely and fresh.
Mutebbel was the one we were all looking forward to with yoghurt, garlic, tahini, lemon and walnuts. I was imagining a posh baba ganoush. Unfortunately this was a little too heavy with the garlic, with no obvious presence of the nuts. At least it was real garlic.
And then there was cig kofte, which I am still not sure what to make of. A mix of bulgur, onion, green pepper, tomato paste and Turkish spices, I was expecting something cooked, but they are served as a raw paste shaped into kofte. Be warned those Turkish spices have a kick that could blow your head off. They were incredibly intense.
Later, owner and chef Arzu Bicik came to see if we enjoyed our mezze. She has only been in South Africa for five months and was delighted to her love of food with us.
She tells us the cig kofte in Turkey would normally be spread on bread and perhaps topped with some yoghurt or tzatziki. That would help. I wrapped it in the lettuce leaf it came in, which also toned it down a bit.
Service was a shade inexperienced. We had to ask for spoons or forks or napkins and glasses in use were removed. It would also help if waiting staff had a better concept of the food. All minor things that can easily be fixed.
Mains are fairly simple. There are some Turkish-style burgers with lamb kofta as the patty ‒ either double or single ‒ or grilled lemon chicken. There are also beef options with Iskender or doner kebabs, a lamb shish kebab and lamb chops, and chicken shish and chicken chops: more about these later. On the next visit I would like to try the falafels served with hummus, salads and lavash.
Wanting to taste an array of foods we shared their mixed platter for two (R520). There are various platter options for one to eight people.
As the weather rolled in fast, they gladly found a space for us inside.
The platter was a veritable feast. It included a good Adana kebab, the hand-cut minced lamb cooked on the coals on flat wide skewers, a dish that extends from Turkey all the way through Syria and Iraq. I liked that this was not overly hot, and you got the flavour of the sweet red peppers.
The lamb and chicken cubes were still nicely moist yet charred over the coals. I also enjoyed the chicken chops. These were a meaty drum that had been cut and opened to look like a chop before being marinated and cooked on the coals. The lamb chops were nice and crisp. The platter came with savoury rice and good chips and plenty more Turkish bread. It was more than enough for the four of us.
We finished with Turkish coffees (complete with little Turkish delight pieces) and some good baklava (R110) made with pistachios. While it doesn’t look like much in our picture, Ingrid and I really enjoyed the sutlac (R65). It’s a lovely, rich rice pudding. I will have this again.
Arzu is a welcome addition to Durban’s restaurant scene.
Food: 3 ½
Service: 2 ½
Ambience: 3
The Bill: R1 295 for four