Description
Istanbul Cafe is a warm, comfortable Turkish restaurant and bakery. In the afternoons, tables of men linger over glasses of sweet mint tea and a dessert or two. Although lamb and beef are cooked every which way here--in kabobs, as kofte, stuffed into manti dumplings--the substantial salads and boreks are a vegetarian's feast. And the display case up front holds a dizzying array of Turkish sweets that appeal to anyone with a pulse. Each of those appetizer salads taste fresh and vibrant, but the lebni, so rich you could stand a spoon up in it, and the tomato salad are uncommonly good. The stuffed grape leaf contains rice mixed with currants, onions, and raisins to savory-sweet effect.
