cafe istanbul

went here for very  late lunch and  the place was completely empty .ambiance isniceand we opted to sit in portico. ordered turkish coffee which we never miss in any turkish restaurant and lahmacun. coffee was good and lahmacun is like turkis pizza which was freshly made ,light and tasted amazing.

i really enjoy this place for eating out and it never disappoints whether its a quick meet up with colleagues or pleasure eating

also to mention staff is very helpful andniceand take care of any queries or requests

very enjoyable -niceatmosphere - great food. cafe istanbul wins a huge thumbs up on all fronts from me. the location is on the north side of the shops of legacy. it has a wonderful patio that is well decorated and gives a view of all the activity in the area. warmers are lit for colder evenings. inside, the decor is beautiful. the floors look like hand-scraped wood planks. the tables and chairs are a heavy wood with black walnut stain. dark blue's are used as accents on the seat and table settings. white stone bricks flank both sides of the room. a large copper flue and wine rack wall complete the look. it's really well done.

the service and food are just as good as the atmosphere. my server was so pleasant and helpful. on my wine, appetizer and main course, i narrowed it to two or three choices each. my server steered me to the one to select in each area. she nailed it, and i really appreciate that. the turkish wine (kavaklidere) was really good. the kisir (tabouleh) came with a huge lavish (flatbread). the cracked wheat mixed with peppers, mint leaves, garlic and other ingredients was really good. the portions were huge. i could not finish it. next came my main course tavuk sarma (stuffed chicken). so good. i was really surprised to find a huge pile of shoestrings piled on it. it ended up being a great flavor addition. it added crunch to the sauce. i liked everything about cafe istanbul.

we liked it but,. had dinner at the new shops of legacy location last night. the outside dining is really great and we loved the cozy inside of the place. it wasn't very busy so our service was really good.
the fresh pita was amazing but screaming for some type of dipping sauce which it did not come with. it should. we ended up ordering tzaziki for $4.00 which was reallynicewith it.
our food took quite sometime to get out. i realize everything is from scratch so i get that no big deal. we waited about 40 min, for our food.

when the food arrived my daughter ordered the lamb/ bef sandwich. it was very good. she didn't care for the onion and tomato salad so they brougt her an order of fries at no charge. that was very nice. i had the braised lamb shank. it was a bit tough and probably needed to braise another hour or so. the flavor was good and it was big.the tomato sauce it was served in was very flat an had no flavor. it left me feeling very unsatisfied. it was served with big onions and a turkish pepper that we're not raw and not cooked. i didn't care for the al dente veggies. they needed to be one or the other. then it had an eggplant sort of stewed in which was good except the tough skin was still on and the texture was very unpleasant. my husband had the lamb k-bob and it was very good. tender and cooked to perfection. i will go back and try it again. the menu was large and there are a lot of things i would like to taste.

nothing great..nicedecor, however, no booths and a mere 10 seat bar. $5 for about an ounce of feta - was way overpriced. meats seemed either overly dry or really greasy. rice was a little overcooked.

verynicein all ways. my wife and i went here for valentines day in 2009, right after they opened (someone, cough, cough) forgot to get a reservation for the big day and since they had recently opened we were able to get in. i was a bit tentative because i don't have extensive experience with this kind of food, but the service and the food was great. i have been back a couple of times and have had a good time on each occasion. we were also surprised by the quality of the cocktails from the very small bar, but they were excellent. (don't get me started on the perfect martini.) this place is worth a try, especially when it is warm enough to sit outside.