584742 Sat Jan 03 10:52:47 -0800 2009 31 20 Tristate Region 0 4292567 Walking down Mamaroneck Avenue last night, I noticed a new Turkish place next to Mario's Pizza. Went inside and grabbed a menu, looks like the standard, but decent selection of meze, sandwiches and kebabs. More of a takeout place than real sit-down restaurant. Prices seemed reasonable (although $6.95 sandwiches seem a little steep). The owner said they'd be extending their hours into late night once the weather gets warmer and he sees how the foot traffic is. It's called Turkish Cuisine Westchester, at 116 Mamaroneck Avenue. They have a website: http://www.turkishcuisineny.com. Anyone tried this place yet? If it's any good, it's be a welcome addition to the area, especially for late-night grub. Sat Jan 03 10:52:47 -0800 2009 126356 kdgchow 1 4293521 OK, got some takeout for dinner today. Here's what I tried: Lentil soup ($3.95): Smooth and flavorful, though not as much lemon juice flavor as you get with Arab-style lentil soups. Falaffel appetizer ($4.95): Five or six balls had a nice crunch to them. The accompanying hummus was good, if a little oily Sigara boregi ( $4.95): Five large pieces. Filling was good, rich with dill and parsley. Unfortunately, the surrounding pastry was limp, even after re-heating it in the oven. Tasted like the pastry was pre-fab. White bean salad ($6.95): Huge portion, and with onions, tomatoes, peppers, very tasty, although there was a little too much dressing. Adana kebab ($9.95): Got two large kebabs with rice and salad. The ground lamb was juicy and seasoned nicely with carrots and peppers, though not as spicy as I thought adana kebabs should be. Overall, it wasn't great, but it's promising. There are several other things on the menu I'd like to try. The owner said they've been only open for about three weeks, so maybe they still have some kinks to iron out. Sat Jan 03 17:58:10 -0800 2009 4292567 126356 kdgchow 1 4297338 I got take-out containers of their Chumus and Baba Ganouj - The Chumus was quite good but the Baba Ganouj was the best I have found in Westchester - that is if you like your Baba Ganouj with a home style smokey flavor, as I do. Mon Jan 05 09:27:16 -0800 2009 4292567 254334 1nemo1 2 4297969 I love smokey baba ghanouj. Will have to try this place out. Also, I checked the menu on the web and the prices seemed crazy reasonable as compared to Turkish Meze. Don't misunderstand, I love Turkish Meze - the food and service are always wonderful - but this new place is offering Iskender Kebab at $9 or so compared to $16 at Meze. Meze's iskender is to die for so will be hard to live up to. Mon Jan 05 12:05:05 -0800 2009 4297338 48135 laylag 3 4300201 This place is definitely more of a takeout, small cafe-type place, not a sit-down restaurant like Turkish Meze. Tue Jan 06 07:25:08 -0800 2009 4297969 126356 kdgchow 4 4301641 That's fine. We do take-out from Meze more often than eat in anyway. Tue Jan 06 13:57:49 -0800 2009 4300201 48135 laylag 5 4301952 I love turkish food but it has been quite awhile, so what are they know for and what is good? Is it a clean place? Tue Jan 06 15:28:41 -0800 2009 4301641 44123 nbermas 6 4302087 Turklish Meze or the new place? I can't speak to the new place as I haven't been. Turkish Meze is wonderful. Everything we've had there has been excellent. As per above post, I love their Iskender kabob. A few other notables: the Piyaz (white bean salad), Mucver (zucchini pancakes - a bit oily but delicious nonetheless), Hukar Begendi (cubes of lamb over eggplant puree) and all of the cold meze too - hummus, babaghanouj, etc. I haven't had a loser from there yet. Hope you give them a try and let me know if you enjoyed. And, if you get to the new place before I do, please post your thoughts. Tue Jan 06 16:09:26 -0800 2009 4301952 48135 laylag 7 4302298 I will defintely try this place we need this type in Stamford. I have always loved turkish food. Tue Jan 06 17:37:17 -0800 2009 4302087 44123 nbermas 1 4377086 I tried it last night and thought it was very promising. (Can't compare it to Turkish Meze though.) There were a lot of appealing looking kebab options, but I couldn't make up my mind, so I ordered the Mixed Cold Appetizer Plate with humus, lebni, baba ganush, eggplant with sauce, and dolmas, and a side of warm pita. It was a very enjoyable meal, with the baba ganush and lebni standouts for texture and flavor. The dolmas were good, and seemed homemade, but didn't stand up to my favorites, from Yaranush. Service (there are a few seats) was solicitious and friendly. I'd definitely go back. Sun Feb 01 03:47:35 -0800 2009 4292567 15956 asm_ny 2 4377174 FYI: Per http://www.westchestermagazine.com/Westchester-Magazine/February-2009/Nibbles/ Apo Kilic, owner of Turkish Meze in Mamaroneck, has opened Turkish Cuisine Westchester (116 Mamaroneck Ave, White Plains 914-683-6111) with partner Vahide Meric. On the menu: chicken gyros, lamb and beef kebabs, and stuffed cabbage (entrées don’t go much above $12). Don’t miss the daily made baklava and rice pudding on the short dessert list. Open Mon through Sat for lunch and dinner. // Sun Feb 01 06:03:09 -0800 2009 4377086 151970 Jon1856 3 4380738 Can't wait to try the baklava...always in search for great Baklava in the county..thanks for the info! Mon Feb 02 11:57:49 -0800 2009 4377174 211862 christinepierce 4 4380978 IMVHO the Baklava at Shiraz is better. Much lighter on the use of honey. Lets one enjoy all the tastes better. Mon Feb 02 13:02:15 -0800 2009 4380738 151970 Jon1856 5 4381735 I thought the babaganush was first class, as were the accompanying pitas. Easily the best babaganush I've had- so smoky and fresh. The chicken gyro was a little disappointing, looking forward to trying the lamb gyro. Falafel was very good and crispy; wished I had had it in a sandwich. The "Kofte," was incredibly moist - loved this. Baklava was sweet and syrupy, which I appreciated. All in all, looking forward to future visits, and trying their delivery service. Mon Feb 02 16:39:49 -0800 2009 4380978 255183 SharonNY 1 4418787 Was just written up/reviewed in White Planes Times: http://wptimes.com/local_news.php?viewspecific=1&storyid=2490 Turkish TreasureOn The Town, On A Budget By: Brian Austin with Paula Markowitz WittlinPublished: February 13, 2009 Word is out—as evidenced by late night lines—the recently opened Turkish Cuisine Westchester is rapidly gaining popularity. The restaurant’s slogan states, “Best Mediterranean Food In Town,” and you’ll have to travel significantly further to find a challenger. Or at least to Mamaroneck, where co-owner Apo Kilic’s more lavish Turkish Meze restaurant is located........ Sun Feb 15 06:51:28 -0800 2009 4292567 151970 Jon1856 2 4419222 Are they open on Sundays? We are craving falafel and kofte kebabs! Sun Feb 15 10:10:46 -0800 2009 4418787 45513 RawTunaFan 3 4419477 Your answer is in the link I provided RTF ;>D And if you are looking for good kebabs, try this place which IIRC is open Sunday's: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/583340 Sun Feb 15 11:57:42 -0800 2009 4419222 151970 Jon1856 3 4424899 closed on Sunday. We were thinking out of the box for the super bowl, but were disappointed to find that they were closed that day. Tue Feb 17 09:38:59 -0800 2009 4419222 61047 jwg 2 4424715 What type of Felafel....the "roll" or the "pita pocket". I don't know why but the rolls always disapppoint. Tue Feb 17 08:58:14 -0800 2009 4418787 10243 jcmods 3 4424897 falafel was a half-globe? Served on bed of lettuce with sauce on the side. Yummy. Tue Feb 17 09:38:13 -0800 2009 4424715 61047 jwg 4 4431729 When you say "globe" do you mean sandwich? Hope there was more than just lettuce in the sandwich. My big beef with a lot of the bad falafels is: dry/mealy falafel balls (although a lot of times they can be undercooked and mushy); ice berg lettuce; large-cut vegetables; not enough tahini; and tahini that has the consistency of peanut butter. (And maybe stale bread that breaks apart). If it is not drowning in sauce, I tend to think it's not very good. Thu Feb 19 07:19:10 -0800 2009 4424897 10243 jcmods 5 4432391 We went and had the falafel as an appetizer - just the balls, not in a pita sandwich. I thought they were on the dry side. I too like my falafal crispy outside but moist and soft inside. These didn't quite get there. Otherwise, food was good. Best falafel I've had around here was at Turquoise in Larchmont - good parsley, veggie flavor and moist, soft but not mushy. Thu Feb 19 10:04:39 -0800 2009 4431729 48135 laylag 4 4541684 When I have had falafel before, it was in balls or log shapes. This was a half of a sphere shaped. It was an appetizer served with lettuce, not served on pita. If I remember, the sauce was on the side. Thu Mar 26 15:17:04 -0700 2009 4424897 61047 jwg 1 4540633 From Westchester Magazine: Ottoman Eats Cheap, delicious...and kinda good for you http://www.westchestermagazine.com/Westchester-Magazine/April-2009/Ottoman-Eats/ Thu Mar 26 10:47:22 -0700 2009 4292567 151970 Jon1856 1 4543302 My husband and I got take-out from "Turkish Cuisine" on Tuesday and it was pretty good. We got the lentil soup (this tasted good but the consistency was different than usual lentil soup, no whole lentils, the whole thing was pureed) hummus, falafel sandwiches and another yogurt appetizer. The sandwiches were good, in a wrap, not a pita, but this made them easier to eat. Over all the food was very good. We waited about 15 minutes for it, but I didn't mind, since that most likely meant it was fresh. For two sandwiches, the soup and two appetizers (which came with pita) it was about $30. Fri Mar 27 07:16:26 -0700 2009 4292567 245595 TrishNY12 1 4588136 I recently stopped into Turkish Cuisine for a quick bite. I was pretty impressed. I tried the hummus, which was pretty good. I agree with whoever said it was a little too oily though. The flavor was nice though. The grape leaves were probably my favorite. I like that they add currants to it. I got the white bean salad as my main dish. That was really flavorful and delicious. I'd definitely go back for all of that and more. I am interested in trying their cold appetizer platter next time. What I liked most was probably the service. Very friendly and attentive. I'll probably try Turkish Meze next, as I've never been and it sounds appealing. Sat Apr 11 17:28:22 -0700 2009 4292567 267550 bnc 1 4962018 Does anyone know if you can BYO? Or if they have a license for wine/beer? Thu Aug 20 07:47:34 -0700 2009 4292567 148462 Mrs.Sean 2 4962348 they are lovely people who are more then happy to chill your bottle and supply you with glasses.Yes very byob.Also theres a great wine shop around the corner on post road Thu Aug 20 09:10:51 -0700 2009 4962018 1084089 ronhall51 1 5045183 This place rocks! As a middle eastern food fanatic, wife of an Egyptian, and having lived in the middle east/north africa...I think I have a little somethin' of a little somethin' to say when it comes to this kind of cuisine. First of all, for all the muslims out there, this place is halal (and without it being halal, my husband and I would've never tried it). But way above and beyond that, the food is phenomonally fresh tasting. I had never liked Baba Ghanouj until I had it here. Wow - it is sooooo yummy here! And then after eating here I visited Egypt for the first time, known for their Baba Ghanouj, and it was quite delicious there too - so I would say that this place makes equally delicious Baba Ghanouj as your better than average Egyptian - so kudos to that! We ordered the cold appetizer sampler (which included both hummus, Baba Ghanouj, Dohlmas, and salads) as well as a lamb dish where the lamb was perfectly cooked - falling off the bone juicy as well as full of flavor. Everything we had here was so fresh and homeade tasting, we were beyond satisfied...we left glowing. Highly recommended! Sun Sep 20 23:14:28 -0700 2009 4292567 1110807 m92tiger 1 5075770 After reading the posts in this thread, I had to check this one out - and I wasn't disappointed. I went with the wife and we both found it very welcoming. There is a wide screen TV showing beautiful scenes of what I assume is Turkey, and soft vaguely middle eastern music playing. We sat at the bar seats (it's still BYOB) and ordered the mixed cold appetizers and a felafel. I'll echo the raves for the babaganoush, hauntingly smokey. I also liked the hummus, which I didn't find too oily. A stew-like salad of eggplant and peppers was delicious, and the lebne was tasty. In the middle of the plate was some taboulle and it was a revelation. It must have had some tomato paste mixed into it along with the mint or parsley, but I couldn't get enough. I found the felafel good and messy too. Watch out for the green sauce they serve with it - jalapenos, garlic, parsley - it has a wicked kick to it. We got rice pudding and baklava for dessert, their only two offerings. Rice pudding was very rich, like ice cream, with a lot of vanilla flavor. I liked the baklava, not finding it too sweet. I also liked that they use pistachios. Perhaps the best part of the meal was that we traded some of our baklava to the person sitting next to us for a glass of wine he brought in from the Vino 100 store around the corner. The Astica Torrentes from Argentina was a perfect choice for this food, and only $7 for the bottle. The owners were sitting a couple of seats away at the other end of the bar and they greeted everyone who came is as if they knew them. I look forward to coming back and getting through some more of the menu. Thank you chowhounders for putting this one on the map. Fri Oct 02 20:35:57 -0700 2009 4292567 167566 rickrok 1 5159057 I just returned for the second time, this time with my wife, who had never been there. When I went there solo at the end of August, I thought it was pretty good. This time, my wife's first reaction was how the place was a little pricey for what is, in essence, a Turkish take out place with a small area of tables in the back. When we asked for falafels, they said they could not give us chicken or lamb because they were "saving it," but getting them as shish kebabs was OK. That was disappointing. Then when I handed the guy my Amex, he asked if I could use a Visa card because something was "wrong" was charging an Amex card. That sounded kind of bogus. We found the food pretty ordinary. Thu Nov 05 13:57:58 -0800 2009 4292567 70668 PlasticMoonRain 2 5159236 This is a bit confusing, Plastic. Falafel is made from chick peas -- not chicken or lamb. What did you actually attempt to order? A pita sandwich? Thu Nov 05 14:56:57 -0800 2009 5159057 36166 surman