Pastirma with Halloumi Cheese at Cafe Mangal: Good Lord...

[hiddenboston]

We headed over to Cafe Mangal in Wellesley last night. For those who haven't been, it is a cozy little Turkish/Mediterranean spot in the center of town that is pretty casual and reasonably priced during the day, but becomes a bit more upscale at night. We had several dishes there last night, but to me, the pastirma with halloumi cheese appetizer took the cake. It was basically a plate of soft, chewy cheese wrapped in thin slices of air-dried cured beef that almost tasted like ham or prosciutto. The taste was out of this world; I could have easily made a meal out of these.

I know people who rave about this place, and for good reason, IMO. It's a real hidden gem that doesn't get talked about much on this site.....

[y2000k]

Sounds great. I have never had halloumi until several months ago when I was in San Francisco. Will go check this place out some time. thanks!

[emilief]

It may be of interest that it is BYOB.

[nsenada]

I notice they have soujouk there too - I may have to try it.

[almansa]

That sounds like a much better reason to make the trip to Wellesley than that better known restaurant. I'm all about pastirma and haloumi. When I'm in a low-carb mode I make croutons for salad out of pan-fried haloumi.