Their eats: There’s nothing about the workaday storefront that houses Istanbul Restaurant, a three-week-old Turkish spot at the edge of Boystown, that beckons from the street. The plain dining rooms, classed up a bit with white linens and carefully fanned napkins on every table, aren’t much to speak of either. The warmth here comes from the servers, who are gentle and unfailingly patient — even when it’s clear they’re answering a question for the nineteenth time that day. (Ayran, should you, too, be curious when you come across it on the beverage menu, is a thirst-quenching and slightly sour blend of yogurt, water and salt.)
Much of the menu focuses on familiar regional favorites such as lamb moussaka ($13.95) and entree-sized portions of hummus ($12.95) topped with red peppers and a choice of meat (beef, lamb or chicken). There’s also a lengthy lineup of kebabs, from kofte (lamb and beef with garlic and spices) to shish (marinated charbroiled meat with grilled tomatoes, pepper and onions), all generously portioned.
But the real highlights here come straight out of the oven. All breads are baked in-house, from the soft, warm ekmek that arrives at the start of the meal with olive oil, spices and a slice of fresh lemon, to pide, the doughy basis for various hearty entrees.
Lighter appetites can be satisfied with lahmacun ($3.95), sometimes called “Turkish pizza,” a super-thin, crisp flatbread that Istanbul Restaurant tops with finely ground lamb, onion, tomato, parsley and other herbs and spices. But if you’re really hungry, go for that pide — our kiymali pide ($10.95), stuffed with gooey Turkish mozzarella cheese, ground lamb and onions, was enough for dinner and lunch the next day.
Your drinks: Just around the block, you’ll find the Gourmet Grape (3530 N. Halsted St. 773-388-0942), a cute little neighborhood shop specializing in boutique wines and harder-to-find labels. Though it’s the sort of place you could drop upward of $100 on a special bottle, there’s plenty for the impromptu BYOB crowd too. Bottles start as low as $10.
Co-owner Jeff Durbin recommends Rook ($14.99), a cabernet-syrah-merlot blend from Corvidae Wine Co., a value-focused label from Washington state winery Owen Roe. The cabernet backbone means it’s bold enough to handle the richness of lamb or all of that bubbling cheese in the kiymali pide, says Durbin, but there’s also some nice spice from the syrah, all softened on the back end by the merlot.
If you don’t mind spending a bit more, try the Kumeu River chardonnay ($19.50), a well-balanced New Zealand bottle (there’s enough oak to hold up to meats and richer entrees, says Durbin, but not so much that it’s like you’re “eating a piece of wood”) with a creamy finish that helps it pair well with a variety of foods.
Gourmet Grape is open until 9 p.m. Monday-Saturday and 6 p.m. Sunday. Istanbul Restaurant does not charge a corkage fee.
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kpratt@tribune.com
