Midtown Lunch

I love that Philly has several excellent options for Turkish food (See S&H Kebab Houseand Hamifgash). I have another to add to my list now.  Cafe Fulya is small and very casual with groovy furniture, large open windows, and a few tables and a couch inside and a table out in front. Being a cafe, a lot of the menu items are baked goods and cold appetizers. They also serve breakfast all day, including a traditional Turkish breakfast with too many components to list. I am not really an eating breakfast for lunch kind of girl, so I filled up on the other stuff.

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The pictures on the walls of Hamifgash caught my eye as I walked by recently, with promises of both Israeli and Turkish food and some intense giant pictures of shwarma. Unfortunately for me, it was Shabbot and the kosher restaurant was closed. I vowed to return on a less holy day.  On my return trip, the waitress, who must have also been an owner, told me she was Israeli, while her husband is Turkish- explaining how the combo restaurant came about a few years ago.  The menu leans more towards the Israeli influence, though  the main courses of grilled meats are typical to Middle Eastern cuisine in general. A few Turkish appetizers are squeezed in there, but I wish there were more. I was hugely disappointed when I found out they no longer sell lahmacun (Turkish meat pizza). The waitress explained there was just no real customer interest. That is a real shame- so I urge all Philly lunchers to get down to Hamifgash and request for lahmacun- dough, meat, spices, what is not to like about that? Great lunching potential that we are missing out on.

But on to the food they do serve…

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While strolling down South St, a sign advertising Turkish lunch specials caught my eye. A quick glance at the menu made me thankful I stopped. Choices for lunch include a variety of kebabs, but there were four non-kebab items that really tempted me; stuffed cabbage, moussaka, zucchini pancakes, and most tempting of all: manti. Manti are little Turkish lamb dumplings that are topped with a minted yogurt sauce. Something about that combination is so tantalizing that this is often my go to dish at a Turkish restaurant, though I can’t say I have ever had it for lunch before. As soon as my eyes zoomed in on manti on the menu, I was sold.

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