Restaurant Review

“Café Istanbul,” 1850 Lawrenceville Hwy., Decatur

All along Lawrenceville Highway in DeKalb County dozens of nondescript restaurants are tucked into strip mall after strip mall. It’s hard to know which ones to try and which ones to avoid.

But every time I see the bright neon sign lit up with the word “OPEN” in front of Café Istanbul (1850 Lawrenceville Hwy., Suite 100, Decatur), I can’t help but get excited. Café Istanbul is a Turkish restaurant that offers up an exotic array of spicy, complex foods that are truly a dining adventure. But it is also a place to hang out, complete with belly dancers and hookah pipes (you have to be 21 to smoke them).

When you enter the restaurant, your senses are assaulted by an unexpected mix of sounds, smells and sights. Sharing the air with percussive Turkish background music are the scents of chilies, curry, mint and roasting meat coming from the kitchen. The floor is covered in thick intricately detailed carpets. To your left stand tables, chairs and booths with plush pillows to use as you like, while on your right are tables low to the floor and cushions to be used as seats. The ceiling is even covered so that it looks like you’re in a tent.

Choose whichever seating arrangement is more comfortable, and then be sure to order the hot Turkish tea. I like to lace it with sugar cubes. The menu is full of unusual appetizers to snack on, from borek, a cheese-filled pastry, to sarma, stuffed grape leaves. I’m always up for a yummy plate of hummus, a dip of ground chickpeas, olive oil and spices you spread on pita bread.

The café offers salads for those who want a light dinner, but their main dishes — which put spins on chicken, beef, lamb, fish and vegetarian items — are what you come here for. I personally recommend the nine-spice Mediterranean Chicken or the Chohan Kavurma, a lamb dish served on a sizzling skillet. If you order something spicy, make sure to get a yogurt side dish to keep your mouth cool between bites.

While the food is excellent, it’s worth a trip just to see the belly dancers. They may shock and surprise you at first — and you’ll get a laugh looking at the blush on boys’ faces as the dancers gyrate up close to them — but it’s a beautiful, amazing art form.

If you want to go somewhere different for a dining experience — rather than just a quick bite to eat — I’d highly recommend Café Istanbul. But be ready to pay for this dinner and show, as it will probably cost you $20 per person. I’ll definitely be eating there again whenever a special event comes around.

By Allison McWaters / VOX Staff