Seattle Brunch Review

For me, the most delicious aspects of traveling are establishing your own routine in a foreign place, and making former eccentricities your own. Each day our Turkish routine goes a little like this: work from a café in the morning; lunch from our favorite lokanta and a couple of laughs with the locals as we mispronounce Turkish phrases again and again; tea leaves and wifi in the afternoon. In wandering from café to café throughout the week, we’ve walked by one particular brunch spot with the intention of trying their breakfast on an upcoming Sunday.

You can imagine our disappointment, then, arriving there ravenous and fresh from dreams of Turkish coffee to find the ‘Closed’ sign staring at us a bit mockingly. Dejected, lost, lonely and hungry, we wandered the streets of Istanbul holding our stomachs in search of tea and menemen. Just as Naysawn broached the possibility of eating one of the thousands of cats wandering the streets, a bit of good fortune finally came our way.

The Place

An old man sitting on the street corner pointed us in the way of his favorite breakfast place, to which we will forever be grateful. Little did we know the Rose Marine Cafe sat right in the middle of our own quaint Cihangir neighborhood! As you may remember, we’ve judged a brunch place by its cover before, only to be proven very wrong. Istanbul has a way of surprising you in many aspects, but especially in her (because Istanbul is always referred to as a ‘she‘) dining establishments. The most unpretentious exteriors always open up into enormous, gorgeous backyard terraces.

Since Turks may just be the most accommodating people on earth, after taking one look at our blank faces the waiter kindly grabbed an English speaker from a nearby table to explain the menu to us (this has happened more times than we can count – even if none of the staff can speak English they’ll always find the one person in the restaurant who can).

The Food

So far on this trip, we’ve tried many versions of Turkish and Ottoman cuisine – even tried making our own! Multiple eggplant, artichoke, tomato, chickpea, and lentil soup dishes later, we were still in search of the legendary Turkish breakfast, heralded by many friends and Flickr photo albums. We ordered peynir menemen once again, because of our last great experience with the cheesy, soupy egg dish. I’m a sucker for things that come in the pan it’s cooked in, and after taking a peek at the bread rolls they had in stock, we couldn’t wait to dip them into the egg-y, pepper-y concoction. While the menemen wasn’t quite as good as the last one (perhaps it was the view that made it so good!), we were completely fulfilled by the plate of delights that followed.

The beauty of the platter was what caught our eye first. Okay, I grant you that taking pictures of food is a bit silly (but can be oh-so-ravishing), but food is such an integral aspect of our lives, and it needs to be appreciated a little more now and then! Besides, what’s the best way to explore a new place? Always, always, eating your way through. Deep-seated traditions and entire cultures emerge with the simple act of sitting down to a meal.

The red of ripe tomatoes and dark green of salty olives aside, we only took a moment to be dazzled before diving right in. Turkish breakfasts usually vary with how many cheeses or salamis are included, and since Turkish meats leave something to be desired, we had chosen wisely with three different kinds of cheese. Turkish cheese is absolutely amazing – spreadable but not lacking in strong flavor or texture like most spreadable cheese can do. Honey with cream, veggies drizzled with olive oil and salt, and spicy olives, along with light, fluffy rolls make approximately 15,000 combinations to be throughly enjoyed over hours of good conversation and endless tea.

My brunch partner and I agree that the best (best!) part of Turkish breakfast is the hands-on approach to food. Forks? Nope. Only one course on your plate? Boring. The only utensil needed are knives: to be used exclusively for spreading cheese and honey on your bun.

By the time we left, we had spent three glorious hours chatting, munching, and sipping. After being delivered to Cihangir’s streets once again, we headed in the direction of Istiklal Ave for some major jean shopping (Turkey’s textiles = cheap and superb). Only two blocks later, our noses were drawn yet again to a tiny, family-run café with fresh baked treats winking at us from the window. The sky opened up and the sun shined invitingly on the small table and chairs outside. A cat sleepily lolled on the chair, the owner came out to greet us, and… we gave in, because really, what better way to spend a Sunday in Istanbul than people-watching from cafés? Mmmm… cappuccino’s and apple-ginger juice, here we come!

The Summary

The Good: Cream and honey; Strong, spreadable cheeses; Deep, dark greens in olive oil and sea salt; Creamy, decadent, unparalleled Turkish yogurt; Spicy, tangy olives; Bottomless Turkish tea; Sunny backyard terraces; Warm rolls with butter; Crisp cucumbers and ripe tomatoes

The Bad: Nothing. Absolutely nothing. We are in love!

The Verdict: Although this was not our first Turkish breakfast, this was undoubtedly the best. Top it off with a sky-high foamy cappuccino and a cat in the lap, and you’ve got yourself a perfect Turkish brunch. Our Rating: 5/5 çay.