Tabla: A Creative Twist In Turkish Cuisine

We’ve got familiarized with Turkish cuisine first with the dishes from the cozy kitchen of our mothers, and then with the modest restaurants run by self-taught chefs.

 

But recently, someone skillful who’s educated in Turkish cuisine has gotten into this business: Melih Demirel from Karaburun, Izmir.

 

Opened in the last days of 2014 in Beyoğlu, Tabla is new to the culinary scene being of the restaurants which interpret the Turkish cuisine with modern touches.

 

Following his 18-months long exacting training in New York CIA (The Culinary Institute of America), Melih Demirel worked with Michelin-awarded names such as French Laundry and Daniel Bloud. When he returned to Turkey, he decided to open a restaurant receiving the consultancy of his close friend Cihan Kıpçak, one of the chefs of Gile which I wrote about last week.

 

With its cozy, minimalist and modest atmosphere, the restaurant has a serving capacity of 20 people, and its menu is a nod to every corner of Turkey. Because, Melih Demirel associated every dish with one specific city or region.

 

Journalist and TV personality Nilay Örnek, one of the popular food bloggers Tat Dedektifi, my daughter Ceylan and I arranged a get-together for a dinner at Tabla. The first arrival at the table didn’t exist on the menu: a fine example of sweetbread reworked with greenery and almonds.

 

The following dish was one of the signature dishes of the restaurant: Kayseri Karpuzatan. For the dish, thinly sliced pieces of sirloin pastrami were marinated in fenugreek for 12 hours and put on the puree made with grilled leek and strained yoghurt. It was topped with garlic crisps which were marinated with milk and then braised, and garnished with potato fries, lemon and roasted pine nuts. A nod to the Italian “carpacchio”, the dish was highly successful.

 

Again, the next dish muhlama wasn’t on the menu. It was composed of three layers: a rich tomato sauce at the bottom, muhlama in the middle with a similar consistency of the popular Italian dish “polenta” and a poached egg on top in a similar fashion to çılbır. It tasted better than it looked actually.

 

One of my favorite dishes of the night, fried mussels came hidden under baby spinach and mint leaves which were pretty fresh. Enhanced with an addition of the national Korean accompaniment “kimchi” (a spicier and fermented version of pickled cabbage), the dish was a feast to the eyes and the palates.

 

I always look for offal dishes on every menu in every restaurant that I visit. This time, the offal selection of the menu was interpreted and given a new form by Melih Demirel. Presented as Izmir Kızlarağası, sheep head croquette was accompanied by a salad made with the root vegetables like carrots, cabbage as well as apples. Served warm, we might call it meatballs made from sheep head meat as well. It was one of the stars of the night indeed.

 

The following dish Adana Kiremithane was the Tabla’s take on Adana wrap. This time, the filling of the wrap was composed of duck meat. Made with pastries brought from a village, duck wrap was placed on roasted eggplants with tahini and tomato sauce with allspice.

 

Another dish from the hometown of the chef, Izmir, grilled brown meagre featured “edamame”, popular Japanese green soy bean. These soy bean flavored with tarragon was accompanied by a nice soup with Ihlara brandy made with coriander, shrimps and flakes of fish. Although it was served in soup, the outer layer of fish was rather crispy, which got a good mark from us.

 

Crowned with keşkek, the essential dish in the feasts of the countryside weddings, lamb’s shank was made with the meat of Tekirdağ lamb which was slowly cooked in grape molasses for 24 hours. To make it a lighter dish and balance the acid, it was served with some pickled beet. With a melt-in-the-mouth texture, the dish was another star of the night.

 

Cooked with sous vide technique for 72 hours, beef rib was served on top of white kidney beans which are native to Afyon and grow without irrigation. With an ultimate care and inquisitive methods for the ingredients, the dish was boosted to another level. But again, since the dish was a bit fatty, those who are not into this kind of meals should consider this.

 

The following dish, lamb ribs featured a fancy combination of şakşuka (dried fried eggplants in tomato garlic sauce) and thickly cut paccheri pasta. Its taste was as good as its look. Although I think it could be prepared with kesme (tr. erişte) as well, the dish was good enough to be popularized internationally.

 

As for dessert, we had kadaifi over stone (taş kadayıfı) which was a soft version of the crispy kadaifi we’re familiar with. It was composed of a pancake made with green tea and filled with water buffalo kaymak and pistachios. The other desserts were a delicious profiterole served with dried fig flavored ice cream and bosa ice cream garnished with winter fruits and ground roasted chickpeas.

 

At the end of the meal, we were served a cheese plate as it happens in most of the refined restaurants around the world. The plate was composed of Izmir tulum aged in a cave for two years; Swedish “cambozola” brought from Fethiye which is a mixture of French camamber and Italian gorgonzola, again aged in a cave with the help of natural mold. The plate was served with some jam –as I like it- and a slice bread made in the restaurant.

 

I always say that Turkish cuisine should be reworked with correct modern touches. As such, I congratulate Melih Demirel who is educated in culinary arts, got familiarized with the internationally known examples and worked with important names, and returned to his own country to devote himself to the Turkish cuisine. Because as we started to see more and more restaurants such as Mikla, Gile, Nicole, Neolokal, Yeni Lokanta and Fumée have begun to offer “Modern Turkish Cuisine”, this concept seems to be the only way for us to achieve an international recognition.

 

Tabla accepts reservations for every night except for Sunday nights. With reasonable pricing and big portions, you will look at Turkish cuisine from a different perspective. I recommend you to have a try at Table at the first opportunity.

 

Bon appétit and enjoy the taste of life…

 

Tabla

www.tablaistanbul.com

+90 539 696 17 01

Meşrutiyet Cad. No:67, Tepebaşı/Beyoğlu

İSTANBUL