Korfez Surprises

I think I had the best meal of my life tonight.

It started out sketchily. Our restaurant, Korfez, had been recommended to us by the general manager of the hotel, but our trust of him was being put to the test. The restaurant is on the Asian side of Istanbul, across the Bosporus river. We had to take a boat to the restaurant, but when our cab dropped us at the port, there was NOTHING in sight. We stood on a deserted dock for about twenty five minutes with only faith and rumbling stomachs to root us. Finally, the ferry (aptly called the “Korfez”) chugged its way to the dock, and we took a beautiful (but bumpy) little ride across the river onto the dock of the restaurant.

The restaurant was tiny- probably only ten tables inside- but in the summer it opens up to let people sit on the dock. I can imagine that being incredible. But the inside was nice too, overlooking the river and decorated with wood so that it almost felt like we were on a ship. The waiter quickly arrived with the tray of possible mezes. If I had known how good the food would be, I could have skipped the mezes, but I enjoyed them just the same.

We ordered three: two eggplant (spicy and non, just like yesterday) and a carrot salad. The carrots were good, mixed with yogurt and garlic and walnuts, so it was a nice mixture of crunch and smooth. The whole course came with interesting bread too, soft rolls filled with tomato or olive concoction. Dipping in olive oil and mixing was key.

We then ordered three hot appetizers. These set the tone for the rest of the meal and were excellent. First were two shrimp dishes. Each one was extravagant: 30 dollars for ONE piece of shrimp. The first was called “Shrimp 2003” (whatever that means), and was one huge shrimp, covered in sweet and sour sauce (with, I think, some curry or something spicy…), placed on top of noodles, brussel sprouts and onions, and covered in chives. It was Asian goodness in the middle of Turkey. I haven’t noticed any ethnic restaurants since I’ve been here, so I’m sure this is a treat for the locals. The second was “shrimp and avocado”, which was a similar idea: one big piece of shrimp in chili sauce (although I thought it was pineapple teriyaki) and then garnished with tiny pieces of avocado. They were both surprising. We licked the plates clean because even the sauces were so good, but also because for a 30 dollar piece of shrimp you want to get your money’s worth. We did. We also got a salmon cake with red pepper mayonnaise, which was nothing special compared to the flavorful tang of the first two dishes, but still solid nonetheless.

shrimp 2003!

mmm... thick shrimp with bits of avocado

(we're so lazy... again the waiter has to help us...)

When we were told about the restaurant, we were told that the specialty was “bass baked in salt”. Doesn’t sound like anything too special, does it? We ordered it for the sake of reputation, but really, after the shrimp, I wasn’t expecting much. Then all of a sudden, the waiter brought out a bottle of Courvoisier, a sledge hammer, and a chisel. We had NO IDEA what those could be for. What was I about to get myself into?

Then this HUGE metal platter was brought out, completely filled with a hard white substance. I realized this was… salt. EW! I don’t want to eat THAT MUCH salt! He doused the salt in the Courvoisier and then BAM, set the whole thing on fire. WHAT IS GOING ON??? I looked at my dad, “did you know this was going to happen?”, I asked him. He shook his head in shock. When the fire died down, the chisel came out and lo and behold, underneath this caked salt was a piece of fish! The waiter chipped away at the salt, uncovering the fish, set the whole thing on fire again, and then was ready. Right before our eyes, he skinned it, boned it, served it, cleared it. Then it was gone, like the whole thing had never happened.

It was… insane.

I took a lot of pictures because I was in shock.

The confusion begins

FIRE!

chipping away...

He came back out to serve the rest of the meal. It included the fish, an assortment of veggies, spinach, and rosti potatoes. Rosti potatoes are some of my favorites, they’re like upscale hash browns with onions and butter. Then the fish was sprinkled (well, really, it was covered…) in a butter soy sauce mixture.






I would now like to spend a paragraph devoted to the main ingredient of tonight’s adventure: Butter. Butter was in everything, we basically were just eating some food with our butter. My dad had to give up on the spinach after a few bites because of the butter content, but I loved it. It was salty, it was sweet, it was the center, it was a complement. Bravo, butter, you’re making me fat and I’m loving every morsel.

The fish was delectable, maybe the best fish I’ve ever had. It was soft and covered in butter, but it was also light and just the right amount of filling. I knew it was good because I wanted to keep it alone on my fork, whereas I usually like to eat my fish in the same bite as veggies or potatoes. But the taste was the best on its own, which is rare and a pretty high compliment.

I was full after all this, but not exploding, just happy. I was ready to stop but the waiter asked us if we wanted to move by the window for dessert. Sweets and a view, who can resist? We ordered two. The first was my dad’s indulgence: apricots filled with cream. The cream was more like cream cheese than the Boston cream as I had expected, and although it was good, I was way into the other dessert. It was called “Cup Korfez” and the menu description said: “diced fig, baked bread, and apricots mixed together with heavy cream, served over vanilla ice cream and topped with hot chocolate sauce.” DOESN’T THAT SOUND GREAT? And I don’t even like ice cream! Every spoonful was different depending on what corner you scooped, but each one was equally tasty. The apricots and figs in this country are so much better than any I’ve tasted before, and adding chocolate sauce to anything is just… divine.

Cup Korfez... mmmm...

We left the restaurant raving. It was more than just the food, the whole experience of surprise and anticipation made the night so memorable. But the food was also-- just-- so-- good. We drove back towards town, but stopped off for a night cap at Ali Baba VIP nargila café, for some apple nargila, backgammon and Turkish tea. It was the perfect ending.

Oh, Turkey, why are you so good to me?