Monday, May 17. A New Taste Of Turkey. Mary Ann was up for lunch. She was more insistent than usual that we dine in a place where I could gather usable information. But I have grossly over-investigated and over-reviewed the restaurants in the Mandeville-Covington corridor, and that's where we are.
However, one new place needs a look. Nur's Kitchen came up on the radar at the Chef's Soiree for Children in March, where it served several kinds of hummus and kebabs. We tried going there one night for dinner, but they close early and aren't open weekends. It seems more a catering and retail operation than a restaurant.
We assembled our usual oversize lunch. The first course was an assortment of mezes--Middle Eastern tapas. Hummus, lamb-stuffed grape leaves, a tabbouleh with a high ratio of cracked wheat to parsley, and "chicken dip"--like a very finely chopped tuna salad, but with chicken instead of tuna. It was all delightful. Much better than I expected.
Both entrees were not only good but different. Mary Ann had an artichoke and spinach pie, wrapped in flaky pastry sprinkled with black and white sesame seeds. It came with a salad of spinach and shredded sweet potatoes, and was just delicious.
My choice came as the result of my question about a menu item called "rolled burger." Is this kafta? No, she told me, but the daily special today was something that in Turkey would be called kafta. Turkey? We learned that she is an Istanbul native, and that the food here has a Turkish accent. Ah. That explains a lot.
I went after these kafta meatballs. A half-dozen of them, made of lamb, beef, parsley, and seasonings. They were flanked by an enormous, fresh, foraged chanterelle mushroom (from the Covington Farmer's Market, she said) and some fried cubes of sweet potato. Everything about this platter--which cost all of $10--was just great. And too much food, by now.
The waitress disappeared for good after she brought the food, and paying the bill created some confusion. Again, I don't think these people are emphasizing the dine-in aspect of their place as much as the take-out. But I like their food.
Nur's Kitchen. Covington: 905 W. 21st Ave. 985-249-6431.
