Ephesus Mediterranean and Turkish Cuisine

Ephesus Mediterranean and Turkish Cuisine offers kebabs, gyros, and of course dessert of baklava and kadayif.

Long Island, especially the South Shore in Nassau/Western Suffolk, isn’t known for its diversity of food. There are Italian restaurants aplenty, diners every few miles, pizza joints and Chinese takeout at every turn. But aside from the occasional gem, it’s a Roadfood desert.

Ephesus is a welcome change from the usual; Turkish cuisine smack-dab in the middle of the Massapequas, just a little south of the “downtown” area of Massapequa Park. But is it Roadfood? You bet.

What to eat at Ephesus Mediterranean and Turkish Cuisine

Pides hit the target. Now, I’d thought I’d known “pide” (pita). Everyone knows it’s that round, very flat bread with the pocket, best used for dips or to hold fillings. Apparently, that’s a simplistic notion; this pide is thicker, soft, and  addictively tasty.

They serve it in a bunch of different ways: plain cheese, or with Turkish pastrami (smoky and chewy, and not so much like what we’re used to calling pastrami), or chunks of lamb, or Turkish sausage, or chicken, or potato, just to name a few options. Think of it essentially as pizza, except better than what so many pizza places try to foist off these days. It’s thin and crisp, the edges nice and chewy. Certain styles are served open, certain folded over with the filling inside.

A similar bread, thicker and crustier, is used for the sandwiches, and it is glorious. The bread is warm and fresh from the oven, the outside golden brown and crackling. Stuffed inside is meat: Turkish meatballs, shish kebab, gyro meat, adana kebab with a spicy kick, chicken shish kebab, served with tomato, lettuce, green peppers, and onion. A yogurt sauce is served on the side and shouldn’t be missed. Fries come standard.

Another word about the bread: if you eat in, it’s served automatically with a delicious, salty feta There is a definite risk of over-indulging. Worse, when it runs out, they ask if you want more; the natural answer is “of course,” which means you can fill up before your entrée ever makes its way out. If you order out, it is included only if you order an entrée.

The entrees are no less delicious. No Turkish place would be complete without a big selection of kebabs, but the baked lamb shank wrapped in slice eggplant and the pureed smoked eggplant topped with chunks of chicken are nice choices. Not to be missed is the Sugara Boregi (the “Turkish cigar”): fried phyllo dough filled with feta cheese and parsley, or babaghonush.

Original post by Scott R.