It’s been just over a decade since State Street favorite Hüsnü’s closed. His departure from the scene left Madison without one of its prized Turkish and Mediterranean restaurants. But lately, Madison has been fortunate to see more and more Central Asian menus flourishing across the city.
Turkish cuisine opened in 2019 on South Gammon Road. Following the expansion, the restaurant moved to the former Tin Fox space at 2616 Monroe St in July 2023.
Both of my visits to Turkish Cuisine were closer to lunch than dinner and I need a lunch menu. Generosity is the name of the game here, and vast portions of mains, sides and complimentary drinks make for a very decadent lunch. Considering the prices of these platters – reasonable for what you get – this can also be an exorbitant lunch.
But if you’re in the mood for a luxurious Turkish dinner, you should love this one. Lunch platters include a delicate lentil soup called merdzimek and a diminutive plate of haydari, a mint yogurt dip similar to tzatziki. If you keep up the pace, this cold haydari will make a great dip for any kebabs later in the meal, as long as you don’t spread them on pita.
Other dips and toppings that can be layered include velvety hummus, smoky and creamy baba ganoush — according to our waiter, Turkish baba ganoush uses more aggressively roasted eggplant than others in Central Asia — and a dish of chopped roasted red peppers called ezme, further brightened with the juice of grenades.
Restaurants occasionally run out of ingredients, but Turkish cuisine was low on supplies. On one visit, three main courses were unavailable, including two lamb dishes that the waiter recommended before he returned with bad news from the kitchen.
Among the kebabs, I liked the most delicious sucuk ekmek, a slightly hot sausage served in pieces. Consider it somewhere on the chorizo/andouille/merguez spectrum. I would be tempted to order this every time, except that the chicken leg kebab was equally appealing, juicy and slightly charred.
The Adana, a long minced beef cigar, was a little underseasoned, but I would have chosen it over the vegetarian kebab, which was generous with charred eggplant, mushrooms and peppers but seemed overpriced to me – $24, even with the included toppings.
Many of the same preparations are going on menu at Silk Road, which opened in August at 1920 South Park St. There are many similarities, although Silk Road alludes to its chef’s Tajik origins. However, the warmth of the welcome matches Turkish cuisine in every way.
There is a version of the same lentil soup, here called mercimek corbasi, and it is a bit thinner in terms of content and taste. It’s a coin toss which one I prefer; the version for Turkish cuisine was rougher and thicker.
The menu also includes hummus and haydari. Silk Road’s haydari has a stronger mint note and functional depth, likely due to the apply of labneh compared to straight yogurt. Both will last the entire meal and provide a nice counterpoint of flavors and textures.
Silk Road also serves unique Central Asian cuisine (there are also a few unexpected Italian elements that deserve further exploration).
Mantu, an Afghan dumpling more reminiscent of Chinese soup dumplings than the similarly named mantou rolls, arrives on a vast plate of five. They are filling and warming, perfect for this time of year. The roast lamb was not a kebab-style dish, instead containing juicy, rugged pieces of tender meat and just the right amount of silky fat, nicely seasoned and containing only a few bits of bone.
Kebabs are the focal point of Silk Road, as they are at Turkish Kitchen. To strike a more or less balance, I tried the tavuk (chicken breast) and adana (ground beef) kebabs here and both were exemplary. The adana kebab was not as massive as the Turkish kebab, but here I think it is better seasoned. Even a bit of salt or spices makes a massive difference.
I don’t mind if the chicken breast is a little droughty; for me, taste and texture contrast are more significant. This chicken was browned in all the right ways, seasoned simply but noticeably, and the accompanying grilled vegetables provided extra moisture that the white meat may have lacked.
What’s remarkable about both of these restaurants is how clearly committed they are to service. Whether it’s the honesty of a husband and wife on Silk Road or the barrage of thoughtful gestures and gifts for everyone who enters the Turkish kitchen, these dining rooms well represent the area of the globe that Madison loves.
Turkish cuisine
street Monroe 2616
608-284-9271; turkishkitchenmadison.net
16:00-21:30 Mon-Tue, 11:00-21:30 Wed-Thurs, 11:00-22:00 Friday, 11:00-22:30 Saturday, 11:00-21:30 Sun .
$6-30
Silk Road
1920 S. Park ul.
608-467-6197; www.silroadmadison.com
11:00-21:00 Tuesday-Thursday, 11:00-21:30 Friday-Sunday.
$7-22
