Sometimes the best meals are the ones worth waiting for... and that means a 30 minute drive out to Flower Mound to experience an unbelievable meal at Istanbul Cuisine!

Updated May 2021

ISTANBUL CUISINE

You may have heard of Istanbul Cuisine's predecessors, Ephesus and Pera Turkish Kitchen, which are Turkish restaurants that set the scene for Istanbul Cuisine to open in the fall of 2019. The owner hails from Istanbul originally and has spent much of his life showcasing his cuisine all around the world, most recently in Dallas! And now, he has ventured to Flower Mound with a truly amazing spot off of Cross Timbers Rd.

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THE MIDDLE EASTERN FARE

Don’t expect too much in terms of atmosphere. It’s a nice restaurant with white table clothes and Turkish decor that’s hard to find on the back side of a strip mall. But the mediterranean food is what will blow you away! When we visited, Chef John Karatas cooked dish after dish that represents his hometown in the middle east. Our meal began with some of the freshest and best hummus we’ve ever had, along with a Muhammara dip. We also tried the dolmas and babaghanoush, both of which melted in our mouths.

The Turkish tea, served in a small cup, helped wash everything down, and we continued on to the stuffed cabbage and the lamb shank. The lamb meat fell right off the bone after being cooked for 12+ hours.

We finished with the kebabs, and for the finale, Turkish coffee, baklava and Kunefe, which is a cheese pastry made out of wheat with pistachio in the syrup.

OVERALL EXPERIENCE

You could tell the Chef was so passionate about his creations and was so excited to share them with us. We haven’t had much experience with Turkish food, but we were absolutely blown away by it. It makes us so happy to live in Dallas, where we have access to culinary treasures and cultural adventures. Sometimes you might have to go out of the way to find them, but it is so worth it!