The sweet taste of Sultanahmet (Cigdem Pastanesi (Istanbul, Turkey))

Member Name: larsbaby

Product:	Cigdem Pastanesi (Istanbul, Turkey)
Date:	26/10/09 (72 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great coffee, nice pastries, good atmosphere

Disadvantages: Can be very crowded at times, full of tourists

INTRODUCTION

When in the tourist area of Sultanahmet in Istanbul, Turkey, after dining at a fine restaurant next door my mind turned to dessert. As this place is namechecked in the Lonely Planet guide to Turkey, I considered it worth a look. Here are the results.

THE CAFE

This place seems really popular and we had to wait for a minute or so until a table was free, though I can imagine longer waits when it's heaving. Before entering, you are firstly tempted by the treats in the window to the left of the door, and as you enter some nicely decorated cakes are in the glass display cabinet that makes up the left of the counter, to the left of the entrance. Moving further in and smaller sweet confections replace the cakes in another cabinet section. There was a constant flow of people milling round this area for takeaway as well as seating purchases. Past this is the till, where you take you bill to pay upon leaving. It's handy to know this otherwise you'd assume you pay your waiter. I was pleased to see that this was a non smoking establishment.

Past the till, the floor rises to another level, which is tiled, where the seating area is. There was about 12 or so tables there, each seating 2-4 people. Out table for 2 was cosily next to a table for 3, although this wasn't obtrusively crowded.

On the walls were some intriguing pink arches with some brickwork enclosed by it recessed into the wall. The brick had a candle suspended from it and each arch had a different figure of a person on top of it.
The small wooden tables had some funny chairs, which had thin metal legs and a very narrow back to them, but which were comfortable enough.

Some portraits lined part of the wall, including the ubiquitous picture of Turkey's founder, Attaturk. I haven't seen any establishment yet that doesn't have one.

THE WARES

Lonely Planet recommends the cappuccino which they say is comparable to one in Italy, so I ordered this. They are less effusive about the sweets but I went for baklava anyway. I was asked how many kilos I wanted by a waiter with a mischievous smirk. I settled for 4 pieces, each of a different variety.

The cappuccino was indeed the sort you could get in Italy; in a medium sized cup with plenty of froth and a little coffee at the bottom. There was no chocolate sprinkled on top. Now I'm no cappuccino expert so I don't know if this makes it more or less genuine, but it was a refreshing, strong enough drink.

The baklava was as you'd expect; very sweet and very sticky. For those of you not familiar with it, it's a very rich, very sweet pastry, made of phyllo dough filled with chopped nuts and sweetened with syrup or honey (thanks, Wikipedia). It can be found in several areas including Turkey, Arabia and Iran.

Each piece was a different form and to be honest they all tasted quite similar to me; very sweet with firm pastry crumbling under your bite. There was one long thin one sprinkled with pistachio, one that looked like a dried fig with a walnut on top, and 2 square ones, one plain looking, the other again with a pistachio sprinkling. But the overriding sensation is always rich sweetness, which the locals can't see to get enough of. Personally I find one small square of the stuff enough to be getting on with. Incidentally, if you want to make acquaintance with Turks simple bring a huge serving of this in and you will be friends for life. Whenever it is brought in at work for celebratory purposes it's always greeted with a huge "ooooooooo!"

My friend went for a filter coffee and had a good idea when ordering his cake. As the menu was in Turkish, he decided simply to go and point at what he wanted at the counter. It seemed to work, as the message got back to our waiter and the cake duly arrived. This was a large slice of chocolate cake with a cream filled dome on top of it encased by a hard chocolate coating and some pistachio nuts, which was apparently very nice. The filter coffee came in a percolator which you had to press and serve yourself into a small cup and apparently it was nice.

SERVICE

The waiters spoke very fluent English with a pleasant dash of humour, so communication wasn't a problem at all. Out waiter offered to translate our cake menu if we needed so. The service was efficient and I was impressed with how you could order your cake by pointing. This wasn't something that the waiter suggested but it didn't seem to be a problem at all.

CONCLUSION

This was a nice place to round off dinner, and seems to be a bustling spot. The location is certainly one any tourist will find themselves in during the course of any Istanbul visit, and this might make the place pretty crowded at times. However, it's definitely worth a look if you need a coffee break whilst wandering along Sultanahmet. It is certainly different from the proliferation of Starbucks and suchlike in the area, and it has a unique charm all of its own.

CONTACT DETAILS

Çigdem Pastanesi
Divan Yolu Caddesi 62A,
Sultanahmet,
Istanbul,
Turkey.
Tel - 526 8859

Summary: A charming coffee spot!