La Papa

I have to admit that this time of year does not inspire me. Between the gray days and the icy temperatures, I just want to curl up inside with some comfort food and a big blanket. However, as soon as I saw this post on La Papa in Time Out, I was on the next train to Astoria.

La Papa's signature is the kumpir - a street food that was one of the foodie highlights of my trip to Istanbul last summer. It's a baked potato that's mashed with Kasseri cheese and butter, then piled high with some unexpected toppings. This one is the "classic" with sliced beef franks, Russian salad (like potato salad with peas), pickles, green olives, corn and more cheese.

This is the version I had in Istanbul.

La Papa also has several other offerings on the menu, including this Turkish style hot dog with tomato sauce, Russian salad and pickles on a buttery toasted bread. Originally I went for the potatoes, but I'll be back for this dog...

Gulluoglu

I was so excited to hear that Gulluoglu, the Turkish baklava bakery, had opened a shop on the upper east side. When traveling in Istanbul this summer, I tried the baklava from their famous location in Karakoy and have been craving the sweet layered pastry ever since.

The Manhattan location had 12 types of baklava available, from standard pistachio to chestnut.


The shop here also offers breakfast and lunch, but I was here to try the baklava.

Gulluoglu Istanbul, August 2009

Gulluoglu Manhattan, November 2009

Happily, the baklava here is just as delicious as in Turkey. It was hard to choose, but I went with the cevizli baklava, with walnuts for an extra nutty flavor; the kestaneli with chestnuts - unusual but very mellow; and the sobiyet - a variation on the original pistachio with cream. A few bites and I felt like I was back in Istanbul.