Istanbul Modern, a meal between two continents
In-PersonMission, San Francisco
SOLD OUT
$48.00
Restaurant
Available for purchase
Banquet (20+ Guests)
north african, greek, middle eastern
Gluten Free, Vegetarian
In-Person
The legacy of Istanbul, once Constantinople, the capital of four empires, is greater than meets the eye. It's the Bosphorus, Black Sea, the Aegean, and the Mediterranean; Mesopotamia, Balkans, Anatolia, Caucasus, North Africa, and Persia. It's the palace and the countryside, the business capital and the cultural capital. It's a little Turkish, a little Greek, Armenian, Jewish, Arabic and Persian.
It's Istanbul Modern. We tell the story.
Menu detail
Simit and yogurt butter
Small Plate
Simit is the most consumed street food in Istanbul. It resembles a pretzel but it's baked with molasses and sesame seeds. On the streets of Istanbul it's served with 'smiling cow' brand cheese, the little triangles. We break bread with a yogurt butter.
Meze
Small Plate
We serve our mezedes family style small plates across the table. Here are the mezedes we will be serving at this event:
Black hummus with crispy lamb bacon
Sunchokes with marrow
Basturma bourekas
Barbounia, Cranberry Beans stewed with tomatoes, preserved lemons and fermented Turkish pepper paste
Lakerda, cured albacore
Dungeness crab, butternut squash, Yosemite acorn with smoked yogurt
Small Plate
Native American and local ingredients from California meet Middle Eastern flavors to make a comforting soup. The garnishes are delicate yet bright with a little kick. We also use the South Indian cousin of Sichuan peppercorns called tirphal, a very unique ingredient with strong lemony spice.
Grape leaf roasted fish with muhammara and walnut milk
Entree
This is a shared plate. Muhammara is the Middle Eastern romesco with walnuts, peppers, and pomegranate molasses. We break it down into it's components and serve our fish dish with a savory walnut milk and a walnut pepper relish that is muhammara. The grape leaves provide brininess and depth.
The dish is served with a biryani of bulgur primarily with onions and fennel.
Beet baklava
Dessert
We combine winter flavors with a traditional Middle Eastern dessert. Nuts, berries, vinegars and spices are incorporated into a filling that is bright and bold. The dessert is only mildly sweet unlike a traditional baklava.
Sour cherry and mahlab liqueur
Beverage
Mahlab is the seed of a special cherry from the Middle East. It's a unique ingredients with bitter almond and cherry flavors. It's mostly used in baked goods but we use mahlab for our liqueur. Sour cherry provides the front and mahlab gives depth.
Add-ons
Greek pine preserved Retsina wine, two glasses
$9.00
Istanbul Modern, a meal between two continents
In-PersonMission, San Francisco