4.1/5*
The Feed Punchers ventured into Newtown to try out ‘Konak’, a traditional Turkish restaurant. The food was tasty, offering a variety of flavours, but the portions were very small, bringing the value down.
The mixed Mezze contained a variety of Turkish inspired dips, including; Tzatziki, fava, muhammara, and of course, hummus. Accompanied with freshly baked pide, these dips were perfect. Our favourite component on the mezze came from the spicy capsicum flavours found in the muhammara dip.
The Adana kebab was the next endeavour for the punchers - A lamb kebab accompanied by a bed of almond and currents rice, with onions. The lamb carried strong flavours of garlic, cumin and sumac. Cooked to perfection, mouthfuls accompanied with raw onion and rice made us feel as if we were in Turkey.
The chicken shish spoke to us through a strong smokey profile. Brought out beside the smokey taste was prominent flavours of paprika, tomato and garlic. Again, accompanied by rice and onion.
The lamb shish utilised lamb back-strap, a tender cut of meat which was perfectly complimented by the charcoal method of cooking. This lamb shish harnessed beautiful smoky flavours with paprika, cumin and garlic and was complimented by a citrusy lemon-sumac flavour.
The Beyti tasted like a sausage roll with strong Turkish elements. It featured lamb mince intertwined with pistachio and strong tomato-paprika-capsicum flavours. This was rolled in a fried tortilla and served with yoghurt in bite sized pieces.
The falafels were very moist, cooked very nicely with a golden herb crust. They paired nicely on the bed of hummus they were served on, topped with a sprinkle of sumac.
The Sucuk was a pide which featured; Sausage, egg and mixed cheese. Topped with fresh coriander, it was like a wood fired pizza in taste.
Overall, Konak presented the Feed Punchers with a tasty array of Turkish flavours, but fell short in portion sizes. Two little kebab sticks for $34 is offensive.
Feed Punchers