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Ottoman Cuisine

Canberra’s most famous restaurant still packs them in, years on. The private rooms are the delight of departmental banqueting, while the vast vine-shaded main room rings with the sound of people happily laying into favourites such as the lobster- and salmon-rich take on stuffed vine leaves, or the peerless sis tavuk, a kebab-shop classic raised to new brilliance. We’d gladly sacrifice the jus-and-mash touches for a deeper dig into Turkish tradition (and while the Sydney outpost has embraced very clean plating there’s still a bit of fanned-strawberry and lattice work going on here). But dishes such as the winning raw kingfish dressed with dill, local olive oil and beetroot show that the kitchen isn’t content to rest on its laurels, and the lobster steamed with butter and verjuice walks out the door. There’s not much inspiration in the choice of wines by the glass: perhaps a Turkish beer instead?