Sunday 22 April 2018

Saray Restaurant Cardiff - Authentic Turkish Cuisine

As someone that has travelled to Turkey many times, one of the things I love the most is the cuisine and therefore I couldn't believe that the Saray Restaurant in Cardiff has not been on my radar. 

Saray restaurant is located on the bustling City Road which is within walking distance to Cardiff city centre. 'Saray' is the Persian word for Palace which is traditionally a place of amalgamation and honing cuisines from other ruling empires and the restaurant takes this description as inspiration for the service they provide their customers. Their menu boasts a fusion of flavours from traditional Ottoman cuisines with many traditional Turkish tastes to choose from.

Most people I know would think Turkish food was all greasy kebabs and pitta bread but luckily I know differently. Turkish food is all about bringing the family together and sharing freshly made food (especially at breakfast which is a very important meal for them). 

I was invited to a cooking class at the restaurant by one the lovely owner's Selma and also Kelly from Reduced Grub. Before the class I was given a Turkish tea in a beautiful cup whilst I had a chat and got to know two other local bloggers who write at The Globetrotter GP and Welshcakes and Wellies.


First up we were shown how they make their dough. Everything is made fresh in the kitchen which is wonderful to see. We then helped the chef to make Adana kebabs. Adana kebabs are a spicy mincemeat kebab. For ours we had a mixture of lamb mince, onion, chilli, parsley, red pepper and salt. 



We all had a go at shaping the mincemeat mixture onto the very large skewer. You have to squeeze the mixture along the length of the skewer until it is evenly spread out. I was actually a dab hand at this which I was rather impressed with. 

We then made a pide which is a traditional Turkish pizza. You can use meat or vegetarian fillings such as pepperoni, mice meat, feta, spinach etc. I made a mincemeat pide.




I'll be the first to admit I was fairly useless when it came to rolling out the dough and shaping it into an oval, however, the rest of the recipe was easy to do. 





Once everything was cooked it was time for us to sit down and enjoy everything we'd created and more. We tucked into a huge Turkish feast. It was fab to try lots of different dishes and the flavours were truly authentic. We finished off with more Turkish tea and a sweet treat called Kadayif, which is a form of baklava. It was delicious, my mouth is salivating just remembering it.





I had a wonderful time at Saray and would definitely recommend it. My husband and I called in one evening last week to pick up a takeaway kebab each which was the best one I have eaten in Cardiff. So much fresher and flavoursome than anywhere else and the portion was huge. We are also planning to have my birthday meal there next week as hubby has been desperate to try more of the menu out as I haven't stopped raving about how good it is there. 

Have you tried Turkish food before?


*Thank you to Saray for inviting me to the cookery class. All opinions are my own*
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10 comments

  1. I'm not sure I've ever had Turkish food before which is a shame because it looks delicious and healthy too. I love how you were able to get behind the scenes and saw how the food was made!

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  2. So many hidden gems on City Road - I hadn't heard of this place either, dishes look scrumptious!

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  3. What a brilliant write up. I was salivating as i read it. The food looks so delicious. I will definately be paying them a visit soon

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  4. I have never tried traditional Turkish food before but it looks amazing

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  5. The food looks good. Never had turkish food before

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  6. I have tried Turkish food before. I love it.

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