Spice restaurant, Ankara, Turkey

[Al-khiyal]

July 31, 2007 -- Tucked away in one of Ankara's most posh locales is the authentic curry restaurant ‘Spice'. Owned by an Australian, Duncan Scudamore, this relatively new addition to the city has added some flavor to cuisine in the capital.

Duncan studied commerce at Deakin University in Melbourne and is the ex-General Manager of the Sodexco group. He moved to Turkey six years ago with his wife Julie and entered the catering business. Soon after arriving he met his business partner and friend Amirouche Hamiti, an Algerian who served as a chef at the Algerian Embassy. Today they run “Spice” together, single-handedly taking care of the cooking, serving, and all aspects of the restaurant.

Spice has an aura of its own. With an appealingly understated exterior on Çayhane Sokak, Spice opens into a modern, attractive space. The exquisite glass frontage, glossy wooden tables, latticed-backed chairs, and small lamps suspended from the ceiling give it a pleasing atmosphere. A huge window offers a dramatic view of the kitchen where the chef can be seen brewing various savory curries and other delicacies. The light music sets the tone for a nice relaxing meal.

Opening in September of 2006, the restaurant's success is well-deserved. One of the few of its kind in the capital, Spice attracts an assortment of customers. It usually entertains an upper-middle and high-class clientele. Dignitaries, social luminaries, foreigners and businessmen are commonly spotted at Spice's tables.

Menu:

The menu features a range of palatable South Asian cuisines. Most offerings are curries, an English term used to describe a general variety of pungent dishes flavored with spices. Curries are commonly found in Indian, Bangladeshi, Sri Lankan, Indonesian, Malaysian, Pakistani, Thai, and other South Asian and Southeast Asian cuisines.

Spice specializes in Indian cuisine. Both Duncan and Amirouche have had a brush with India in their own way and thus have a connection of sorts with the food. Amirouche says he loves preparing Indian curries because of the aromatic spices and challenging cooking. The restaurant serves fairly generous helpings in traditional metallic pots called handees.

The menu is the most interesting part of Spice. It changes every month and is usually arranged by course from appetizers to meat and vegetarian dishes to sweets. The breads change daily, with the hot favorite being “naan.” Duncan declares a spice of the month and shares information on the spice in their newsletter. Yes, the restaurant has a newsletter – with already more than 400 subscribers!

A diverse range of light alcohols and a few Indian drinks like ‘lassı' (a yogurt-based nonalcoholic drink) are served. Spice is a no-smoking restaurant, but customers are welcome to light up in the parking lot.

Ever since its establishment last year, Spice has played host to regular entertainment nights which Duncan and Amiroche say are incredibly popular. The “movie cum buffet” evening and the carpet night are favorites among the customers. Wednesdays are usually buzzing with activity thanks to the 20:20 offer – customers enjoy a scrumptious two-course meal for only YTL 20, served in 20 minutes flat.

The regulars at the restaurant highly recommend the Doh Piaza and the moog dhal. Those new to the restaurant can quickly understand why it has such a loyal following. One customer raved about the experience: “Spice gave us a very warm welcome, and their food was absolutely excellent. Dishes were perfectly spiced and not swimming in grease like other curry places we have visited. The service was well paced and unobtrusive, yet the staff seemed to appear just as we needed something.”

Spending an evening at Spice is a sure way to start off your journey into the realm of curries and Indian cuisine.

Spice

Address: Çayhane sokak 30/A Gaziosmanpaşa / Ankara

Tel: 312 446 68 85

Spicing up Ankara life

[Ruks]

i'm gonna have to let my friends in Turkey know about this, but they've tried many curry places in Turkey and found them all just awful. i guess thats why when they come on holiday to london, its a trip to my place first for that 'proper' curry. LOL

But curries are easy to make, although cooking with fish needs more delicate skill than cooking with vegetables and meat/poultry

[Al-khiyal]

Here's a view of the interior:

Spice, Ankara