Located at Albert Place, Dehiwala, Salwa Turkish Food is a tiny food joint that serves up some mediocre Middle Eastern street food for a delightfully cheap price tag.
The Food
Even though the name says “Turkish Food”, it was hardly reflected in their menu. They had Turkish falafel, simit, and that’s all. The rest of the menu consisted of shawarmas, submarines, and falafel sandwich, among other things.
First up, the Turkish Falafel (Rs. 30). It had good flavor but lacked the crispy coating that anyone would expect in a good falafel. The texture was soggy, probably because it had been sitting in the display for so long.
The Falafel Sandwich (Rs. 100) was quite good. They’ve used the same falafel in it but refried, and it had a good blend of crunchy lettuce, tomatoes, and onions wrapped in a fresh pita.
We also tried a Beef Submarine (Rs.180), and it was quite generous with chewy beef cubes, heaps of veggies, a drizzle of mayo, and a good deal of sauce and cheese. The bun was pretty generic, commercially made bun and rightly so because they're a street stall.
We were so excited to try the Simit (Rs.50), the beloved Turkish sesame-encrusted bread rings, but unfortunately, this is what we got. A bagel-like, soft, fluffy, sweetened bun soaked in kithul pani. It was delicious in its own way, but this is no simit by any definition.
The Drinks
As for drinks, we got a Virgin Mojito (Rs. 100) and a Masala Coke (Rs. 150). The mojito was basically a sprite with some lime and mint leaves thrown in. It was fizzy, acidic and refreshing.
We didn’t notice anything special about the masala coke, except for the cumin powder floating on top of the Kik Cola. It barely had any masala taste.
Service and Ambience
The staff here is very efficient, and we got our food served within around 10 minutes. In terms of the ambience, they’ve got enough space to accommodate around 3-4 people at once. That being said, your best option is to get takeaway.
Conclusion
The first thing to remember about this place is, what they market on their Facebook page is not what you get. But it's still a good place to drop by if you're in the area, especially if you're broke than a 15-year-old's wallet.
