Even though it is close to home, and Turquoise has been open for many years, I don’t think we’ve ever eaten here before. The food is Turkish and that style is quite a crowded market in Cheadle – we’d have to pass another Turkish place and two Lebanese to get there. But, this time, we arrived from a different direction and Turquoise was the first we came to.
For anyone who is a fan of Eastern Mediterranean food, there’s no surprises on the menu but what interested us was the midweek set menu. Two courses (with about eight choices at each course) for £17.95. A bargain by any standards.
Houmous was OK. A smooth dip but one that lacked “oomph”. It needed more of something. Tahini? Lemon? Garlic? Anything really. Much, much better was the mixed mezze plate for one. A slice of grilled halloumi, half a sucuk sausage, cheese borek, falafel, bread, a little salad, a spoonful of a very pokey chilli sauce and the yoghurty calming effects of cacik.
For mains, kofte brought a generous serving of four, still moist, lamb patties with just a hint of an unidentifiable spice in them. There’s rice and salad which also appeared on the side of vegetable moussaka. That’s a good mix of aubergine, courgette, potato, mushroom, tomato and peppers, topped with a tasty béchamel sauce. It was fine, if a tad underseasoned.
