Regular readers of the blog will know that it’s very rare we return to a venue within 6 months (unless it’s to have different meals there), but that’s exactly what we did at Divan Turkish Restaurant in Chesterfield; there was a good reason though! On our previous visit we spied a humungous sharing platter being enjoyed by a family group at an adjacent table, and it looked so good that we said “we are bringing Mummy Bird and Fledge, and having that”. So a few weeks later, we found ourselves back (minus Fledge, who felt unwell), and Mummy Bird got to meet the lovely Tuncay and his team; she liked them just as much as we do.
His Nibs had a bottle of his beloved Efes Draught and Mummy and I had a bottle of Pinot Grigio to savour with our food, and Tuncay very graciously scaled down the set meal for four into a treat for three. It wasn’t long before a symphony of mouth-watering aromas began to gently drift over to our nostrils, and we sniffed the air appreciatively. Our feast kicked off with a mixture of hot and cold Meze, each warm dish being brought out as it was cooked.
The cold Meze were Tzatziki, Stuffed Vine Leaves, Aubergine with Yoghurt and Turkish Spicy Salsa and I dived straight into the Vine Leaves – I love these!! The soaked leaves held a mix of spiced rice and my taste buds did a little happy dance as the flavours hit them. His Nibs made a beeline for the Spicy Salsa, scooping some up with the warm Feta Cheese Rolls and cooing over the mix of creaminess and spice as the two dishes mingled.
Delicious Courgette Fritters paired well with the cool creaminess of the herbed Tzatziki and we all loved the gentle crunch elicited when we bit into them.
Softened Aubergine had been swirled through natural Yoghurt to make a gorgeous dip that we combined with the warm, stuffed Mushrooms. Turkish Pastrami parcels were the last warm dish that we tucked into and their flavours burst in our mouths, providing a glorious end to the starter course.
A short while later our lovely server brought out the laden wooden platter and it looked every bit as good as I remembered from before. As well as three timbales of rice, there was lots of mixed leaf salad and that divine Red Onion salad nestled in amongst the meat selection. There was also a Halloumi and Vegetable Shish snuggled in alongside the Chicken and Lamb Shish Kebabs, the Adana Kebab with its distinctive flattened shape, juicy Chicken thighs and the most beautiful, deep ruby red Turkish Spicy Sausage (which doesn’t have any repeat factor, surprisingly).
All the meat was tender and juicy with a superb smoky edge from the Chargrill that they’d been cooked on, and the range of herbs and spices used meant that there was lots of interest for our palates. When you’ve got a large platter, there’s nothing worse than everything tasting the same is there? Thankfully, Tuncay ensures that you won’t be left deflated when you eat with him and his team. Those amazing sautéed potatoes were also on our platter and they soon got gobbled up!
We had to make an executive decision to leave some of the rice in order to save space for dessert, especially seeing as Tuncay had said that he was going to give us the Baklava (made fresh that day) AND the orange-infused cold Rice Pudding that I fell in love with on our last visit to Divan – honestly, if you haven’t tried this before you really do need to have it, it’s beyond delicious! Mummy Bird was waxing lyrical about the Baklava, and rightly so, its pastry was wickedly flaky and was oozing with sweet syrup; if you have a sweet tooth, this will hit the bulls-eye.
To finish off our incredible feast, The Man and I had Turkish Coffees and Mummy had Orange Tea which cleansed our palates perfectly. I honestly don’t know how we managed to get up from the table; our bellies were that full and fat! Yet again Tuncay and his lovely team had made us feel like the most important people on the planet, something that they do to all their diners. Hot Wings happily awarded again to this great Chesterfield eaterie! Don’t forget about the 2 course special either; it’s priced at £15.95 per person (some dishes are excluded, but not many) and is available Sunday-Thursday. We have already decided that we will be back one Sunday, hopefully with Fledge in tow this time.
Read our previous review of Divan Turkish Restaurant
