One of the areas of Troy that a large portion of the RPI community overlooks is Lansingburgh, which is approximately the northern third of the city. I tend to be guilty of this myself, which is why it took a recent review in The Times Union for me to spot Anatolia, a brand-new Mediterranean restaurant near the northern tip of the city.
The building is definitely not what I was expecting—it looks like a country diner that’s been given a coat of brick red paint. Perhaps that feel is because of the ketchup bottles on every table, visible from the outside through the front windows.
The interior, though, is done up in warm colors, gold and chestnut. It’s both comfortable and classy—you can come here in jeans and T-shirt and not feel underdressed, but still have the experience of eating out someplace a little nicer than Tom’s Diner. My wife and I went on Sunday night and had no problem getting a table; we were immediately seated and handed menus.
Entrees are limited to three major types: kebabs, pide, and durum. Kebabs do not actually involve skewers here—they can be either chunks of grilled meat and veggies served on a bed of rice—like my wife’s lamb shish kebab—or something akin to a grilled sausage—such as my adana kebab. Pide are described on the menu as flatbread pizzas, but don’t go expecting the usual tomato sauce and cheese—judging from the order at the table next to ours, about the only thing in common is the flat crust. (They look tasty, though.) Durum are essentially wraps filled with rice, meat, and veggies.
The appetizer selection was much more varied—I was dying to try the red lentil soup, but was swayed by my wife’s suggestion of stuffed grape leaves. (Stuffed with what, you ask? Rice and a lot of flavor! You should try them sometime.) This was a good choice—while they weren’t the best we’d ever had, they were certainly tasty enough.
Anatolia also serves bread with their entrees—hardly a surprise, as many restaurants do likewise. What we weren’t expecting was that our bread would be the size and shape of one of the throw pillows on our couch. Tearing off a chunk let out a billowing cloud of steam and caused the loaf to visibly deflate—on the whole, certainly impressive to look at. It tasted even better than it looked, and the yogurt dill dipping sauce improved matters by a few more orders of magnitude. No question that this was the highlight of our meal.
Which is not to say that the entrees were lacking at all—far from it. Both the lamb kebab and the adana kebab were extremely flavorful, and the pickled cabbage they were served with provided a very nice contrast. About the only complaint I would make is that the adana kebab was billed as spicy, but my—admittedly spice-happy—palate couldn’t detect any heat at all.
Our service was fast and friendly, and dinner for two, including tax and tip, came to about $40. (You could easily get out for under $25 by skipping the appetizer and going for the less-expensive pide and durum entrees.) Anatolia is certainly one of the reasons why it pays to explore north of Hoosick Street, and I recommend paying the restaurant a visit while you’re up there.
Anatolia is located at the corner of 2nd Ave. and 125th St. in Lansingburgh. The fastest way to get there is go up Oakwood Ave., but the easiest way is this: Go west down Hoosick St. Stay to the left to go under the bridge and remain on Hoosick. Two blocks later, Hoosick ends at River St.; turn right. Stay on this road for a couple of miles—River St. eventually becomes 2nd Ave. Anatolia is a red building on the near corner with 125th St., across from a Price Chopper.
Editor’s Note: Thanks to William M. Dowd of The Times Union’s Troy office for pointing out this restaurant. If you have a comment or suggestion for a restaurant to review, contact The Poly at restaurants@poly.rpi.edu.
