Emma H.
Yelp
I've been to Caravanserai three times now, the first of which was by choice, the second and third for friends' birthday celebrations.
The first time, we decided to go all out. Between four us we shared the Ottoman Meze which has all the good things you want from Turkish/Middle Eastern dining: haloumi, pesto, turkish bread and more. For the mains we ordered four dishes to share: the Atlantic salmon, the chicken breast, the lamb shank and the eye fillet. All were good hearty meals, but I felt they were lacking connection to the theme of the restaurant. For dessert we had a selection of Turkish sweets (if I weren't a savoury fiend, the dessert may have been a redeeming factor).
On my second visit to Caravanserai, I thought I'd try another approach and order a Traditional Main. I chose the Kofta imagining greasy, herby balls of lamb like those I tasted in Turkey. What I got were fairly tasteless meatballs (maybe not even lamb), served on plain white rice with a tomato sauce, more Italian in flavour than Turkish.
Round three I decided to leave behind my expectations of real Turkish food and just order the eye filet. It was a satisfying meal, and for $34.50, a good cut of meat. However, my friend sitting next to me proved that you can order well at Caravanserai and have a more authentic Turkish meal than what I did for less money. She ordered two starters that ended up being more than enough for her: a plate of haloumi with goats cheese and fig jam and a fatoush salad. If I had to go again, this is definitely what I'd order, however, I think three visits to Caravanserai is enough for me!
Note: open until "late" every night except Monday, which in Brisbane, usually means 9 or 10pm.