Yule S.
Google
Istanbul is a dream destination I want to visit, so I always try food with "Istanbul" in the name, just in case I come across something special.
Once, when I walked past Flamingo on the Strip from north to south, I saw a lane with several food booths. The Istanbul Mediterranean Restaurant (Halal) was there. They only had a few shared tables in the lane, shared with a neighboring pizza booth and others.
The food was good, but honestly, a little overrated. It was fine, but not worth going out of your way for. In Las Vegas, there are just too many good food options—you don't want to waste a meal here. Anywhere else, this might deserve 4 stars, but in Las Vegas, the standards are higher. Sorry, Istanbul Mediterranean.
What I Ate
Beef & Lamb Döner (Shawarma) Turkish Pita – 3/5
Pity-this one was gamey. Even though it was mixed with beef and lamb, it still carried that strong lamb flavor. I was okay with it, but my wife-who's originally from Yunnan, China, where lamb doesn't have that gamey taste-found it off-putting.
Chicken Döner (Shawarma) Lavash Wrap – 3/5
It was fine, but bland, even though I ordered one with chili sauce. The wrap itself wasn't bad, and the chicken was tender, but it wasn't seasoned well--too light, too plain. A bit of a letdown.
When they prepared the food, they placed foil on the table, put bread on it, then added the meat and other toppings, followed by another piece of bread, and wrapped everything with the foil. Afterwards, they put the food in a panini-press-like machine to warm it. The problem was that they didn't heat it long enough, maybe because too many people were waiting. When I got my food, it was warm on the outside, but the meat in the middle was still cold, which was a big drawback.
The food itself wasn’t bad, but it lacked both flavor and proper temperature. Hopefully it can be improved.