Walking into İnci Pastanesi appeals to me two-fold: despite being in this location on Mis Sok. only since 2012, it feels like temporarily stepping out of 2017. Somehow even the new premises makes one feel like this establishment has mercifully ducked the foible of ‘modernisation’. There is no music playing, but I can almost hear Glenn Miller or Billie Holiday when I walk in the door. It’s also about the memory of a particular dish. One that was highly fashionable in my childhood, my formative pastry-eating years. It echoes back coffee-and-cake-Sundays of my childhood. Or so it is stuck in my mind. To me profiteroles are as 70s retro as Abba. In fact, İnci has been around since 1944 and used to be in the Circle D’Orient building on İstiklal Cad. It was founded by a Greek/ Albanian immigrant, Lucas Zigoridis. The story is quite well documented. Inside the cafe is plenty of information about the shop’s history. Much can be found online as well, for example read this article on culinarybackstreets. Eating profiteroles is like putting the needle on a scratchy old vinyl. The aesthetics of a simple old thing from the past. And the warm feeling that comes from an interaction with a well-worn item, the intense familiarity, the monochrome memories it may trigger. The photos may show a bit of a glut of chocolate sauce. The friend with who I went always insists on asking for extra chocolate sauce. He's the profi on profiteroles. Besides he's the local guy. Who am I to argue, with local knowledge, Turkish food expertise, or more chocolate sauce? To me, they are fine as they are, and the standard serving is generous enough with the sauce, in case you are wondering. But if you are a big chocolate fan, ask for daha fazla çikolata sosu, lütfen. The plate has a sort of quaint homemade feel about it. And that’s exactly why I love going. There is nothing fancy or sophisticated about the presentation either. Pastry balls, a creamy filling, a slathering of chocolate. What’s not to love? Choux pastry dishes of days gone by came in shape of eclairs, and in Germany we simply filled it with cream and named it “Windbeutel” (Wind bag). Treats almost self-effacing, humble affairs. Modern day cooking shows of course dragged choux pastry onto our TV screens and into our lives, introducing us to the ostentatious calorie pyramid ‘Croquembouche’, now seemingly a must-have at kid’s birthday parties if a mother doesn’t want to risk completely ruining their daughter’s 8th birthday with a mere ladybug shaped vanilla cake. But back in Istanbul, back to Inci, and here plates of portioned profiteroles await on the counter. You can find this sweet all over town, in other cake shops, restaurants, and such is their popularity, even in those horrid pre-packaged plastic tubs and sold in supermarkets, complete with mini spoon. But there is something about eating profiteroles at Inci’s, knowing that thus a 70+ year old tradition is being continued. Along with an afternoon treat, enjoy 15 minutes of nostalgia and cozy ye-old-world-feel that clearly moved along with the proprietor, their name, and their recipes to the newer shop. The proof is in the pudding, or indeed in the whole profiterole.
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AuthorInnate curiosity, learned (discovered) deep love and appreciation for Turkey, a bit of time at my hands, and always hungry: voila, a food blogger! Archives
September 2019
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