Mexican Sales Restaurant$$$$$

The word Akdeniz means Mediterranean (the sea) in Turkish, so by knowing this, you’ll know exactly what to expect from this “jewel in the sea" of Midtown restaurants.

Akdeniz opened two years ago by Mike Kocak, Murat Aktas, and Suleyman Yeniler. Each member of the trifecta brings something to the table. Mike is an established restaurateur, owning Sahara’s Grill, Sahara’s Turkish, and Pasam (in Brooklyn). Murat has worked as a waiter and manager in several restaurants in the city immigrating from Istanbul, Turkey in 1999, and works at Akdeniz for more than 15 hours everyday from 9 AM until closing. Suleyman is behind the scenes producing the delicious cuisine and has more than seven years of chef experience.

If you visit Akdeniz on a weekday, especially for lunch, don’t mind the wait (as the restaurant is usually “filled to the gills”) because you’ll soon realize why this little place has such a following.

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Octopus Salad—Lightly char-grilled octopus, tossed with tomatoes, onions and parsley in our special chef dressed on top of romaine lettuce

Mediterranean Salad—Lettuce, onions, tomatoes, cucumbers, fresh mint, corn, parsley, green pepper, lemon juice and extra virgin olive oil, feta cheese on top

Greek Salad—Grape leaves, olives, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, feta cheese, olive oil, and lemon juice

Eggplant with Sauce—Small cubes of fried eggplant, green and red peppers in a fresh tomato and garlic sauce

Skewered Ground Meat—Hand chopped beef and lamb seasoned with red bell peppers and char-grilled on skewers served with rice and vegetables

Chicken Shish Kebab—Marinated chunks of chicken, char-grilled served with rice and vegetables

Sultan’s Delight—A classic Ottoman dish made with smoked eggplant puree mixed with flour, milk and mozzarella cheese, served with chicken, or lamb on top

Baklava—Baked thin layers of filo dough stuffed with pistachios, flavored with lemon and orange zest light syrup