Soltan Banoo

After several years of always wondering what it would be like to eat here, we finally got to find out.

I'd always been curious about this cute little eclectic eatery. Our visit to Soltan Banoo constituted part two of my lunch with TC just a few doors down from Plumeria...

Since it was a nice day out, we opted to sit out on their patio which looks like an exotic, but homey living room. The place is a visual delight - weathered furniture, colorful artwork, rug covered chairs (a bit scratchy since we wore shorts), fabric draped sumptuously through the rafters and various multicolored lamps hanging about.

The view from our table where you can catch a glimpse of the University Heights sign...

You may view their lunch menu online here. They also had daily specials which I was tempted to get (Wednesday's special was the Korshest Badenjan - an eggplant stew with beef, lamp, split peas, tomato puree and spices topped with crispy potato strings served with saffron basmati rice), but we opted to get an appetizer to share and a dessert.

I chose the Potato Pancakes (which they call "koo koo") to share...

For later, we got the Persian Ice Cream and a piece of Gaz...

Not only did I love the decor here, but also the serve ware. This was not your generic water glass. These were beautiful robin's egg blue tumblers; our waters were garnished with a tiny bit of mint leaf...

Our plates were mustard yellow too. Like Plumeria's use of serveware, I really admired that they didn't use "generic" plates and cups/glasses.  It really makes a difference to me.

First up was our appetizer, the "Koo Koo" which were three lightly spiced potato patties served with a side of yogurt sauce and pita strips ($5.95 for three pieces).

I didn't really like the pita strips which turned hard after a while. Now about those potato patties...

According to the menu, the potato pancakes have the addition of quinoa and free range eggs. I couldn't really detect the quinoa in here though. The patties were lightly spiced and had tiny bits of shredded carrots within.

Our waiter was really cool and gave us his recommendations about dessert. I was trying to decide between the Persian Ice Cream and the Faloodeh (a frozen dessert that involved noodles). Well, you can see which won out and it was also highly recommended by our server.

The Akbar Mashti or Persian ice cream ($5.95), served in an oversized martini glass was flavored with rosewater and saffron, topped with a dollop of whipped cream with rosewater dripped on top and garnisehd with with vibrant pistachio nut slivers.

Sandwiched between the waffles was that intriguing ice cream. The flavor of the ice cream wasn't too sweet but it was really refreshing. I was hesitatant about the flavors but we really wanted to try this. The mini waffle ice cream sandwiches were fun to eat; we ended up picking up the pieces with our hands!

I also ordered a piece of Gaz, which is described as a nougat  flavored with rosewater (one piece is .75). The waiter also brought us a piece of Turkish Delight on the house (same price) because he was excited for us to try both of these traditional desserts.  Both were lightly coated in a very fine flour. The gaz tasted like a thick and dense marshmallow. It was slightly sweet but
not overly sweet.

The Turkish Delight looked like a marshmallow but had a thicker but jellylike consistency. It tasted fruity and had some nuts within. I liked both, but flavorwise, I liked the Turkish Delight more.

I've had Turkish Delight before so I didn't bother ordering it, but when it was brought to us as an extra, it was a pleasant surprise.

Some trivia - Turkish Delight is the dessert  enjoyed by Edmund Pevensie (one of the characters from "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe" by C.S. Lewis.).  Jadis, the evil White Queen plies him with hot chocolate and Turkish Delight...

In the book, C.S. Lewis writes:

"The Queen let another drop fall from her bottle on to the snow, and instantly there appeared a round box, tied with green silk ribbon, which, when opened, turned out to contain several pounds of the best Turkish Delight. Each piece was sweet and light to the very centre and Edmund had never tasted anything more delicious...At first Edmund tried to remember that it is rude to speak with one's mouth full, but soon he forgot about this and thought only to trying to shovel down as much Turkish Delight as he could, and the more he ate the more he wanted to eat...

"At last the Turkish Delight was all finished and Edmund was looking very hard at the empty box and wishing that she would ask him whether he would like some more. Probably the Queen knew quite well what he was thinking; for she knew, though Edmund did not, that this was enchanted Turkish Delight and that anyone who had once tasted it would want more and more of it, and would even, if they were allowed, go on eating it till they killed themselves..."

How's THAT for temptation and gluttony?

When I first read the book in 5th grade, I'd never heard of Turkish Delight and the dessert intrigued me to no end. I didn't really taste it I was in my 20's and it was an approximation since it wasn't really rosewater. Remember those Cotlet's candies? Those are similar but more fruity than Turkish Delight.

In the book, the White Queen continues to tempt Edmund with the candy and tells him that she has "whole rooms" full of the sweets. Even after finding out the witch was evil, Edmund was crazed by this candy. He knew it was wrong to be friends with the White Queen, but he became overly obsessed with consuming this candy.

Turkish Delight as a dessert is not as popular in the U.S. as it is in the Middle East and Great Britain. You can't get this at Ralph's or Vons but it can easily be found in select ethnic markets. When we used to have North Park Produce in Chula Vista, you could buy many varieties of Turkish Delight in a wide assortment of gift boxes. You can still get them at the other NPP locations as well as any Middle Eastern market like Vine Ripe or Balboa.

Unlike Edmund Pevensie (whom I disliked the most out of the Pevensie children in the series since he betrayed his siblings), it is probably wiser to enjoy your sweets in moderation!

Who else went to Soltan Banoo?

Kirk from mmm-yoso (he went back in 2008)
Chicks Who Chomp (2009)

Soltan Banoo
4645 Park Blvd
San Diego, CA
(619) 298-2801

soltanbanoo.com

Reviews:
City Beat (the article is by SD Foodblogger Marie of Meandering Eats)
SanDiego.com
and yelp

Even though we didn't eat a full meal, I at least wanted the experience of sampling a little something here. I want to come back with Bert to try their daily specials and also to try that other dessert, the Faloodeh.