Mavi Cafe — Restaurant in New York

Located in between the Dunkin Donuts and A&S, Mavi Cafe is a small Turkish restaurant tucked into Stuyvesant street. It can actually be easy to miss if you're not specifically looking for it. The decor is on the darker side but cozy and not at all unpleasant. Seating is limited, as it occupies a fairly small space, but you can usually count on a table being open outside of peak hours.

The cuisine consists of typical middle eastern restaurant staples such as kebab, kofta, falafel, tzatziki, and so on. All are competently made for the most part, and offered with rice/fries/bulgur/salad, or as a sandwich with a selection of toppings and sides. The Mavi special bowl with beef over french fries was particularly nice, and I like the very filling kofta sandwich with Turkish bread.

Mavi actually opens quite early so it has breakfast fare too. The sojuk sandwich, which consisted of beef sausage, melted cheese, and thin Turkish bread, was a solid meal, accompanied with a cup of Turkish tea.

Their fried chicken, however, leaves a lot to be desired. They are chicken strips, cooked to rock hardness, and left this reviewer with mild soreness of gums for the remainder of the day.

Staff are polite and attentive as they can be depending on the amount of customers and phone calls they must take care of. Lovely green eyes on the ladies, by the by. The kitchen is closed off in the rear of the restaurant but the men can occasionally be seen going to and fro with supplies. While there's a paid parking lot nearby, street parking will be rare.

Overall, a solid addition to the neighborhood, and recommended for their good food...

Missed the opening, but came back a few days after. Ordered a beef gyro on Turkish bread. Ingredients were all fresh and high-quality. Food came quickly. Maybe because I ate the fries by themselves first, the sandwich seemed very simple and humble at first glance. Turns out it was super satisfying, and very tasty when loaded up with hot sauce and tzatziki. It'll be hard to find better quality for such a fair price in this area. Regret not ordering baklava, but can't wait to go back and try it with their coffee and other menu items.

It's a small restaurant, so may not be ideal for huge parties, but definitely worth the takeout.

For the foodies (everyone else, just skip this part): The pickles are stand-out, and the hot sauce is out of this world. They need to bottle this stuff! I was expecting it to just blow my head off. There seems to be a competition in New York for who can create the most hallucinagenic hot sauce (if you've been to the guys with the yellow and red shirts, you know what I'm talking about). Mavi's version is a concentrated but well-balanced, smoky, roasted red pepper umami flavor bomb, that adds just enough heat and tons of depth - chef's kiss. They could probably produce an even spicier version, and I'd still want to drink it by...

An Absolute Jewel in the Middle of the Desert

This place is a true gem in an area where great food options are few and far between. Most nearby spots feel overly commercial and repetitive, so finding this restaurant was a refreshing surprise.

I stumbled upon it after a recommendation from a friend while craving some good Turkish food — though I wasn’t very hopeful I’d find any nearby. From the moment I walked in, I was greeted with a warm smile and a simple, sincere question: "What would you like?" That small gesture set the tone for what turned out to be an incredible experience.

The food tastes fresh, vibrant, and home-cooked. I’ve eaten at many Turkish restaurants, but this one easily ranks in my top three in the city. I've been back so many times since that first visit. From their flavorful burgers to the chicken-and-rice bowls topped with colorful, crisp salads — everything is made with care and tastes amazing.

My only small complaint is that the space is quite limited — but honestly, that’s also part of its charm. It feels intimate and special, not mass-produced.

If you enjoy Turkish cuisine, you really can’t go wrong here. And the cherry on top? Their coffee is phenomenal. This place isn't just a hole in the wall — it's a jewel in the...