Arslans Turkish Street Food — Restaurant in Santa Cruz

Will maybe try this place again but maybe not. The wrap was pretty good. The cashier, a younger man was friendly but got my sons order wrong. We clearly ordered the beef lamb wrap plate. We were not given the wrap plate but only wrap alone. No problem. I alerted the older man behind the counter and he grabbed the receipt, said it was only the wrap and then walked away. . So, whats the problem? Well, perhaps the cashier didnt hear me, perhaps i wasn't clear. The fault is unimportant. What is important is that i wanted a wrap plate, and was happy to pay for it. That is how restaurants work. We want the food and then we pay money and get the food. They get money, we get to eat. I feel weird having to explain this. We should not be corrected, or have to argue to get food or service. I dont want to beg. I might have ordered more food after that. I was still hungry and wanted to see what came with the wrap plate before committing to more food. I wanted to try one of those desserts too. And, i dont know if they have coffee but was going to try that too if available. Now i just don't feel like investing in this place that doesn't care about me and my family. Not here to beg or...

I went there with my family and was really looking forward to it based on the reviews. The place looked nice and was clean on the inside. I thought the prices were high but figured being downtown Santa Cruz, rent must be outrageous too, so understandable I suppose. The person helping us was not very friendly or helpful in answering questions. I ordered a chicken wrap, chicken plate, water, coke and fries. The fries were ok, but the chicken was just not good. It really tasted old, both in the wrap and plate. It was very dry and tasted like how old chicken would taste and pretty much ruined the entire meal. Maybe our mistake was not getting the beef or lamb but we expected more for a meal that cost about $51 including tip. Finally, the handwritten sign in the bathroom about what to throw and not throw in the toilet with exclamation marks is just silly. For those who do such things, it is not because of lack of knowledge but rather lack of character and a handwritten sign will not change anything but make the...

So, we happened by as where we're going was packed. This place was empty, and probably for a reason. The food was very edible, fresh and seemingly good quality. However, it was uninspired, not very seasoned and just something to eat. The meat, beef/lamb was dry, the pita was not cooked through and the creamy yogurt sauce desperately needed salt. The Istanbul salad was just ok, and I used it with the meat for moisture. The Coban salad side actually turend out to be the star along with the red chili sauce. The gal taking our order was not friendly, did seem to care that were were there and kept nagging at the two cooks. That atmosphere too was dry and unseasoned. No art, no music, nothing that suggested Turkish culture. After eating we left feeling, eh... Well, it was something different. Unfortunately, I feel no need to return, nor did the staff ever try making us feel good about being there. I know they are new, but Santa Cruz has many more delights to...