November 24, 2021 Lunch - Ascension, Dallas. Dinner - Selda Mediterranean Kitchen and Bar

 November 24, 2021 Lunch - Ascension, Dallas. Dinner - Selda Mediterranean Kitchen and Bar

We ate fresh wonderful food today.  The day was devoted to finding chairs for our TV room, so at 9:30 we drove east on Oak Lawn to the design area east of Stemmons to the David W. Gilbert showroom on Hi-line near our hotel and looked at chairs for an hour or two.  We decided we want  sturdy glider swivel chairs and saw several.

At 11:00 we were hungry, not having had any breakfast.  We asked the assistant for a recommendation for a breakfast restaurant and she said there is a good coffee and food restaurant on the corner of Hi-line and Oak Lawn.  One block from the showroom was Ascension, very inviting and with a design oriented decor.  After some research I found that it has been newly remodeled and the location at the Design Center is its flagship store in an expanding chain of coffee and food restaurants.  https://dailycoffeenews.com/2021/10/12/the-rise-of-ascension-coffee-in-dallas-continues-under-new-leadership/

We found a table for two next to a large atrium area and looked at the menu.

Suzette decided on a toasted chicken breast and Manchego sandwich with a cup of the coffee of the day that was Colombian and I finally settled on the Poke Bowl with a glass of orange juice.

We both enjoyed our choices.  My poke bowl was wonderful, a pile of kale drizzled with a spicy ginger dressing, a pile of fresh aji tuna poke that only lacked a few drops of sesame oil to make it perfect, a pile of room temperature cooked ancient grains, and an avocado half, sliced into a fan shape.  I loved the dish with its combination of dark green kale, fresh raw fish, avocado, and an abundance of cooked grains.  I felt as if the dish was designed with my carb and protein rich diet in mind.

After eating we drove to several antique shops and two more chair shops looking for chairs until 4:30 when we drove to Elaine and Billy’s house.

We rested until 6:15 and then drove with Mickie, Rebecca, and Elaine to Selda Mediterranean Kitchen and bar because it has a large outdoor patio and we had decided to eat outside as the weather was a balmy, windless 70 degrees.

As we walked to our table we noticed a large wooden platter filled with a mixed grill of three (Adana chicken, beef shish kebob, Urfa (ground beef) Kebob)  dishes, Bulgar rice and salad, which we immediately ordered, plus the lamb shish kebob special of the day, and the fish special of a whole grilled Branzino, two bean salads, and a platter of tzatziki.

I found out later that the restaurant has a well trained Turkish chef. I am a novice when it comes to Greek and Turkish food, but every meat dish was served with a refreshingly different salad and several were served on a large 15 inch round pita bread.  We were all impressed with the freshness of the salads and the meat dishes.  I don’t know the difference between a fancy kebob shop and a restaurant in Turkey, but we loved the freshness and variety of dishes. I think I have become an immediate fan of Turkish food. 

I ordered a bottle of Spanish Reserva Tempranillo, which the restaurant did not have.  Instead, the waitress brought a bottle of 2015 Fortelezza Del Rey Reserva from Catalunya that was 50% Tempranillo and 50% Carignan that was very smooth and food friendly.

I should have known we were in an authentic Turkish restaurant when we passed two middle aged men smoking from a hookah on the patio on our way to our table.  This level of authenticity was later confirmed when I saw that the restaurant has a hookah menu.

We ended the meal with a slice of chocolate mousse cake served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream dusted with ground pistachios.  A lovely concession to our Euro-centric taste buds.

What can I say; the food today was fantastic and I feel great at 3:50 a.m. as I finish this blog.

And tomorrow is Thanksgiving at Elaine and Billy’s house, so we are going to have another day of superlative dining.

Bon Appetit