MARY FURR -- Dining Out

September spells the end of summer -- of barbecue and salads -- and

welcomes fried finger cheese and warm spanakopita -- the hearty food of

Tosh’s Mediterranean Cuisine on Beach Boulevard and Warner Avenue in

Huntington Beach.

Here, Greek and Turkish preparations are created by Esin Denktas, who

co-owns the eatery with her husband, Efrem.

You can create your own lunch or dinner feast from the extensive and

varied appetizers alone -- each healthy and nutritious with spinach,

carrots, grape leaves, cracked wheat, rice and ground beef. Our helpful

and informational server first brought a tabbouleh salad ($3.95) --

parsley, cucumbers, tomato and cracked bulgur wheat in olive oil and

lemon -- as well as a plate of hummus (creamy garbanzo and tahini) and

two hot-out-of-the-oven Turkish pita bread rolls, not the pocket kind but

a thicker crusty roll great for dipping or spreading with the other

appetizers.

Esin, a great cook, is always experimenting with combinations. A new

one is a spicy, sweet, creamy carrot mix so far without a name. Two

delicious appetizers that are a must are spanakopita ($5.95), which is a

spinach, feta cheese and egg mix baked in thin flaky phyllo dough and

served four to an order. The other is meat dolmates ($5.95), which are

grape leaves wrapped around a tasty mix of ground meat, rice and pine

nuts with two sauces. The blended flavors are some of the best in the

area.

One of the house specials is baked lamb shank ($12.95) served with

soup (Esin’s fine thick pureed lentil) and rice. It’s baked with

potatoes, tomatoes, carrots, peppers, onion and herbs and is slightly

spicy. The tender meat easily separates by fork from the big bone and has

that home-cooked taste. Esin says this comes from cooking in small

batches. The lamb dish is like eating at a home in Istanbul --

sophisticated spices in a very simple baked dish. Another is Izmir kofte

kabob ($6.95) -- ground beef mixed with green peppers and onions. The

plates are so generous with a big helpings of rice and garbanzo beans.

Finally, there’s a wonderfully different dessert from Istanbul called

kazandibi or “bottom burned rice flour pudding.” It’s a square serving

that’s like a soft, mildly sweet marshmallow with a baked cinnamon top.

Try this with a small glass of Turkish tea, a cup of intense sweet

Turkish coffee or sour cherry juice (from Turkey), light and sweet. Drop

a sugar cube in the very hot tea to dissolve, then slowly sip.

What a great way to end the exotic tastes of Turkish cuisine so

perfectly prepared by Esin Denktas. Tosh’s is like a crown jewel among

the restaurants that dot Beach Boulevard.

* MARY FURR is the Independent restaurant critic. If you have comments

or suggestions for her, call (562) 493-5062.

FYI

o7 Tosh’s Mediterranean Cuisinef7

WHERE: 16871 Beach Blvd., Huntington Beach

HOURS: Lunch: 11 a.m to 2:30 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and noon to

2:30 p.m. Saturday; Dinner: 5 to 10 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday; 5 to

11 p.m. Friday and Saturday; 3 to 10 p.m. Sunday. Closed Monday.

CALL: (714) 842-3315

FAX: (714) 842-3015

MISC.: Music and belly dancers 8 to 10 p.m. Friday. Guitar players 8

to 10 p.m. Saturday.