SECOND AVENUE IN the East 40s is not someplace you’re likely to find me. So imagine my surprise when, on a recent evening that wasn’t marred by rain, a companion who rarely ventures north of Delancey and I were barely in a cab back Downtown before we started planning a return visit.
What was so alluring about the neighborhood that we wanted to speed back? It certainly wasn’t the charm of the locals decked out in NYU sweatpants and walking their tiny dogs. No, it was Ali Baba’s Terrace, the new offshoot of the beloved Turkish café that features, in addition to a dizzying menu, a stunning rooftop dining area. Most of my experience with the original Ali Baba’s has come in the form of lunch specials: a chicken kebab, some hummus and maybe a salad. It was solid, delicious food. Dining on the Terrace, though, adds an ambience that a tin takeout container just can’t provide.
We started our meal with a selection of cold appetizers, including the excellent hummus and baba ganoush.The real standouts, though, were the spinach tarator, a dip made of yogurt and sautéed spinach, and the eggplant with tomato sauce, a spicy, acidic take on a traditional eggplant dip. Hunks of warm pita bread studded with sesame seeds accompanied all of the dishes. Hot appetizers were tasty—notably the scallops wrapped in Turkish pastrami—but a bit ho-hum compared to the dips and salads.
This was not the case for the grilled meat entrees.We tried the steak with mushrooms and the lamb shish kabob, both of which came out sizzling, aromatic and tasty.There’s nothing conceptual about either dish—it’s not that kind of place—but both are served in huge portions with sides (potatoes and rice, respectively) that left us plenty satisfied. It’s all simple food but a few stories above the crowd; we didn’t need much more—though a refill on the spinach tarator wouldn’t have hurt. The thing about dining al fresco is that the time seems to move more slowly.
At the end of our meal, it was not only hard to believe we had polished off so many dishes (not to mention a bottle of cold, inexpensive white wine) but also that nearly two hours had passed.The personable servers, who let us know how things were done in Turkey but also admitted their own weakness for Americanized versions of classic dishes, moved leisurely. Our waiter asked if either of us knew much about Atlantic City. Coffee came eventually, and someone brought by an ashtray. We lingered for another half hour.
Between the sunset views, the wine and all of the olive oil, the allure of a relaxing, Mediterranean way of life was suddenly so apparent.Who wouldn’t want to live like this all the time? It might not change my opinion of the neighborhood, but a table at Ali Baba’s Terrace is my new favorite way to look down on the East 40s.
> Ali Baba’s Terrace
862 Second Ave., at E. 46th St., 212-888-8622
