13.2.2019

SpaceTime: Milan, Turku, 13:00 lunch
Atmosphere: Big, cheap looking dining space, few customers, Finnish pop music playing on radio
Food: Döner Kebab Roll, water
Price: 10€

Thoughts: Milan is a cookie-cutter Kebab joint, offering typical alternative fast food. I got the "Authentic Döner" kebab roll, which turned out to contain curry-flavored chicken instead of the usual grey meat strips.

The dish was edible, it was filling and it was not very memorable. I did not especially enjoy the flavors, although they were far from hideous. The roll dough was soft and not crispy or dry. In addition to chicken bits, the roll contains a bit of raw onion, tomato, some kind of mild sauce and lots of lettuce. Once I had eaten, a single chicken piece remained, with a good strip of chicken skin on it, flattening my experience a bit.

The price is not awfully high, but for this price range, there are more memorable places to visit. 

4.2.2019

SpaceTime: Tikitak, Turku, 12:30 lunch
Atmosphere: Restaurant is completely empty. Some weird undefined smell permeating the air. TV tuned to Yle. Round white tables with white rotating chairs. Not too bright.
Food: Roll kebab, water
Price: 8.90€

Thoughts: Tikitak is yet another Kebab restaurant, with the twist that they advertise being vegan-friendly.

I was the only patron for the entire duration of my meal. The kebab roll came with a knife embedded, a gesture I had not seen before, and thus could not help but to interpret as slightly menacing. 

The food was edible, but not especially inspiring. The roll contains grey meat peels, tomato sauce with a bit of chili, a few pieces of cucumber and tomato, and a whole lot of chopped kale.

The price was on the cheaper end of the lunch scale, but not that good against the quality of the food. The portion was of decent size, so I my stomach did not go hungry. Perhaps my spirit did, though.

23.1.2019

SpaceTime: Vänäk Persian restaurant, Puutori, Turku, 12:40 lunch
Atmosphere: Empty, big windows out to a street with mostly cars going by, comfy chairs, gas heater center of dining space, oriental sounding dance music from a stereo
Food: Mäksun Kebab (minced meat kebab, grilled chicken, rice, seared tomato)
Price: 9.90€

Thoughts: I'm not sure what the "Persian" kitchen is supposed to be like, but if this is a typical representation, it's definitely not my favorite one.

Upon entering the establishment, I was greeted with the two members of staff and an empty dining space. Looking through the lunch-offers, I chose the kebab with chicken option. I sat down, after which the staff kindly cranked up the stereo with oriental pop-music and informed me that salad and coffee is included in the lunch.

I helped myself to something from the thin salad offerings. Nothing special here. After a while, the food arrived. The plate, which you can see down below, did not especially caress my eyes. I dug in. The kebab tasted like mined meat, plenty of onion and light salt, very mild, very non-impressive. The chicken bits were very dry and tasted lemon-y. The rice and the colored rice stripes tasted like rice, with an aftertaste of burnt herbs. The seared tomato was a seared tomato. There was also a tiny pack of margarine on the plate, which I smeared on the kebab and the chicken in the hopes of gaining some kind of sauce.

The food was certainly in the edible category, but it was uninspired and bland to my taste, with a poor presentation, and thus not a pleasure on the senses. Unless I chose the wrong dish to eat somehow, I cannot recommend this place for anyone except an exotic music fan.