Tulip Cafe has had a steady presence at area farmer’s markets and with its small storefront on the Northwest side of Columbus, but they’ve just opened a brand new expansion that offers more seating and a larger menu of sweets, drinks, and breakfast or lunch items!
They built out the cafe into the storefront next to them, so now they have a full dining room that easily seats 30-40 people.
The new counters display all the baked goods and a little chocolate fountain. (More on that later.)
The cases are full of all sorts of Turkish goodies, all made from scratch in-house.
If you’re familiar with Tulip Cafe from local farmers markets (we know them from the Worthington Farmers Market), you’ll recognize some of their standards on the shelves.
For every kid who read Chronicles of Narnia growing up, you can finally taste real Turkish delight!
I’m partial to their Nutella cookies, personally.
It’s worth noting that if you want to try the viral Dubai chocolate bar, you’ll find it at Tulip Cafe!
Of course, I’m immediately drawn to their expanded menu that includes Turkish breakfast dishes and coffee! The new breakfast offerings are available until noon each day.
First things first: coffee. You can order up a Turkish coffee, which is served with a small glass of water and a bite of Turkish delight. Turkish coffee is very finely ground and brewed right in the cup, so you drink most of it down while leaving the grounds at the bottom.
No meal is complete without tea, which is served with a few of the breakfast dishes.
First off on the breakfast menu is the simit plate, which features sesame-crusted simit that’s filled with small pieces of soft cheese and served with a platter of brined cheese, tomatoes, olives, hard-boiled eggs, and peppers. Similar to this is the Turkish bagel, which is covered in sesame seeds and served with the same sides. (The photos above and below combine both of those plates.)
The breads both have a wonderful crust to them, sturdy while still easily pulling apart with a butter knife. The owners recommended cutting and opening pieces of the breads and filling them with the cheese, olives, or vegetables.
Both plates also come with servings of soft, white cheese drenched in honey. Save bites of the Turkish bagel to dip in it!
The expanded cafe also allows for a full Italian-style espresso menu, with a handful of specialty drinks. I can vouch for the brown sugar latte. It’s lovely!
Be sure to save bites of your bread for the menemen, a classic Turkish breakfast of eggs scrambled with tomatoes, peppers, and onions, served with a side of bread and tea. It’s delightfully rich, and probably the first thing I’ll get on our next visit!
Speaking of rich, the mihlama combines gooey cheese with corn flour and olive oil, then cooked up in the pan until the edges are brown. It’s definitely one to share!
But if you’re really into the sweets, be sure to visit their new chocolate fountain! There’s a literal fountain in one corner of the counter that pours warm chocolate, and it’s used as the base for build-your-own desserts.
A small menu details the options. First you choose your base, from slices of cake to tart shells to cream puffs – or try the recommended Turkish ice cream, a thick and lightly sweet confection made from goat’s milk. They’ll pour the chocolate over it, and then you choose the toppings.
There are a variety of nuts, fruits, drizzles, and other additions.
And very soon you’ll have your own custom dessert!
Congrats to owner Hatice, her daughter Eslem, and their whole team on the newly upgraded cafe! We’ll surely be back for coffee, pastries, breakfast, and dessert.
Tulip Cafe is open Sunday, Tuesday-Thursday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Friday-Saturday from 9 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Tulip Cafe
2926 Hayden Run Plaza
Columbus, OH 43235
(614) 389-6261
Web: tulipcafecatering.com
FB: Tulip Cafe
IG: @tulipcafedublin
