Troy Mezze Lounge

My husband and I had dinner at Troy Mezze last night. We were told we needed reservations which we made.  When we walked in Sunday evening the place was deserted!  The server was obviously new and made several mistakes, none serious though.  Despite the fact that we were the only couple present the service was unbelievably slow.  They were out of my husand's favorite beer and no Spanokopita which was unexcuseable.  The food presentation was beautiful.  I had a mixed grill and my husband had steak kabobs.  The beef, unfortunately was very tough. But the most disconcerting thing about the restaurant was the presence of fruit flies.  I eventually called the manager over and he said the building was old, and that they had a constant problem with them and could never seem to eradicate them.  The flies, tiny though they were was enough to keep us from going back.

I came here for a quick lunch with an amazon local deal of $7 for $15 to spend on lunch. I got there a little after they opened and was their first and only customer for the time I was there. It wasn't a big deal and the server  wasn't watching over me in the corner or anything.
Since I had a coupon, I decided to treat myself and went for a 3-course lunch. I started with Troy salad which was a nice way to wake up my appetite. I mentally prepared myself for the fig paste in the salad to look a bit unappealing, but it actually was not bad at all. I barely noticed them. I have always enjoy dried fruits in my salad and the fig paste did not let me down. I imagine it would be a good way to make someone eat a bowl of spinach! For my main course, I was debating between the wrap and the clay pot. I went with the clay pot at the end since I have never had it before. They seasoned the dish really well. I especially enjoy all the squash that came with it. They did not skimp on the meat either! It was a bit more on the hearty and heavy side because of the cheese they add. It was good nonetheless. As for dessert I got baklava in hope that it would be served with strawberries! (I am such a sucker for strawberries... it's a bit ridiculous) unfortunately either because it wasn't strawberry season or that it would add too much to the cost of ingredients, mine was served with strawberry syrup (with real strawberry in it nonetheless!). They served it warm so you can really smell the cinnamon and it smelled amazing! In attempt to save my waistline, I only had a piece and boxed the rest home. I failed miserably and finished all 3 pieces rest of the afternoon...
I had a great meal and would definitely come back again for lunch and dinner.

I was really excited about trying Troy Mezze Lounge. The waiter was energetic, welcoming and for a moment I thought this is going to be a great place. Well, it was until our appetizer  arrived; really bland. It was supposed to be shrimp in honey and white wine sauce but could taste none of the flavors. I got the lamb Turkish pizza and I probably could have gotten a better pizza from a supermarket freezer section. It was the bread we got when we sat down but with regular red sauce, gobs of mozzarella cheese, a few slices of lamb and tomato. I ate half of it because I was hungry, but nothing about said this was a Turkish interpretation on pizza. My dining partner got the chicken clay pot which was was nice, it actually had flavor but once again, it had the mozzarella cheese on top.  When we arrived, the waiter made a big deal that this is the only authentic Turkish restaurant in Raleigh. What we got was a bland and uninspired meal.