Sofra Restaurant

Don’t be fooled by the modest exterior. This place is great! Drove by and almost did not book a table, but so glad we decided to give this place a try.
The food and service was great. An interesting and full menu, with selections for every pallete.
We will certainly go back and introduce friends to this little gem.

The first time we went to Sofra, we were blown away, and our second venture there blew us away even further! One of the best gems in town, it has friendly, knowledgeable and super accommodating staff, a wonderful owner/​chef who came and spoke to us both times, a great wine list, and food that we often dream about. The stuffed apricots, fresh-​made pita and hummus, gigantic prawns wowed us both times, and the platter of filet mignon, swordfish, chicken, and lamb was even better than we remembered. The bulghar pilaf, grilled vegetables, and salad added a wonderful balance to the platter of meat, and the baklava was perfection. We can’t wait to go back!

Found this place through Unilocal.
Absolutely fantastic choice! So glad I decided to try it based on the reviews.
The place is definitely busy so if you’re with a group be sure to call ahead and reserve a spot. I was travelling solo for business and was lucky to get the last seat at the bar. The service here is fantastic! Everyone was very friendly and helpful for choosing something off the menu — I always like to ask the servers what their favorite dishes are when I go somewhere new. Even the other patrons of the restaurant are really friendly.
I ended up going with the spicy beef kabob — I believe it was called ‘Adana Kabob’ but I could be wrong. It was a signature dish. Anyway, it was amazing. So delicious. Yes, spicy but not too bad. It came with grilled veggies and salad — I opted out of the bulgar wheat. You can tell everything on the plate was made fresh and in-​house. Seriously fantastic. I also tried Turkish coffee for the first time — I don’t know where this has been all my life!!!
I will definitely be going back any time I’m in Edmonton. Don’t miss out! Check this place out, you won’t be disappointed.

I’m sitting here now in the wine cellar portion. It’s beautiful. My server is lovely. I’ve been here for almost 2 hours with a group of 5. I am so hungry. We’ve had mezze coming out slowly. It’s delicious but all I can think of — when can I leave so I can order food somewhere that will come out in real time?

We’ve just returned from our Valentine’s Day dinner out, and this year’s pick was Sofra. I couldn’t have made a better choice!
I’d noticed it years ago, but when we were out, it always escaped my radar. Never again!
Allan G and I are huge fans of all types of Greek/​Middle Eastern food, so this was a treat. We’d gone to Istanbul a lot in the past, as it’s very close to our house, but lately, the quality of their meats had dropped off, so we decided to try Sofra instead. We have a new favorite restaurant!
Al had the Lamb Casserole, and I had the Pasa Kebab (pronounced Pasha). He said his got better toward the bottom, where all the juicy goodness and chunks of lamb were found (under a coating of what tasted like peppers and mushrooms). He was jealous of mine though, and wants to order it next. We both love our lamb.
The Pasa Kebab is an amazingly succulent hunk of meat, cooked to utter perfection, with a side of grilled vegetables, bulgur wheat pilaf, and a side salad. I was in heaven.
We weren’t originally going to order dessert (I’m not a huge baklava fan), but thought we’d take a look just in case, and having been watching our intake, we promised to split whatever we picked. He wasn’t choosy, just wanted to help me stay healthy.
The Fig and Date pudding was unusual… deep and fruity, with whipped cream to cut the richness, and a bit of tangy pomegranate sauce. Al isn’t a big fan of figs or dates, but exclaimed it a winner.
Our 2 entrees, dessert, and a half litre of a fantastic Malbec came in at just under $ 100 before tip. It was worth every penny!
Al already wants to return for our anniversary in July, so he can order the Pasa.

Absolutely refreshing after some poor experiences in Edmonton. A quaint comfortable room with informed professional wait staff that works together. The main attraction, the chef and his wonderful cuisine. Beautifully prepared Lamb loin with tender succulent prawns, seasoned Bulgar and expertly roast vegetables with a tasty cacik (I believe). The greens and spinach were of the freshest I’ve had in a while, expertly prepared and marvellously dressed. the handmade in shop baclava should be sampled and I would recommend the turkish coffee (no cream).
A truly remarkable repast.
Thank-​you

We had a very nice dinner here in the upstairs private room which was very nice and quiet. We started with the three dips with pita bread which was thinner than other pita bread that I’ve had. All of the dips were delicious and they brought us more bread when we asked.
I had the Donar Kebab which was spicy and had an excellent flavor. For dessert, we had the fig and date parfait which was also very tasty.
Service was great.

The best Food you can have in Edmonton! It is always fresh, with the best quality you can imagine, The restaurat is always full even on week days, so that explains a lot! The owner/​chef/​master is a very nice talented man whose focus is on the quality. I always enjoyed dining there when I was living in Edmonton, miss my regular dining in Sofra

Yuksil is a craftsman of Turkish cuisine! His staff is always delightful and very helpful with Menu selections. You can enjoy the new wine bar and the special menu in the wine cellar.
Make sure you take time to watch your meal being prepared by the master chef!

I’m pregnant and about to pop, so we’ve been eating out a lot and have recently had quite a lot of bad experiences. I had heard great things about Sofra in the past but have always forgotten about it. Tonight we were searching for a place close to home, and not too heavy and when this popped up on Urban Spoon, we decided to give it a try. My dinner companion is by far the pickiest so I was waiting for him to unleash his initial thoughts of disappointment when we walked in, but surprisingly all was good.
1. parking, no problem, we got parking right out front
2. It was clean, and there wasn’t heavy food smells in the air considering they had a grill which can sometimes get a bit smokey and then you smell like your dinner after you leave for hours afterward
3. Got greeted and seated right away by friendly staff
4. The menu, not too big or confusing. We decided on the Sultans Sofranis for two
5. Food came out in a timely manner
6. Waitress was friendly and genuine.
The food:
First course: Grape Leaves — delicious, can’t really go wrong here.
Second: Pita and hummus. It was different that what I’ve had before, the pita were thinner and lighter and sprinkled with toasted sesame seeds, the hummus was perfectly balanced and had a bit of kick and great consistency to go with the lighter pitas.
Main: The main feast: lambchops, meatballs, swordfish, and chicken kababs, all cooked perfectly, not overdone and moist with the perfect amount of char, great flavour. Also came with the bulgar wheat and salad — also both very good.
dessert: We opted not to get the baklava (i know, i know) and got strawberry ice cream instead. Even the strawberry ice cream was a nice surprise, rich, creamy and with real chunks of strawberries! I’m sure it was just out of a box, but I wondered if it was made in house.
Overall, it was a simply a great experience amongst a slew of recent disappointments, so we were both just so pleased to have checked it out and will be back again!

The reviews for Sofra don’t lie! When you walk in, the décor is welcoming and themed very tastefully, even equipped with a large trojan horse. Perhaps its casual fine dining. Its classy but not stuffy.
There are two menus — meze/​tapas downstairs and fine dining upstairs. The waitress was super friendly and let us review both menus before we decided where to sit. We opted for the dining room although I encourage anyone to try the meze’s because their appetizers are amazing!
The chef prepared, seasoned, and grilled all our food to perfection. Everything is so fresh. I have never been to Turkey so I can’t speak for authenticity, but they chefs here take their food seriously! It’s like, Food Network worthy!
So far, I’ve been so lucky to have tried the stuffed apricots, stuffed grape leaves, the meat platter, the veggie plate, hummus and baklava. Everything was shockingly delicious. The baklava is homemade and fresh. I don’t even like baklava but this baklava is amazing!

The Sofra Sofrasi was amazing! It’s a great sharing size for 2 – 3 people and everything was super delicious but I loved the grape leaves and the lamb!
The staff were absolutely fantastic! The amazing chef came up to greet our party in the private seating area and even took us on a mini tour of the cellar in the basement!
My friends and I had such a great time last night and cannot say enough good stuff about this place! I highly recommend it and will definitely be back soon!

I was visiting Edmonton from Miami and a friend suggested we go to Sofra. Best decision ever! Our waiter, Winston was amazing. He went above and beyond for us. The food was amazing. The meat was tender. The baklava was a bit too soggy for my taste but over all great food. He also made great recommendations as to where we should go for dancing.

Amazing baklava!!! I loved the food it was delicious. They don’t allow kids under 11 which makes it hard for me to go there as often, but other then that I loved it

My family had a great experience here. We called only a couple of hours ahead of our arrival to make a reservation.
The staff were kind and we did not see any of the snobbishness other reviews complained about.
We ordered the Sultan’s Sofrasi with appetizers and desserts included, as well as a few drinks. The meal meal took a few hours, but they had appetizers right away and we felt the meal arrived in a timely manner for the quality of the food and with lively dinner conversation.
The lamb and swordfish were definitely our favorite items. Everything was moist and flavorful. They give you large portions in the Sultan’s plate, you could feed 3 people instead of 2.

Turkish cuisine might not be on the top of your list when it comes to deciding where to eat on a night out. It definitely wasn’t on mine but a dinner at The Cellar at Sofra last week quickly changed that. A hidden gem, the three month old extension of Sofra in downtown’s core is serving up authentic and traditional mezze (or meze), similar to the Spanish concept of tapas. As a big fan of tasting plates and small bites, this was right up my alley and thanks to my friend Lesley’s suggestion, a group of us made a visit.
Sofra isn’t new to Edmonton but their separate mezze menu and extensive selection of wines for their underground space is. Two distinct seating areas define The Cellar: tables amongst dimly lit mosaic lamps, creating an intimate and romantic dining experience; and the open, brightly lit area featuring none other than a set of ‘sofra’, low tables or trays for dining seated on the floor, with colourful seating cushions. Can you guess where we sat?
Crunchy coated peanuts started off the evening, an addictive snack that left all of us mindlessly snacking.
The Meze Tabagi: an assorted mere platter with yaprak karma, stuffed Turkish apricots, fried helm cheese, grilled black tiger prawns, and Bosnian sausage. The stuffed Turkish apricots were a favourite and I loved the smokiness of the prawns. An ideal plate for 2 — 4 diners, our group of 8 were left wanting more bites!
Lesley was our expert and guide for the night on Turkish cuisine seeing that she’s been to Istanbul. We were able to order Lahmacun, a dish that wasn’t on The Cellar at Sofra’s menu but was available upstairs in the regular dining room. Chef and owner Yuksel Gultekin and the kitchen were so accommodating and made the dish for us. Absolutely loved the in-​house flatbread and the spiced ground meat was delicious!
The Incik Kuzu, a lamb loin served on a bed of sautéed vegetables, in-​house tomato basil sauce was cooked medium rare as per requested, and was very nicely done. I was expecting the spices to pack a punch, like a Moroccan lamb roast, and stronger notes of cumin but the dish didn’t deliver that. Perhaps it wasn’t meant to (I’m new to Turkish cuisine!) but we cleaned it up nevertheless.
My absolute favourite main dish of the night was the grilled beef meatballs served on a dollop of yogurt and topped with sautéed tomatoes, the Parmak Kofte. There’s something about meatballs that’s universal throughout all cuisines, a comforting dish and one that can please any palate. An absolute must order, the kofte were moist and flavourful! Mmm, I want more.
The Fume Ordek Beyti, a smoked duck breast, was cleverly plated to make a none other than, a flying bird. Paired with fresh herbs and rolled in phyllo pastry, the packages were lightly toasted in the pan and brushed with a cayenne butter mixture and cut into pieces to share. The phyllo pastry consistency was a little different from your typical phyllo dough and the bite really brought out textures that reminded me of green onion cakes, not a bad thing.
My least favourite dish was the halibut, wrapped in beef pastrami and baked with an accompanying tomato, pepper, and mushroom sauce. The Tranca Pastirimi fell flat for me compared to all the other dishes although I appreciate that there was a seafood option in the menu.
Desserts rounded out our meal, the baklava, a sweet layered pastry filled with walnuts, pistachios, and honey, were a hit for all and perfect for a sweet tooth. I absolutely loved my parfait of vanilla ice cream and caramelized figs, I could have eaten that all night!
Overall, I’m so happy to have found another small plate dining option in the downtown core! Even better, on Tuesdays any bottle of wine under $ 60 is half off, making that night’s meal even more delightful. Good company, good food, and wine. I don’t think I can ask for more. The Cellar at Sofra’s strong points are I think what Turkish food would be known for, like the grilled meats, kofte, and pitas. I’m excited to come back to try the Kabak Dolma, zucchini halves filled with your choice of toppings and the Helim Peynir, thinly sliced grilled eggplant wrapped around some of that beautiful helm cheese.
Not only do I have to make another trip to The Cellar but the upstairs has a completely different menu and more catered to individual plates. So excited to have tried Sofra! Service was amazing and accommodating to all our needs. Absolutely loved the experience and can’t wait to be back.

The down stairs was intimate and clean and friendly. The lamb was exquisite salad was awesome and the cheese platter was amazing these folks deserve to be busy.
Get there as soon as possible you will love it!

Sofra is another restaurant that has been on my hit list for quick some time now. It looks quite unassuming from the outside but once you step inside, you are greeted to an inviting, cozy and warm Turkish restaurant. Yes, you read right, this place specializes in Turkish food. Not something you see much of in this town.
We dropped by on an early Saturday evening, a spur of a moment kind of decision. With no reservations (I’d recommend it if you want a prime time slot), the staff informed us we could have a table as long as we were out of there by 7:45pm. That gave us more than enough time (over 2 hours) for our meal so we took it.
Sultan’s sofrasi ($ 80.00) — this is Sofra’s meal for two to share: two appetizers (yaprak sarma and humus), a mixed grilled meat sampler (chicken kebab, swordfish, beef meatballs and rack of lamb) and baklava for dessert. The best way to sample what Sofra has to offer.
— Yaprak sarma — grape-​vine leaves stuffed with rice, raisins and pine nuts. These were a great way to start off our meal. Similar to Greek dolmas, the yaprak sarma were light, flavourful and had an umami balance of sweet and sour flavours.
— Humus –the humus came with a generous amount of fresh baked pita. The pita was lightly brushed with oil and nicely seasoned with sesame seeds. Man, if I could make pita like this at home, I’d be one happy camper. The humus was fresh but taste wise, it was pretty standard. It could have used something else (squeeze of lemon or garlic perhaps?).
— Grilled meat sampler — the grilled meat platter came with two pieces each of chicken kebab, swordfish, beef meatballs and rack of lamb. It also came with a couple pieces of grilled vegetables (zuchinni, tomatoes and green pepper). It would have been nice to have more veggies.
The other dish consisted of bulgur pilaf and a mixed green salad. I don’t eat much bulgur pilaf but this was perfect with all of the meats we had. The swordfish and lamb were delicccious (the lamb was perfectly cooked medium rare). The chicken was moist and flavourful. The salad was standard, basic greens.
— Baklava — everyone loves baklava and these ones were made just right, stuffed with walnuts, pistachio and drizzled with honey syrup. Not too sweet, these were the perfect way to end our meal. Stuffed and happy.
I’m glad I was finally able to try out Sofra’s. While it’s not the cheapest place, you pay for quality. It definitely is a great place to celebrate a special occasion with friends, family or that special someone. They recently renovated their bottom floor, aptly named The Cellar at Sofra, which is spacious and looks great. They even have a separate menu, which you can find on their Facebook page (see link below) by clicking on «Menu». Next time I will have to try that out or their pideler (traditional baked pizzas)! Look for the «evil eye» carved into the tables for added amusement.

Both times that I’ve enjoyed this restaurant, it’s been from the same private room upstairs, perfect for parties of 6. Dinner started with appetizers of all sorts, including the most delectable pita I have ever tasted (soft, warm and fresh) with delicious red pepper dip, hummus and a third that I don’t recall.
We ordered the Sultan’s feast or bazaar or something… and there was so much food but my favorite were the prawns… the size of my hand. Dessert was baklava. All amazing, delicious, just perfect.
The wine selection was impressive for both reds and whites and some of our party went downstairs after dinner to check out a new wine room in the basement that the owner invited us to check out personally.
Service was awesome and our server had a great personality, constantly making us laugh with unexpected quips.
Sofra is an excellent choice when you don’t want to compromise on quality of food, selection, taste or service. It was a packed house when we went on a Friday night and I recommend making reservations in advance if you want to get in.

A group of 10 of us went there for dinner last week. As usual it was awesome.
The trio of dips is always a great choice for sharing. The pita is made fresh and is so good. The stuffed apricots are unreal, I have tried to make them at home and there is something so good about the ones here. The Kebabs are great (lots of food) so just pick the meat you like and you wont be disappointed. I am not a lamb lover but apparently the lamb here is awesome. The Baklava is perfect.
Our server was awesome! We took our time and enjoyed our meal and did not feel rushed at all.
Wine options were great. After our dinner the owner took us down stairs to show us what the new wine room will look like. It opens up very soon and we can’t wait to try out the new addition.
If you are thinking about eating here you need a reservation regardless of your party size.