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photo credit: Carina Finn
Safir Bakery & Cafe
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Safir has a dizzying variety of baked goods despite the small size of the cafe. The baklava is very good at this popular Turkish bakery, especially the pistachio rolls and milky walnut squares, but the butter cookies and savory pastries are even better. I’m partial to the oreshki, a clamshell-shaped Russian cookie stuffed with a rich caramel filling, and the kandil simidi, a sesame-coated cookie that gets its unique flavor from mahlep, a seasoning made from ground cherry seeds. The potato boregi has an unexpected hit of spice, and makes for a filling breakfast or lunch before heading out for a day of fishing or golf nearby. You can also get Turkish-style coffee and tea here, as well as special occasion cakes.