By Philippa Kirby and Philip Conklin

As its name suggests, East West Coffee Wine serves food and beverages rooted in the ‘east’ (in this case, Turkey and the middle east) and the ‘west’ (Europe and the Americas) with Turkish cuisine at the heart of the experience. This family owned and operated restaurant offers an inviting menu with fresh flavors, farm to table food quality, and a welcoming environment with a kind and attentive service staff.

Located on Highland at Wilson in Clarendon (with a sibling cafe in Tyson’s Corner), East West is both a hybrid fast casual (order at the counter) and a “be seated” (and wait staff will take your order) venue. The cafe features a coffee/espresso bar, a small but impressive pastry case, a wine bar and an expansive food menu with something for everyone to enjoy. When eating in (and socializing, working or studying), you can enjoy either the spacious sunny dining room with a relaxed atmosphere, or the very comfortable outdoor patio set apart from street noise.

On a bright and sunny Sunday morning, we relaxed outside under umbrellas on the patio. The all-day menu features pages and pages of beautifully photographed menu items evoking a culinary travelogue. We had fun poring over and discussing the array of options. A centerpiece of the menu is a Turkish breakfast featuring a literal buffet brought to your table and demands a committed team of hungry diners to finish. Though tempted, we passed on the Turkish breakfast and ordered instead a falafel salad, an adona (a ground lamb kebab sandwich), a vegetable omelet, and French toast, plus an order of spiced French fries for the table. We also ordered individual glasses of delicious Turkish tea served in simple, elegant glasses. 

The food arrived quickly, simultaneously, and freshly made. The falafel was tender and crisp and was served on a bed of fresh, nicely dressed greens and veggies. The adona featured well-seasoned ground lamb with a nice char and a moist interior, while the omelet (which looked more like a frittata than a typical American omelet) was veggie rich and tasty. Finally, the French toast was just like homemade—in the best way—with a light, crispy exterior and soft, custardy interior.

And, of course, we had to order a selection of baklava to finish. The small, rectangular baklava familiar to most Americans was top-notch, but we also had a delicious Turkish baklava with ice cream sandwiched in the middle (one member of our party found this to be nothing short of amazing).

Our order explored some of both the east and the west sides of the menu, but we barely scratched the surface of the menu’s broad array of options (such as: acuka, gambos al ajillos, chicken tenders, nachos, gyros and homemade spaghetti)* representing many different cultural traditions and enough choices to satisfy most every dietary requirement and preference. We thoroughly enjoy the experience and our meal at East West and had the impression that other diners (a diverse mix of families, couples, and seniors) were just as happy dining amidst the warm, welcoming hospitality of East West Coffee Wine.

East West Coffee Wine (3101 Wilson Blvd.): Hours of operation are 8:00 a.m.–8:00 p.m. daily. Phone number is 571–800–3905. Visit the website: www.ewcafe.com for more information.