Wild Fig

At Wild Fig, a Turkish restaurant in Glen Cove, the inviting dining room is in a sparkling mosaic of white, yellow and blue. Behind a counter is a brick oven that sends forth warm pita breads and delicious Turkish-style pides.

Try the spinach pide, a giant, savory Danish-type pastry stuffed with bright leafy greens and mild kashar cheese. Or share the pizza-like lahmajun, its flat, crisp crust topped with a lively mixture of minced beef, tomatoes, parsley and onions.

If the tomatoes are deep red and ripe, the house salad will be a treat. Sometmes, but not always, this is the case. Try the mezze platter, an assortment of dips and salads. Taramasalata, red caviar dip, is briny and light. You'll love the babaghanoush, a lively roasted eggplant salad, as well as the garlicky hummus (chickpea dip) and the subtly spicy potato salad in a lemon and olive oil dressing. Both the (vegetarian) lentil and the chicken soups soothe and invigorate.

A letdown, however, is the adana (ground beef) kebab, which should be spicy but isn't. Underseasnong can also undermine the imam bayaldi, baked baby eggplant stuffed with vegetables. But the karniyarik (baby eggplant boats filled with an assertively spiced minced beef and vegetable mixture) is delightful. So is the sliced skirt steak and the filet mignon, when done to order (not always the case). Grilled salmon, another simple preparation, can also be overcooked.

Desserts are sweet and satisfying: kadaiyif, a nest of shredded phyllo; baklava, flaky and nutty; and creamy rice pudding. Coffee is Turkish or American. --Joan Reminick