The ice cream flips, twists, and floats just out of reach, attached to one end of a long silver ice cream scooping stick controlled by a professional trickster on the other side of the counter. Just as you think you have a firm grip on the cone in your hand, it's out of reach again. And you realize, a split second too late, that you were holding a decoy cone all along.
The “ice cream show” at Galata, Long Beach’s newest Turkish ice cream shop, is beloved by kids, but it’s just as fun and extravagant for adults. Customers have been flocking from several counties to try them since Galata debuted earlier this summer.
The reason this trick is possible is due to the nature of dondurma, a centuries-old style of Turkish ice cream that uses salep (ground orchid roots) and mastic (plant resin) to create a chewy texture that also melts more slowly than most other ice creams.
Authentic dondurma is a rarity in Southern California. In Los Angeles, you can find flavors and even textures similar to Persian ice cream stalwarts like Mashti Malone's and Saffron and Rose, but dondurma traditionally incorporates more salep and mastic, resulting in an ice cream with a spectacular, cheese-like texture that holds together.
“Persians make it a little sweeter and put saffron in it, and Arabs put cardamom in it, which is a little spicy,” said Istanbul-born Akin Gulec, who runs Galata.[Dondurma is] “It's more like European ice cream, but with less sugar. You can't compare it to American ice cream, because here the ice creams have more sugar and are colder, so you might not feel it in your mouth.”
Gulec said she has found Turkish baklava shops and even Turkish delight shops and Turkish restaurants since moving to California, but she hasn't been able to find another Turkish ice cream shop anywhere in the region.
Gulec said the team didn't expect such enthusiasm, but it was a pleasant surprise. Nearly 1,000 customers have come through the front door, some of them local, but many of them who have chosen Galata as a destination. Customers tell the staff they have traveled from Santa Ana, Los Angeles and farther afield to try the product.
That's precisely why the owners of Galata decided to open in Long Beach.
Erkan Gozal pranks a customer by serving him some extra dondurma during one of his “ice cream shows.”
(Stephanie Breijo/Los Angeles Times)
Mike Schochet and Eyüp Tekinbaş own the nearby Galata Halal Restaurant and Grill, which opened last year, as well as an adjacent Turkish decor store, Istanbul Home.
Tekinbaş dreamed of opening a business in the U.S. after having launched multiple ventures in Dubai, Qatar and Istanbul, and his friend and real estate developer Schochet wanted to help bring the unique Turkish specialty to the United States.
They transformed a former Japanese restaurant location into a striking corner shop, its exterior painted light pink. Inside, the pistachio-colored back wall is the same color as the most popular of their more than two dozen flavors imported from Turkey. The nut, sometimes called “green gold,” splashes across the pistachio-flavored dondurma through white ribbons of milky dondurma. It’s earthy and a far cry from the neon-tinged, artificially flavored pistachio ice creams more commonly found.
A bright blue, coconut-flavored gum is a favorite among kids and often featured at the “ice cream show.” Other options include kiwi, chestnut, chocolate, vanilla, and coffee. Dairy-free flavors, such as blackberry or strawberry, are made simply with fruit puree, salep, and sugar.
“Also, we don’t serve any toppings,” Gulec said. “We don’t have any toppings — sprinkles, M&Ms, chocolate — because we’re confident in the flavor of our ice cream.”
The dairy blend of cow and goat milk for Galata ice cream comes from Kahramanmaraş, a province famous for its agriculture and especially for its ice cream.
Erkan Gozal is also from the region. The shop’s master ice cream maker has years of experience working with ice cream in Turkey, Jordan, China and elsewhere; he performs quality control tests, trains the staff and is often the trickster who puts the ice cream out of your reach.
The Subzwari family witnessed the spectacle after driving from Irvine to try it. They had already enjoyed dondurma in Istanbul four or five times.
“There are a few Persian ice cream shops in Los Angeles, but the Turkish one is really known for that springy taste of ice cream,” said Zeeshan Subzwari, who brought his three children. “It’s just all the flavor [show] “It is a very fun experience with children, which is worth it. It is a lot of fun and the children look forward to it.”
According to all four family members, Galata ice cream tastes similar, if not identical, to varieties they have tried in Turkey.
Imported Turkish baklava, Turkish delight and other sweets can be ordered by the piece near the cash register.
(Stephanie Breijo/Los Angeles Times)
Customers don’t just come here for the dondurma. Rows of baklava and other imported delicacies line the glass display cases by the front door. Logs of mango Turkish delight, trays of baklava in every imaginable variety, rows of tiny şekerpare (or semolina cookies soaked in syrup) and thick chocolate and milk buns covered in rose petals can all be ordered by the piece, all enjoyed at small tables with cups of Turkish coffee and tea.
These Turkish delights are sometimes paired with desserts, as in the case of the triangular wedge of pistachio baklava that can be sandwiched with a thick layer of vanilla dondurma. The bombastic chef Salt Bae popularized this dessert, sometimes topping his baklava with edible gold leaf; at Galata it is served with less flourish but still receives positive comments from diners.
Behind the counter you can buy shelves with imported Turkish teas (apple flavour, black tea, ginger tea) and Turkish coffee.
The team hopes to expand the Galata ice cream brand into San Diego, Newport Beach and Los Angeles. Schochet is looking for locations to soon bring a flavor (and some cone-swapping tricks) to cities across Southern California. For now, Galata is open in Long Beach at 5201 E. 2nd St. from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday, and 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.
