(Saddleman, Franziska, Bilal and Suzan - in the Istanbul restaurant where they welcome comments, sort of)
I am open to advisement from Middle Eastern friends but I think eastern and western people go to restaurants with different objectives in mind, at least regarding the food.
In the West, a restaurant meal is a treat. To enjoy something that you would not normally eat at home, perhaps because it requires special ingredients or takes time to prepare.
In the (Middle) East people go to restaurants to see if it can possibly measure up to their own home cooking. Of course it can't. And today it didn't. So Suzan's Dad let it be known.
It was the rice in the Dolma. It wasn't the right sort. So he had a discussion with the waiter, and then with the chef. Perhaps the water that the rice was cooked in wasn't correct. So a bottle was brought out and the trace content list scrutinized. Ah! the calcium and salt may be a little high. But come to think of it, the meat was not perfect. Much downward kneeding of their own flanks by all concerned. This is where you need to take the meat from the sheep for good Dolma.
The chef may have been a little put out by the criticism but it was intended to be constructive. If he wants an easy life then he should have a sign in the front window saying "English Customers Only Please". But then his takings may go down a bit and he would not have access to such free expert advice.
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