On a mobile device? Try our mobile site, optimized for faster browsing.
Categories: Restaurants, Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt [Edit]
472 Commonwealth AveKenmore (Green)
I love Ankara. It has the best smoothies/fro-yo in Boston. Great selection of flavours too.
The sandwiches are OK (bread and cheese are so bad in Boston, it's impossible for a sandwich to be good) but the pizza's really good!
I love the people here too. :-)
Terrible.
First of all, who has ever heard of a 5$ frozen yoghurt. It's gross, too. Choose between 30 flavours, all of which taste crappy.
Second, the pizza slice was cold and she didn't even bother to reheat it. Why bother at 2.50$?
Never to return.
A favorite of Meredith back in the day, and evidently nothing has changed in the past decade - lucky for us!
The wrap with eggplant, sundried tomatoes, peppers and cheese = yum yum, yum yum, YUM!
Perfect for reaching food coma nirvana :)
I haven't been to Boston in about three years. I still crave Ankara's frozen yogurt like a vampire craves blood. You know, if blood was a vanilla- or chocolate-based yogurt with virtually any combination of fruits and dessert you can think of, hand-cranked while you wait. It was such a convenient location to my house at the time that I was there virtually every weekend, winter, spring, summer, or fall. (Deliciousness is timeless and seasonless.) I have dragged housemates, friends, relatives, and one Jimmy Buffet enthusiast stranger there, and they all gave it a thumbs up. Ankara has sandwiches, too, but I've honestly never wanted or needed to make it that far. Maybe someday. After I've stocked up on yogurt.
Fresh fresh fresh home-made frozen yogurt! I've moved out of boston for 2+ years now and still salivate at the thought of going to Ankara's!
And I do go back to visit every now and then! YUM!
The freshness keeps me coming back, the taste, and the fact that I'm not buying into some fast-food chain.
The things that make me want to reconsider this venture are the moodiness/sourness, depending on how the people feel that day. =/
My faves: maple walnut, black raspberry. They also have a fantastic pistachio.
Crap cafe with a wonderful selection of frozen yogurt.
Takes hella-long to deliver.
Would stray in a heartbeat 'cept that they are the only place nearby of which I know that carries non-dairy froyo.
Hella pricey froyo too.
Ankaras is a great family owned place. They've got great frozen yogurt and I love the triple deckers ...
It's a family-owned place. The two women I have met who work there are the sweetest.
Good fro-yo!!! However the panini i got there wasn't very satisfying...I made a custom order though, and obviously made a bad choice. I'd try a pre-made one, I just watch out for red peppers because they don't agree with me, and I feel like that was difficult with the sandwich menu.
my friend loves this place, but she is always so attached to firsts.
i go there for the froyo - chocolate with andy's mints. they are really old school and peel the candy's by individual pieces. each time i've gone, it's usually the same woman or two. very nice. don't get the brownie add-on, they only put one piece into the blending machine so it's not worth it.
I really want to like Ankara. The people are adorable - sure, the old man gets grumpy when they're busy, but give them a break, it's a tiny place run by a few people, and some customers are downright rude - but the food is just OK.
However, there are a few things that keep me coming back to Ankara:
-One of the best smoothies in Boston
-Yummy fro-yo. I've never had anything quite like it at other cafe-like place (Angora, etc).
-Open late.
Just don't order in (they take HOURS to come), expect to wait a little while, and don't think that they'll fuss over you (this is not the place to go for great customer service). I also wouldn't recommend any of the food - the pizza is heavy and greasy, the sandwiches are blah (but I'm spoiled because I lived on French sandwiches for ages) and the wraps are very bland.
The salads from Ankara are better than the ones from Angora (I know, two different beasts with very similar names). The chicken at Ankara is tender and juicy vs the dried out raisinesque chicken from Angora. I used to eat lunch from here everyday and sampled a little bit of everything (thank you, lunch stipend!). The panini are good in the mouth, but rough on the waistline. The pizza is bleck. The yogurt is delish. But can you really mess up yogurt?
Ankara could seriously use a remodel and some fancier equipment. It looks like they went to Bed, Bath, and Beyond to get all their fixtures and cooking tools.
Relatively inexpensive, large portions (but not as big as Angora), and friendly staff.
What's worse--bad food or bad customer service?
Well, here you get BOTH!
Scenario:
Late night after a long day of work, I wanted to just sit somewhere and grab some ice cream. Despite living right across the street, I had never been to Ankara before. Its flashing "Ankara" sign wasn't too flattering, and walking down the stairs felt like going into some God-forbidden dungeon. When I walked it, I was surprised to find about 6 or so people in the small shop, ordering frozen yogurts, which Ankara proudly boasts. I looked to my right and saw a huge list of all the different kinds of flavors I could get... pistachio, honey, almond... yum! So after a minute, I was thinking about the melon and pistachio, but the old man behind the counter was so obnoxiously rude. I asked him which flavor was the most popular, and he barked, "WHATTT?? GET OUT OF HERE IF YOU DON'T WANT ANYTHING!" with the thickest Turkish accent. He was so rude that a woman next to be defended me then walked out of the store without ordering.
Despite being furious at the old man, I still ordered and even put a dollar into the tip jar. He seemed to be so busy working by himself, that I felt sorry for him... until I got my "melon" and "pistachio" frozen yogurt. As soon as I bit in, I spat it back out. The orange-ish melon was not in fact melon but some sort of liquorish-tasting CRAP and when I looked in the styrofoam cup, there was a piece of short, curly black hair...
So needless to say, if I'm craving ice cream, JP Licks isn't too far down the street on Newbury, or the 7-Eleven a block down from Ankara has good coffee-flavored Haagen Dazs.
Two syllables: FRO YO
every so often my college floormates and I would get cravings for Ankara's. We'd knock on each other's doors and with michievous looks on our faces, utter those three tempting words: "wanna get ankara's?" Usually the temptation would be too hard to resist and we'd soon make the late night call placing our orders with unhealthy toppings. And when http://campusfood.com came around it couldn't have been easier to satisfy the late night sweet tooth. One of my favorite combinations was chocolate froyo base with strawberry and oreo toppings Don't knock it till you've tried it.
A few words of advice (assuming things haven't changed in the last few years). They take the last delivery order around 11:30, and they take FOREVER to deliver...sometimes over an hour. Is it worth it? We seemed to think so.
Only get frozen yogurt. Don't get actual food. Never get delivery. Well, delivery frozen yogurt is not a terrible idea, if you're sitting around and you're like, "Hmmm, I think I will crave some Oreo frozen yogurt in like two hours, I'd better call Ankara's right now."
But the frozen yogurt is fantastic. I don't know if it's by design or by accident, but they mix it perfectly, so whatever mix-ins you get are spread throughout the yogurt in beautiful ribbons--incorporated but not totally homogeneous.
You could spend a lifetime trying to figure out the best combination of mix-ins, but it's banana cheesecake.
This place is part of why I miss Boston! I used to order (or go pick up in nice weather) frozen yogurt up to a couple times a week. Delicious! Their wraps are not bad but the fro-yo wins the prize.
A couple faves:
mint-chocolate (andes) and kit kat in a chocolate base
and
kit kat and milky way in a chocolate base
and
strawberry and york peppermint patty in a chocolate base (of course)
When I visited my older sister in Boston the first thing she did was take us on a walk about four doors down to Ankara's. It was one of those hot, humid summer days that make you want to immerse yourself in a tub of ice water with a tall glass of lemonade in one hand and a fan in the other. I wanted ice cream. My older sister started spouting accolades about Ankara's frozen yogurt. I was skeptical.
Ankara's may not be aesthetically pleasing, but it's more of the worn, comfortable feeling than a dingy one. (Although the lady behind the counter staring at you can be a little distracting.) I was surprised at the number of flavors and decided that if this frozen yogurt was as good as my sister made it sound it might be worth going to college in the Boston area just to try them all out. I ordered and watched, fascinated, as she threw the ingredients in and my frozen yogurt appeared.
It was awesome.
I also have a penchant for their calzones, which are more filling and awesome than I thought they would be, but are probably murder on my arteries. I get pepperoni and broccoli. The prices aren't bad, but the service can be very, very slow. I could have taken a nap in the time it took for the calzone to cook, but it definitely tasted like it had just come out of the oven so it was worth it.
Definitely a place I'd come back to.
So frustrating!!! My co-worker and I ordered from here last night, we ordered salads and frozen yogurt at 10p. At 11p no food, 11:15p still no food had showed up, at 11:30 finally the food showed up. I handed the delivery guy the money, and he started to walk away. Excuse me sir were is my change.. no I did not plan on giving you an eight dollar tip after waiting an hour and a half. Instead of handing me my change and allowing me to give him a tip after calling him on trying to walk off with my change he says rudely " how much do you want back?" RUDE!!
I get back upstairs and find I'm missing part of my order I call the place back and instead of sending it out to me the woman says oh we'll have to give you a credit. Guess what You Guys Suck!!!
The food was good, but I will not be ordering from you again. Get a new delivery guy.
Probably the most bland boring sandwich I had in Boston- ordered their tomato pesto mozzarella sandwich...well first after trying to order another sandwich that was on the menu that they no longer made... The bread wasn't great and it was over priced for what it was. Also this was during my lunch break and it wasn't particularly fast. The guy was nice enough but the food was pretty lackluster. Guess I shoulda had the fro yo but sadly at the time I wasn't a yelper.
Is great after a Red Sox Game! When you need some good food to sober up or some dessert!
I had the eggplant sandwich which was delicious.
Ankara's frozen yogurt is blended in this special machine and they have a long list of food to put in the yogurt. I had a key lime pie with extra graham cracker swirled into my frozen yogurt.
My friend had a lamb wrap and cookies and cream yogurt.
Their food is made with care and they have great baklava.
This place is great for late night, lunch, or for some dessert! If you are leaving a Red Sox game it is about an eight minute walk from fenway down comm ave.
I would give this place five stars if it had beer & wine.
The people who work here can kinda be rude, but the ice cream is worth it. They have countless yummy treats you can swirl in.
When I lived in Boston I used to get carrot cake and cookie dough swirled together....sounds nasty, but it's incredible!! Yummm....I wish they had places like this where I live now! After having this ice cream, I don't understand how people can like places like cold stone and marble slab....yuck.
Not that great of a place to sit and eat there. During warm weather though, they put tables outside which can be nice for people watching.
I am going off by memory here - as with all my other Boston reviews.
I remember distinctly my college friends rave about Ankara. And I didn't understand what the hype was about.
It's just alright.
The service at Ankaras is really slow.
How slow is it?
True story: I used to live 2 doors down. I once ordered a sandwich, went back home, got laid, returned to Ankaras, and still had to wait a minute or two for my sandwich.
Food's not particularly exciting either.
An-ka-ra!
Ban-ka-ra!
Hic-ka-ma!
*Poof!* Here is your customized frozen yogurt.
I know there are tons of options here, but OTOH, tell me a place in the city where there's only a few limited options. The frozen yogurt wasn't that good either. It was very melty, even though I ate it right away.
I know this might not be accurate, but I somehow feel the owner has a little chauvinistic attitude towards his wife (I think) who was busy working in the back. I don't know if that's how they show love to each other or not. Because they love each other, they bite each other?
Frozen yogurt is the reason for coming here. Can't make any promises with the rest of the food, but they have about a million mix-ins for their yogurt. One of my favorite flavors is their pineapple, but honestly every one I've tried is really good. Their chocolate cake flavor is really yummy too! It's been a while since I've been here (moved around a bit) but I remember many happy evenings filled with frozen yogurt and fun. Never had it delivered, but as long as it doesn't melt by the time it gets to you, I guess it sounds like a pretty good deal.
When ordering frozen yogurt concoctions, it's best to keep it simple or model after already existing flavor combinations-- there's a reason why Ben and Jerry's has a whole product development division because certain flavors combined, just don't taste good.
With that said, I like the fact Ankara's is like buying a carton of Yoplait yogurt, all the stuff is blended in, as opposed to Dannon yogurt which I equate to sundaes, the stuff's on top.
Kudos to Ankara for also having 'real' ingredients. For example, if you order key lime pie, they actually have a real key lime pie they take a wedge out of to mix into your frozen yogurt.
However my most recent experience left me a little disturbed-- not only were people handling cash and food without washing their hands or wearing gloves-- the woman mixing the frozen yogurt was eating the add ins as well and I could have sworn she bit off a piece of kit-kat and threw the remainder into the cup which she then mixed and served to someone. I don't think this would pass the MA board of health inspections...but just watch while she mixes your yogurt to make sure it's not yours.
I noticed the unfriendly customer service. The woman at the counter grew really impatient with me, after I was only looking at the menu for about 2-3 minutes. I was all, Hey, If you're gonna put 1,000 things on your menu, don't rush me MMMK?!
I ended up getting a falafel and hummus wrap. It wasn't special enough to warm me up to the place...it's really dingy and makes me feel like a real sketchy person for hanging out there. I noticed the frozen yogurt but didn't have room for any more food or shitty treatment. So I left.
I won't avoid it like the plague, but I don't really have any reason to go back to Ankara. I can spend just as much money down the road and get so much more.
Whenever I go to Boston, I make it a point to revisit Ankara for the frozen yogurt (froyo). This is *the* place for Boston-style froyo...even though Cafe Podima and others are the exact same thing.
heath bar + caramel
mint chocolate
m&m + oreo
You can stare at the menu for hours. Don't get delivery because it'll take forever. While you wait you can admire the CITGO sign outside and wonder why there is no Citgo in the area.
There are a few things you just have to prepare for, and then you will really like this place.
Delivery is SLOW and its kinda well, a hole in the wall location. If you are going to oder in for lunch do it well before you are going to get hungry. Or if you are in the area, call in your oder then walk over to pick it up!
Once you look over that, its great! I stop in here or order lunch from here all the time and have gotten at least half the menu. The salads are pretty good, fresh lettuce. The wraps are yummy and OF COURSE the frozen yogurt is AMAZING!
I personally get oreo banana ;)
There's some really strange decor inside, like, murals and multipiece mirrors, sports decorations for Patriots, Celtics, Bruins, Red Sox and Revolution all in the same place, and a really out of place sign that reads "Home of Generation X" or something like that. What the hell? Feels like this place is still stuck in 1995.
I've only bought some chicken vegetable soup on one occasion and the falafel+hummus wrap on another. Both were mediocre for taste and quality. I guess you'll want to stick to their deserts, which is what people seem to like about this place.
I just had really lousy greek salad roll-up from ankara cafe.... so I'm taking out my rage the healthy way... writing a review on yelp!
Here's my story with Ankara... I've always been very calm about this place... the food is not that exciting, but because I live next door- and they're open late- I wind up ordering from here more than I would like.
However, tonight's roll-up was a disaster.. It was mostly just pita bread with a ton of black olives and onions, a slice or two of tomato and ONE PIECE of romaine lettuce and a few bits of cucumber- and feta... very dissapointing...but on the plus side, I think this is the last kick that will finally push me to stop coming here...
*note* despite tonight's fiasco, I have to say, I *still* think it might be fun to get frozen yogurt on some hot summer night/ or a nice coffee some early morning and sit outside here...
Ok, so you might have to wait forever.
And they will undoubtedly be rude to you on the phone.
And, they will probably speak in an accent so thick you will have to strain to hear them...
but trust me on this:
the reeses peanut butter cup vanilla frozen yogurt is worth it....and only $3.33!!
I ate here so frequently in Boston, that the whole staff knew me and started on my order when I walked in. When I called for delivery, I just said - This is XXX Beacon Street... I'll take my regular.
I recommend going in rather than calling for delivery. Delivery takes FOREVER... at least 45 minutes. My favorite item was their Emerson sandwich on whole wheat (albacore tuna salad, egg salad and bacon). It was ginormous and could be two meals, maybe three. Their hummus and falafal wraps were also great as well as their chicken, avocado and sundried tomato. Their pizza's are REALLY REALLY greasy and weigh about 10 lbs. I don't recommend them unless you are running a marathon the next day.
The best thing about ankara is their frozen yogurts. They have about 50 different flavors - from chocolate peanut butter, pumpkin, apple pie, blueberry, pistachio, granola bar and cracklin oat bran and every candy topping you can think of. I use to have one of their strawberry banana smoothies for a meal it was so satisfying.
I miss Ankara and recommend it for a great local place to grab a quick meal or dessert. Cute outdoor dining area for summer lunches.
Allo? Ankara Cafe?!
As people mentioned, slow service and expensive for what you get. But I like their food-their eggplant and sundried tomato wraps and their triple decker. I don't go much anymore, but used to frequent regularly when I lived pretty much next door.
There are many other places with almost identical menus around the city, most with quicker service. Kiraz and Podima come to mind.
I give this place 5 stars with full admission that it has its flaws. Not everything on the menu is fantastic, but the Paninis are very good. The shop is run by a greek family, and they don't all speak English perfectly, and can even give you some of that foreign, borderline rude, attitude at times. But that is just all what comes with an authentic sandwich stop.
Many MIT kids who live on the Boston side of the river frequent this place for its frozen treats, but they should try out the menu sometime too. Much of it is pretty good!
I've only ever been to Ankara's for the frozen yogurt and smoothies and I'm more a fan of the smoothies. They're not too sweet but, as Goldilocks said, just right. The nice thing about Ankara's is that they have a lot of flavors and types of fro-yo - there's always something that will capture your fancy and the portions are large.
I lived across the street from Ankaras and had my fare share of their food. Don't get anything but their calzones and frozen yogurt. Everything else is mediocre. However, their froyo is made to order and FANTASTIC. You really can't go wrong with any combination of flavors and toppings.
i started going to this place when we dropped my older sister off at Boston University for her freshman year, back when it was called angora cafe. their sandwiches were bigger and their prices lower... but to be fair, that was over a decade ago.
their sandwiches are still spot on. i love the turkey, motz, roasted peppers and pesto roll up. and of course, i spend many sleepless nights dreaming up new fro-yo combos (mocha heath bar anyone? blueberry oreo?)
Skip the food, do the frozen yogurt. And if you live more than 20 feet away, have it delivered. THAT'S what it's about.
Tip: Mocha counts as 1 flavor, but it's already chocolate+coffee
Tip#2: "Alfin" is actually Elfin cookies. Give the english a break.
The absolute best calzones I have ever tried. I would order religiously from them at least once a week. Other reviews mentioned slow delivery, and this is true it takes about 45-1 hour, but you have to understand this is a small place with only like 3 employees, so chill out ankara bashers. Besides the delicious calzone is well worth the wait. Gotta try the frozen yogurt shakes, very nice.
Ah, Ankara's. A staple for BU students, as they are well known for their frozen yogurt. They have pizza, sandwiches, soups, salads as well as appetizers, side dishes and desserts. It's very likely you'll find something to please everyone. They do have vegetarian dishes, so everybody should be happy.
Sadly I have to knock off some of my rating because honestly, the waiting times for either dining in or deliver is terrible. They have one person handling the register/phone, one person making the food, and one person making deliveries. You might as well place your order and walk or T it to Kenmore instead of waiting for delivery.
The staff, however, are always very friendly and very happy. The place itself, though, is really cramped and not really worth eating in, as gusts of cold wind can come in every time someone opens the door.
Recommended: panini sandwiches, "side order" of the chicken kabob plate (on the menu it was a side order, but really it's a meal in itself), wraps, baklava, yogurt!
Don't recommend: soups. Usually lukewarm at best. Order at least 30 min ahead or pick it up yourself.
25% OFF 1st Time Customers!
Neighborhood: Allston/Brighton
Holiday Pies
Neighborhood: Kendall Square/MIT
Neighborhood: Allston/Brighton
Category: Restaurants
Neighborhood: Beacon Hill
Category: Restaurants
Boston, MA
Category: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt
Neighborhood: Allston/Brighton
Category: Coffee & Tea
Neighborhood: Allston/Brighton
Category: Donuts
Some of my favorite dining destinations in the…
New or potential BU/Berklee/Northeastern student?…
I lived in Boston for four years, and though it…
For times when you don't feel like cooking (or…
When I am feeling lazy and don't want to go far…
Everywhere you'd need for everything you'd need at…
Some of my favorite dining destinations in the…
Some of my favorite dining destinations in the…
Loading...
