Time Out rating:
<strong>Rating: </strong>5/5
User ratings:
<strong>Rating: </strong>4/5
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Time Out says
Mon Jul 2 2012
This backstreet grill has featured in every Time Out Eating & Drinking guide since it opened more than 20 years ago. It’s certainly doing something right to draw diners away from the numerous Turkish restaurants up and down Dalston’s main drag – but it’s far from flashy. The first thing you see on entering the slightly worn space is the cabinet of skewers: cubed and minced lamb, chops and ribs, chicken wings and fillets, quail. There are even a few vegetables, though this is definitely a destination for meat eaters. Next to this display of flesh is the six-foot charcoal grill, billowing smoke and overseen by a chef kept constantly busy twirling skewers and stoking the flames. Pretty much everything on the menu is worth ordering, but the beyti and adana kebabs (minced lamb) are particularly juicy and flavoursome, matched perfectly by fresh Turkish bread (free) and tart salad. Starters are fairly standard – meze, lahmacun and so on – and do a good job of setting the scene for the main event. There’s no charge for BYO (although Mangal is licensed to sell alcohol), which, along with the superb and good-value food, ensure the place is heaving most nights.
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