Time Out rating:
<strong>Rating: </strong>3/5
User ratings:
<strong>Rating: </strong>2/5
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Time Out says
Tue Dec 15 2009
Tucked behind Manzara’s front takeaway counter, there’s a small, bright dining room with a few white-clothed tables. The menu doesn’t extend far beyond grill-house staples such as lamb and chicken kebabs, plus standby starters of tarama, houmous and grilled hellim – the latter of which comes hot and smoke-scented from the ocakbası. There are also a few non-Turkish dishes, such as fish and chips and an organic beefburger. If you’re watching the pennies, the set-menu deal, which includes a choice of starter, main and a drink (a glass of wine or a soft drink), is where to look. Our chicken kebab featured high-quality, mildly spicy meat, served with a perky green salad and rather dull rice. Ískender, which combined chargrilled mince patties and whole lamb chunks, was overwhelmed by a fresh tomato sauce, but zinged up with properly tart yoghurt on to which melted spiced butter had been drizzled. Most impressive was a boat-shaped pide, the soft, fluffy bread topped with mozzarella, spinach, tomato sauce, a small mountain of feta and some black olives – an impressive veggie-friendly feast. Service is well-intentioned but can be slow.
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