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Please note, Istanbul Meze is now closed. Time Out Food & Drink Editors, December 2018.
Hidden away on an uninteresting street at the wrong end of Fitzrovia, Istanbul Meze doesn’t look promising. Surprise: it’s a likeable spot, with a reliable if unspectacular kitchen and keen, helpful staff. The starters are worthwhile. Falafel is agreeably tender and subtle, thanks to the use of a preponderance of broad beans. The houmous, also seemingly made on site, is created to a similarly winning recipe; sturdier options include sucuk (spicy beef sausage) that carries a pleasing tang. The main courses are less characterful but pretty well-executed. Cooked over a charcoal grill at the back of the room, the familiar meaty grills – try the Istanbul special, a jumble of chicken sis and lamb köfte over an aubergine paste, served with yoghurt and rice to one side – are supplemented by a few more unexpected seafood dishes (a kebab made with swordfish and king prawns, for instance). It’s all delivered promptly by efficient waiters in a simple but attractive room brightened by a string of coloured lamps (unusually, there’s also a bar in the basement). Worth considering.