Turkish specialists Ali Ocakbasi debut in Leicester Square
HALAL STATUS Fully Halal food menu • Alcohol served
International Turkish restaurant brand Ali Ocakbasi have landed in the UK with a large setup in London’s Leicester Square.
With two restaurants in Istanbul and one in Amsterdam, their 100-seater venue on Irving Street is serving lots of hot and cold mezzes along with, of course, a variety of regional kebabs.
With 70 seats on the ground floor and an additional 30 downstairs in the basement, the place appears spacious with a modern outlook.
And with clay ovens and grills on the go, expect your Turkish pizzas called Pides and meat dishes to be cooked to perfection.
From their list of cold starters, look out for the Muhammara: traditional spicey paste prepared with crushed walnuts, twice-baked bread, tahini, olive oil garlic and lemon juice; as well as the Cigkofte: raw meatballs of hand pounded minced meat with bulghur, onion and chilli red pepper served with lettuce cups and lemon.
As for the hot starters, then consider the Sicak Humus, warm homemade humus served plain or with the following toppings of pastrami, Anatolian sausage or both.
But the business end of things is certainly with their selection of oven and grill dishes where the former offers 14 traditional Pides, half of which are gluten-free, and the latter 18 dishes that include:
- Kaburga – Barbequed natural ribs of lamb seasoned only with chilli red powder and salt.
- Kusneme – Specially marinated and barbequed fillet of the lamb.
- Saslik – Barbequed slices of specially marinated beef loin and onion rings.
- Bonfile Dilimleri – Grilled three pieces of steak fillet marinated with a virgin olive oil.
For dessert, they serve traditional dishes such as the Kunefe – an oven baked kadaifi with molten cheese served with syrup and pistachio powder on top; and the Kabak Tatlisi, which is a special pumpkin dessert served with ice cream and sesame oil garnished with walnuts.
Please note that while alcohol is served on the premises, the food menu is entirely Halal.
Ali Ocakbasi
16 Irving Street, Leicester Square, London WC2H 7AU.
T: +44 (0)20 7839 4020 | W: aliocakbasi.co.uk | E: [email protected]
Opening Hours: Mon-Sun 11:30-22:30
