Istanbul Meze & Grill Bar

A terrible birthday experience. Upon arrival we were advised that the lamb dish main on the menu was not available, nor the king prawn dish that had attracted us to visit the restaurant in the first place. We waited a long time for service though the restaurant only had two diners when we had arrived. My starter was supposedly a GF sausage though I question if it really was GF after suffering the consequences after our visit Myself and another in the party had ordered a beef main. When it arrived the beef was very overcooked, dry and hard work; it was as if we were trying to eat our boots. We returned both dishes. On hearing our concerns the waitress was far from helpful. Not expecting chef to work wonders with seemingly a cheap cut of beef, I asked what they could prepare a GF alternative. The waitress suggested a feta salad. I laughed and I asked for a meat alternative. She replied that she didn’t know which options were GF and she tried to hand the menu to me, advising that she “was too busy”. The manager arrived and she too was far from helpful. I am a carnivore and a coeliac and I was told that it would take too long to cook another meat dish - I opted out and I didn’t have a main. My co-diner opted for a pizza alternative. There was no apology, just rudeness. The awkward moment came at the end of the meal when the waitress served the surprise birthday cake that my co-diners had bought me…She opted to serve it to one of my co-diners even though she was well aware that it was me who was celebrating a birthday, in order to avoid having to communicate with me. Appallingly poor service; poor value for money; cafe-style decor. Never again!

Booked a Sunday lunchtime appointment for 4 of us. One of our party is Gluten intolerant and was dealt with very well with a huge serving of delicious chicken wings & rice. The rest of us shared a meze platter and a selection of starters, all freshly prepared. Very impressed with the food, attentive - but not intrusive - service and surroundings. Recommended!