A grill house
with a wine list
Most Turkish restaurants stop at a house red. Ours runs from Anatolia to Burgundy, and finishes in Pauillac.
Charcoal deserves
better than a house red
Smoke, char and chilli are difficult things to drink with. They flatten delicate wines and they overwhelm cheap ones. So the list here was built to stand up to the grill rather than to sit politely beside it.
That means honest wines by the glass at £8 to £11 — a Sangiovese, a Merlot, a Patagonian Malbec, a Chilean Cabernet — and then a list that keeps going long after most kitchens of this kind stop. Chablis and Meursault. Barolo and Rioja Gran Reserva. Organic Provence rosé. And, at the far end, mature white Burgundy and first-growth Bordeaux.
Two Turkish wines sit in the middle of it, which is the part we care about most.
Turkish wine, next to the food it grew up with
Anatolia is one of the oldest winegrowing regions on earth, and its native grapes are still barely seen on British wine lists. Two of them are on ours.
Anatolia, Turkey. Ruby hues and ripe red fruit aromas. Hints of red berries, menthol and exotic spices. Balanced flavours and layered complexity with a smooth, lengthy finish.
Öküzgözü — "bull's eye", for the size of its berries — is a native red grape of eastern Anatolia. Bright acidity and soft tannin, which is exactly what charcoal-grilled lamb wants.
Anatolia, Turkey. A floral white wine. Aromas of ripe citrus fruit, chamomile, apple and grapefruit. Sharp, sweet and dry finish.
Narince — "delicate" — comes from Tokat in the north. Citrus and orchard fruit with enough body to carry yoghurt, garlic and olive oil, which is most of the mezze table.
A short guide to the table
Nothing here is a rule. Ask your server — they will know what has just arrived and what is drinking well.
With the mezze
Yoghurt, garlic, tahini and olive oil need acidity, not weight. Narince or the Rometta Trebbiano. Or do it properly and start with rakı.
With adana & köfte
Chilli and lamb fat want fruit and soft tannin. Öküzgözü is the local answer; the Humberto Canale Malbec is the reliable one.
With pirzola & kuzu şiş
Lamb chops over charcoal are the classic Bordeaux match. The de Martino Cabernet by the glass, or the Saint-Émilion Grand Cru if it is that kind of evening.
With seabass & king prawns
Chargrilled fish with a creamy sauce wants something mineral and precise. Joseph Drouhin Chablis, or the Martín Códax Albariño.
With güveç & the slow-cooked dishes
Tomato, aubergine and long cooking suit something soft and generous — the Boheme Primitivo from Puglia.
With the vegetarian menu
Smoke and aubergine without meat behind them: Vinho Verde for the lighter plates, Pinot Noir for the charcoal-grilled ones.
Rakı, and how
to drink it
Before wine, there is rakı — clear, strong, distilled from grapes and aniseed. Our own menu puts it plainly: the perfect match for Turkish food.
It is served in a tall narrow glass, cut with cold water, which turns it milky white — aslan sütü, lion's milk. Water alongside, ice if you want it, and a table of mezze in front of you. It is not a shot, and it is not in a hurry: a rakı table is an evening, not a drink.
Yeni Rakı £7.50 single · £9 double · £45 for 35cl · £60 for 70cl
Beylerbeyi Göbek Rakı £8.50 single · £10 double · £60 for 35cl · £90 for 70cl
For when it is a proper occasion
These are on the list, in the building, and available tonight. Worth a word with the team in advance for the older bottles.
Pauillac, Bordeaux. A masterclass in elegance and balance — cassis, cedar and graphite over fine-grained tannins.
Burgundy. A sought-after mature white Burgundy, richness and tension together.
Pauillac, Bordeaux. Deeply mature — cassis, black cherry, tobacco, cedar and smoky spice.
Burgundy. Rich and beautifully textured, with vibrant tension and stony minerality.
Burgundy. Full-bodied and stylish, layers of fruit with fresh acidity.
Barolo, Italy. Perfumed and lifted, roses and herbs over a firm structure.
Come and drink it
Tell us when you book if you are opening something particular, and we will have it ready and at the right temperature.