Oklava (Shoreditch)

• Excellent brown bread and date butter were brought to the table straight away
• We started with two orders of the courgette fritters with feta and mint
• Next to arrive were the veggie sides
• Fried Cyprus Potatoes with Chilli Salt
• These were big cubes of pan fried potatoes drizzled with an alioli spiked with coriander
• We then had the Chilli Roast Cauliflower with Parsley &
• The last of the sides were two orders of Aubergine
• This was sauteed autergine as well as sweet aubergine puree with yoghurt and crushed smoked almonds
• Pleasant but not the best aubergine dish I've eaten in London (which was at Som Saa incidentally)
• The Short Rib Pide was underwhelming and some of the table complained about the level of spice
• Thyme on the other hand was outstanding
• Most of the mains were outrageously good
• The Seabass was a wonderful texture
• The Chilli Garlic Chicken with a Zatar crumb was a thigh and a wing with a little breast meat attached
• Though some of the wing was a little too charred
• The accompanying sauce of sweetened lime mayo was lovely and intriguing with spices I couldn't identify
• I would definitely order this again and it was the only dish that was great value at £
• The lamb breast is the only main I probably wouldn't order again
• The more traditional rice pudding with a creme brulee topping was pleasant too
• I would probably order primarily from the mains with some potatoes
• The place is small with half bar style chairs and the rest are normal tables
• Few dishes were extremely over priced
• The lahmacun was a medium size 1 piece only priced at 6.5
• All of that with 12% service charge
• The chicken shown on the picture is way larger than the lamb cutlets and is cheaper
• M sure many of our readers) are hot as fully across the Turkish cuisine as we should be
• Chico Bandito in Shoreditch was a Tex Mex restaurant with all the appeal of skin rash
• We thoroughly enjoyed our food nevertheless with an establishment such as this it's important that the service is also on par
• You may wonder WHY I would return to a place with frenetic stress inducing activities on the weekend
• I say found like we were looking in vain for it
• Starting with the bread with Medjool date butter
• A fried duck egg with baked lamb fat potatoes and the braised octopus pides and moving on to the seafood and meat
• Topping it off with two desserts (everything pictured)
• The only thing that disappointed was the Turkish wine that was recommended to us by the staff (would have been a 4.5 otherwise)
• Considering the weather was quite dreadful and it was Christmas week
• Choosing what to eat was an enjoyable chore as everything sounded so good
• I entered Oklava with my gaze fixed on the open kitchen and oven
• The smell of cooking was hardly overpowering
• Feeling so when the food was a little slow
• So reserving is highly recommended
• If cauliflower was served like this each time
• It was such a picture with a strong toasted red with jewels of pistachio scattered around and crowned off with shavings of red onion
• Individually the ingredients were brilliant &ndash
• Nice big prawns but I did think that for four of them it was a little dear
• Crispy on the outside but succulent and moist with a subtle lamb flavour
• Flavoured with the pomegranate glaze which was slightly sweet and bitter
• The presentation and style of the food were very sophisticated and portions of food were on the small side
• The dishes were served as and when it was ready so the distinction of starter and main dishes makes one wonder what was that all about
• What I did not mention earlier here was that Oklava serves very interesting Turkish wines
• I had the opportunity to taste them at a wine event before and was impressed by these New World wines
• My favourite was the Turkish sparkling wine at £
• I just wondered if there was any restaurant that I had returned for a second meal in the last 12 months
• I was keen to understand what that would mean as the cuisine is known for its robust and powerful flavours
• Even the bread and date butter was something special
• The space is nicely done and service was spot on (although it's worth noting we were there for an early lunch and it wasn't full)
• Staff looked as though they were all enjoying themselves working here
• S not something that comes across very often in restaurants and was noticeable because of it) and the food we had for this GBM dinner was an absolute treat

Read More