Cafe Istanbul Reviews Summary

Food Quality

Pros:

• "The food itself is beautifully presented and very tasty."
• "Incredible food, BIG portion."
• "The food is always really fresh!"
• "The food was delicious."
• "Amazingly delicious food."
• "The food was great and nicely done."
• "The food was really good and delicious."

Cons:

• "Feel bad for leaving a bad review but the food was overpriced and definitely not worth the value you pay for in terms of taste."
• "Chicken Doner, I am sorry but this can't be authentic Turkish doner."
• "Lentil soup: a little bit too much water, a real Turkish lentil soup is little bit more 'thick' and not so watery."
• "Lamb was really tasty and chicken was a little bit too dry."
• "The food is a bit overpriced for the portions you get, also there is not many options on the menu to pick."
• "Really awful lamb (allegedly). Because it tastes more like cartilaginous pork shawarma."
• "Got the chicken doner wrap and the chicken inside was half raw and the wrap itself had a weird taste."

Service

Pros:

• "The staff are an amazing set of people with core values of humanity."
• "Fast service and food is very tasty and eye catching!"
• "Absolutely brilliant service and food was on point 👌🏽"
• "Every time the staff is very polite and helpful."
• "The service was great they checked on us and polite staff."
• "Staff couldn't have been more accommodating and friendly...can't wait until my next visit."
• "The service from our waiter was exceptional."

Cons:

• "Highly recommend to avoid the restaurant if you have allergies because they simply do not care."
• "I was then told by the member of staff I initially had to ask to wash his hands that my money is dirty and unhygienic anyway."
• "The service was a little slow but expected during lunch time rush."
• "We called the manager to ask why it’s taking so long for our main course, his answer was disgusting 'it will take as long as it will take, what do you want me to do about it' we were shocked to hear this."
• "Food was nice and staff is polite but we sat near where they were sorting the cutlery so every so often every single staff member was creating loud noise with it as they were throwing knives and forks in together."
• "The third and final thing that was the final straw leading to me writing this fully deserving negative review is the fact I was then served the wrong item."
• "We are vegetarians, the first red flag was seeing the chef rubbing his bare hands into raw meat, he was adding seasoning to it."

Ambiance

Pros:

• "Perfect for family or friends gatherings."
• "Lovely and decorated with comfortable seats."
• "Decorated using warm colours and nice sofa style seats at the back."
• "First off, the setting is lovely, with traditional and modern elements."
• "Such a lovely little place, wonderful atmosphere and calming vibes."
• "Very nice environment."
• "It was clean and had plenty of sitting spots."

Cons:

• "I only wish the music was Turkish."
• "Please change the music! Turkish pop from the 80-90??"
• "The music was also pretty good in there, but it was a bit loud and made conversation difficult."
• "Whilst dining two things upset me a) a person sitting very close to our table wafting her long hair over our drinks and food on several occasions b) the same person repeatedly flossing her teeth at the table in front of us and other diners."
• "To be honest the sign is very confusing it says 'cafe' but its definitely not a cafe more of a restaurant."

Value

Pros:

• "Ordered from the set menu and it was possibly the best value food I've had."
• "They gave the birthday boy a free birthday chocolate fudge cake and a warm Turkish happy birthday tune where the whole restaurant joined in clapping and singing."
• "They served us complementary sweet and tea."
• "Some of us originally put off by the price strayed away. But a brave few decided it was probably worth the money. Boy were we right."
• "Was only charged the takeaway price and even given Turkish tea as I waited."
• "It was very filling and most importantly it was delicious! Reasonably priced for their large portion."
• "The price is reasonable and the food is clean. Worth a visit."

Cons:

• "I checked the reviews, some people were commenting that they got surprised when they got the bill and they saw the service charge."
• "Rated 4 star because there's an unexpected service charge."
• "Ridiculous small portions for money you spent."
• "Prices are higher than surrounding and similar-standard restaurants."
• "But the total was £47.96 why? Service Charges and VAT."
• "Prices are so high."
• "Chicken cubes and lamb cubes are tiny i wont recommend this place."