El Turco Upper Buena Vista
Turkish restaurant · Miami
5026 NE 2nd Ave, Miami, FL 33137
Highlights
Turkish restaurant with amazing food, great vibes, and tiki hut seating
Turkish restaurant with amazing food, great vibes, and tiki hut seating
"If you can't get a table at Mandolin (or just want something more casual) try El Turco, a Turkish restaurant in Upper Buena Vista. The food is fine, but this place is more about ambiance. Sitting outside is basically your only option, but it’s where you should be regardless. The best seats are in the little tiki hut next to a pretty spectacular banyan tree. Get one of the borek options and some dips." - ryan pfeffer, virginia otazo, mariana trabanino
"El Turco is a Turkish restaurant in Upper Buena Vista, an outdoor retail complex in Buena Vista. And though the food is pretty solid, this place is more about ambiance. Sitting outside is basically your only option, but it’s where you should be regardless. The best seats are in the little tiki hut next to a pretty spectacular banyan tree. There aren’t really any big misses on the menu, but definitely get one (or several) of the borek options." - ryan pfeffer, virginia otazo
"This East Hampton Turkish spot is originally from Miami, but they both happen to have a lovely patio and hot pink beet hummus. The menu of mezes, kebabs, and salads easily lends itself to sharing, and a $26 kids’ meal of chicken tenders and french fries ensures this spot is family-friendly. Weekend evenings bring out DJs, dancing, and general sceniness. The brick patio is fenced off to block road noise, with a cushy banquette and cafe-style tables that can be pushed together for crowds." - melissa kravitz hoeffner, team infatuation
"The only seating at this Turkish spot in Upper Buena Vista is outdoors. Your two choices are in a palapa or under the kitchen’s eave near a big banyan tree. Both have fans, and the palapa has a slightly better shade situation. But if you sit at a table by the banyan, you’ll have a view of the stage beneath it—where there’s an occasional bongo player and children scurry about like wild boar. If it’s one of those days where the humidity reaches 70%, cool down with a bowl of cacik—garlicky yogurt, shredded cucumbers, dill, and mint." - ryan pfeffer, virginia otazo
"Sitting outside is really your only option at this Turkish restaurant in Upper Buena Vista, which is always a good backup plan if you can’t get into Mandolin. You can grab a table near the kitchen next to a giant 120-year-old banyan tree or snag a few seats inside their palapa. This thing has so much straw, you’d think one of three little pigs lived here. But this hut is sturdy, and even a wolf with a marathon runner’s VO2 max, could’t threaten it. The food here is good enough, but prioritize any of the boreks (flaky meat pies) or mezes." - virginia otazo, ryan pfeffer
