Istanbul Kebab House

Lovely little Turkish doner place open late in midtown! And it's halal! Ordered the... ✅ Lamb & chicken mixed doner sandwich on Turkish bread (not on the menu but recommended by our server! Very well stuffed and super filling, goes great with the white & red sauces!) ✅ Lamb Adana sandwich on Turkish bread (a lot less filled than the doner sandwich as you see in the photos, might like to see more stuffing in this next time) ✅ Babaghanoush (very creamy & came with piping hot bread ❤️‍🔥) ✅ Uludag orange soda (refreshing & recommended by our server) Highlights: 1️⃣ The bread here is amazing - fluffy, warm, and perfect for a cold night in the city! Classicly Turkish. 2️⃣ The staff are so kind, accommodating, and hospitable. The server made great suggestions and was able to charge my friend's cell phone in a pinch! 3️⃣ While it's a small space, it was easy to accommodate a party of two even though almost all tables were full. The atmosphere was also inviting with cute Turkish/Asian decor (plus there's a TV if you're into that). Overall, solid place with fair prices! Would come back!

The best lamb doner meat I've ever had, it was delicious. Great value food, friendly & fast service, highly recommend!

Amazing halal Turkish restaurant. Close to times square, and offers free delivery within 3 miles of the restaurant. My husband and I ate here several times during our stay in NYC. I really liked the Turkish Tea, and Lamb Chops. My husband had the Turkish Gyro. Highly recommend.

I hate to write that but i have to Just got mt sandwich I ordered lamb doner / shawerma I asked to add all salads and sauces And to be on Turkish bread The sandwich is literally stacks of tasteless meat over each other with barely any salad Its super greasey , which i don't mind But the lack of salad made it tasteless Not recommended #bestcitiestovisit

Loved the food and the staff is very friendly. First time here and already planning to come back. Would definitely recommend.

I’ve been eating here since more than a decade ago whenever I came to the area. I’ve moved away for a while and was excited to come back again. The hummus is excellent. The grilled lamb was too dry. Maybe overcooked for food safety reasons? The recommended chopped meat kebab was not bad. Shawarma was not as good as I remembered it. Another surprise was the bill. I could feel the inflation attacking my wallet. It used to be a very affordable place, now if you just order without looking at the price of each item like I used to do, you may end up getting a sticker shock. Pay attention to the check too. They’ve added in a 10% service charge so do adjust your additional tip and not paying more than you expected. If you don’t do the math, and just add 15% to the final bill number, you will pay more than your plan to. I hate the US restaurant tipping and taxing convention. They should do it like the rest of the world. List the final, after-tax, and service charge prices on the menu. The tourists will have a much better experience patronizing American restaurants.

Edit: Visited this place 9 months later and still keeping 5 stars!!! It’s a small place but hospitality is 10/10, their two sauces are just🔥 and food was still very good! The prices increased a bit and portion seemed a little smaller but still best Turkish food in the city!!! Best Turkish food in the city and very humble staff. If you need anything they are there to help and food tastes juicy, full of flavor. Although the place is small, it’s just a really great experience at a reasonable price. 100% recommended!!!

Tasteless. No spices. Expensive. Also unnecessary 10% service charges. Even their sauce wasn’t spicy. Place had a weird fish market like smell. Never again for me. Unsure why someone recommended.

Very fresh food and friendly service! Quite bland for my taste though (is this because they're located near Times Sq?!), despite using all the [watery] sauces and salads. Rice not right-crunchy and mushy. :/ Ordered lamb/chicken/rice.

As I'm new to Hells Kitchen , I am exploring all of the amazing restaurants in the area . One style dear to me is a good ole lamb doner ( really the only time I eat lamb). This place has great ratings and is always crowded . I ordered some take out with high hopes ! Service is simple and be prepared to wait as it is crowded as mentioned . I ordered my doner with everything but unfortunately they left out the sauce which was not ideal . Aside from that , great place and big portions !! I'll be back but will certainly verify my sauces on the side to be sure :)

Decent authentic Turkish spot, but could be much better. First of all, when I ordered my Lamb Doner with pita bread ($12), it came in a tin foil wrap- I was dining in but they basically treated it as if it was take out... so not the best first impression of the food. The pita wrap was quite bland and so was the lamb and veggies (lettuce, onion, and tomato) inside- basically no seasoning or sauce (although there was some separate sauce in bottles at the table). The taste wasn't too bad, but I've definitely had better. The French fries ($8) were actually pretty good though, as they seasoned them well, although they didn't give any ketchup with it. The place is quite small, as there are only around 5 tables inside. Luckily, there weren't many others in there when we went. Given most of the food is already pre-prepared / essentially ready to go, the service speed is pretty quick. The staff are average friendliness. The vibes are definitely on the casual side, as I wouldn't exactly call the interior environment nice- not that it was necessary dirty or anything, just could use a bit of sprucing up. Overall, I think this place could be fine for delivery/take-out or if you are just looking to grab a quick Turkish bite. But if you are looking for a nicer sit-down restaurant, then you might be better off visiting one of the many other restaurants in the area.

The food was really good and nice for a lunch or late dinner. Very casual ambiance. Excellent service. Chicken kebab was excellent.

Worst Doner I've ever had. Not tasty at all. It shouldn't be table next to the restroom. Serving with paper plate is not a Turkish style hospitality.

This place is a small restaurant with maybe around four or five tables only. We came here with recommendation by someone who lives close by and it was good! We tried chicken/ lamb Döners as well as falafel with hummus. I am guessing it is authentic and surely was delicious! With the meal they also served Turkish bread. Also very good. Yelp checkin and we got a free dessert. We opted for kazandibi which was like a caramelized pudding. Seating is rather limited. But they're trying their best.

I come here once a year. Every time the food is getting worse and of lower quality.. Here in Manhattan better places exist!

I've been coming here every December for 10 years for their lunch special. It's been that good. I believe it's new management, and it's gone DOWNHILL. I ordered a chicken shawarma sandwich. The white sauce is now served in a plastic container (as opposed to a stainless steel pourer) and was watery. Not creamy. There was too much chicken in the sandwich, and it did not taste fresh. Not enough lettuce and tomatoes. A major disappointment. It was so bad, I can't come here anymore. There is a Turkish place on 9th near 43rd Street I'm going to try...

I got the lamb gyro lunch special. It was very tasty and filling. The lamb was delicious, fresh and cut very thinly!

The lamb doner pita sandwich is delicious! Lots of meat with raw onions, lettuce and sliced tomatoes. So much meat, it's big enough for 2 small meals. Also had the Turkish chicken soup, which was just ok. Not salty but has an oily layer.

What a hidden gem! Literally blink and you would have missed it. Stopped by to get takeout before a movie night, and ordered the lamb doner sandwich. The price was really good for NYC (~$10) and service was extremely fast. The staff was very friendly and the restaurant was crowded but very homey. Sandwich was packaged in foil, no spillage. The portion was also a steal for the price, this was the most stuffed sandwich I'd ever had. Meat was well seasoned, the garlic and chili sauces were a wonderful addition and very well paired with each other. Wished that maybe the chili sauce was a little more spicy. It was a huge sandwich, my friend was doubtful that I would be able to finish it - but it was so good that I INHALED it! While I was there I was eyeing the baklava and the hummus, will definitely be back to try those dishes in the future!

Walking along the street, there's lots to see. The restaurant is in a cool location. We were seated right away but did not get our waters for a while. Nor was our water filled until we asked. We weren't asked for our orders after a long wait. The staff wasn't terrible they just weren't attentive. Plating looks great, tasted dry more than bland, and they were quite bland. I didn't expect so much veggies when I ordered the chicken.

Lamb doner on turkish bread was amazing. The best baklava that we have ever had. Can't wait to return.

Yummy The food here was delicious. Loved the adana kabob which I normally don't get. I think there was red peppers in it. Definitely going to come again.

Chanced upon this halal Turkish establishment on my last evening in NYC and counted myself as lucky. Got a lamb doner sandwich on turkish bread, and it was delicious with enormous portions; you'll get some serious value for money here. Staff is friendly, reasonable amount of seating available, and prices are quite reasonable. Highly recommend.

This is a small kebab place and is a little bit crammed sitting area. Hey!!.. that's the beauty of it. It literally welcomes you to the Turkish delight lol. That being said, their food is amazing. It was fast, fresh, and well cooked meat. We ordered the Lamb Doner and Chicken Adana Kebab. It was juicy and tender. It was purr-fect for 5 people who wants to explore a different side of NYC restaurants. I have had better authentic Turkish food from my hometown in Saudi Arabia and this place was almost close to that level. ;} Overall, their service was great, the staff, she was very friendly and engaging with my family which made them feel at home. Hey!!, that's all we want. When we go to a restaurant, we should feel like we are welcomed and to let them tell their story through food.

Stopped in early in a Saturday and got seated immediately. The Turkish bread and hummus were amazing and the lamb was fabulous. The server was extremely helpful and kind as well. Great experience.

Ordered delivery from here tonight. The large lamb doner with homemade Turkish bread and no rice. Also ordered the Turkish coffee. Everything arrived on time and was hot. The Turkish bread was good. Soft in center and firm around edges. No butter came with it. No utensils or napkins. The lamb doner was DELICIOUS!!! Definitely recommend the lamb. Tender cooked meat and flavorful. Salad was fresh with red onion, tomatoes and a hot pepper. For $20.50 you get a good amount. It's very filling! The Turkish coffee on the other hand was a disappointment. It was hot and tasted okay when it arrived. As I drank closer to the bottom, I got a mouthful of grounds. It's 1/3 full of grounds and it's already a small amount of coffee for $3.50. Hard pass next time! Food or good. Skip the coffee.

First time in Hell's Kitchen, we were told not to stop at the first restaurant we see...and boy do we appreciate that advice! Further up 9th Ave., we found this place. It wasn't much to look at from the outside, but once inside, we were treated to a wonderful aroma! We ordered the lamb/chicken combo (saw the guy eating the same dish next to us), and split it. The meal was absolutely delicious, service was great, the facility was immaculate; we couldn't ask for a better overall value/experience!

My friend and I were in the mood for Mediterranean cuisine so we decided to give this place a try. This spot is small and cozy with brick walls, photography, decorative and colorful cloth pillow cases. We both ordered the lamb shwarma / doner / gyro which is the meat from the rotating spit. The meal came with rice, salad and white sauce. We were also served tasty complimentary bread with sesame seeds. There was quite a bit of pieces of thin lamb meat which were well seasoned, juicy and tender. The addition of the savory white sauce made the meat even more delicious! The salad was crisp and fresh with onions, as well as tomatoes. With the Yelp check in, you can get free dessert after writing a review. I chose the baklava which was delightfully syrupy sweet with strong taste of honey, flaky sticky phyllo dough and pistachios in the center. Service was pretty good. The hostess / waitress were welcoming and friendly. Prices were very reasonable and I had enough left over to take some home with extra white sauce. I would like to have the Mixed Grill if I return.

This place is solid. Ordered the lamb shawarma with Turkish bread. Fantastic. And I'm saying this as a middle eastern (very particular about middle eastern food). Place is quaint and very welcoming. Staff is great. You gotta get the Turkish tea as well. They made it perfectly right. Cheers

This in assuming kebab place is a hidden gem. This small Turkish place is filled with people who's first language is not English. That should speak for itself. The food does as well. I could not be happier I stuck my head in here and sat down. The proportions are not only huge but delicious. Till next time I am in the area. Thanks

The food was good! We ordered here for takeout and it was good food. We ordered the platter which ended up being more than enough for the two of us. We enjoyed two of the dishes (the chicken chop and the kebab). But the shish and the doner were a bit dry unfortunately. The addition of the charred vegetables were a nice and welcome touch. The sauces were okay though the red sauce felt like it was ketchup with some spice thrown in. Overall, probably not my top kebab place but would order from here in a pinch

Love it! Is seems like is a nice tradicional. Restaurant with good service and nice ambient, they only have to work on their sides

We ordered 2 Lamb Doner. What we got was nothing like the picture on the menu. The lamb we got was essentially halal cart lamb. Unlike in the picture on the menu where the strips of lamb are long and thinly cut as described in the description, we got chunks of lamb (again, as you'd get from a cart.) Additionally, the salad we got was a different salad than shown in the menu. It had cabbage, and no cucumber or carrot. The point is that the menu is misleading and I can't recommend the food. For the $23 price tag the quality was as low as a poor NYC halal cart.

Great place to stop by for authentic middle eastern food. Coming in around 5pm for my dinner after a day of hard work. The wait staff greeted me with warmth and sat me down without rushing me to order. I asked for something economic and simple and he recommended me the kebab plate. A huge plate full of veggie, chicken, lamb and rice with red and white sauce on the side. It was definitely a full plate to be considered for dinner. I'm falling asleep as i leave this review. Quick, clean and crisp. Even after dining, they did not rush me to get the check, let me me chill. Where else have you come across this in midtown. Very rare to come by these days. Will return with friends

The most delicious food and the stuff they are so nice everything it was amazing and delicious I like it. I'm gonna come back again. Thank you kebab house.

Stumbled upon this spot en route to a venue. Decided to check it out & it was a full house. Usually if an eatery is full is a good sign that the food is good. We waited for a table approximately 20 minutes and as soon as we sat down we scanned the menu. First up the lentil soup and it was very good, not like any if I've tried before. The Turkish tea was small and it packed a strong punch. The falafel appetizer with hummus & tomatoes was very tasty. The chicken shish kebab with white rice & chick peas, mixed salad along with hot sauce & yogurt cucumber sauce was gulped down by my mom, this evenings food partner. Once you check-in & write a review you receive a free dessert too. We picked rice pudding but it was ok, nothing to rave about. The space is small but the food is reasonably priced & tasty with good portions.

The chicken doner was so juicy. However the flavor could have been better it was just a little bland. The rice was cooked perfectly and the salad was fresh. The lamb doner was very flavorful but it was too dry. So, maybe I just got old pieces. All in all this is a good place just needs a bit more seasoning on everything.

I've been coming here for years, best lunch special deals from 11am to 3pm. Must try Lamb Doner

Let's start with their claim of serving fresh home made grape leaves. This is absolutely a lie. I received the order and the grape leaves were the type that is pre-made and sold in a can. So they simply open the can , and put the grape leaves on a to go container or on a plate. I know that disgusting taste of can grape leaves. This is so terrible. The kabob meat was only ok. The meat was over cooked and lack any flavor. The salad was worthless. No taste at all. Unfortunately this order has been a waste of time and a waste of money. There is no way they will make a mistake with the grape leaves. They presented something completely different on the menu than what they have delivered. This was done inten

Not sure if it was good or not! I am use to eat Dôner or Iskender Döner Kebab in Turkey and Germany!! The lamb meat ( Dôner) was a little on the dry side, salad wasn't that fresh ( it had a kitchen odor) bread was ok but not whau the yogurt sauce had a good taste but was very liquid! One portion was a large lamb Döner/ Gyro on turkish bread but we received a lamb Döner with some meat and a lot of rice?!? We spend almost $100 and wasn't satisfied, what is sad! Sorry but true! Maybe we are spoiled with real Turkish and Turkish-Germany Döner meals

I don't know what to say. We made a reservation for a party of 4 for 7pm but when we arrived at 7pm, all the tables were occupied. We were not seated till about 10 minutes later. For the appetizer, we ordered the fried calamari and hummus. I found the fried calamari and hummus to be okay. We aimed for the complementary toasted pita bread instead of the regular complementary Turkish bread and it was just okay as well...not the best since I can literally taste the char on it. For the entree, we ordered the chicken kabab and the lamb kabab. The lamb kabab was pretty dry and chewy. The chicken was a bit better since it's more on the tender side but still not the best.

This was a delicious little find. On a cold night we went in and had a yummy red lentil soup that came with fluffy warm bread. Then we had the falafel dinner plate. The falafel was cooked perfectly, crunchy on the outside and warm and moist on the inside. The service was charming and hospitable.

Gyro is good but small portions. The lamb donor was 90% rice as can be seen in photo

The food is very healthy and delicious. I highly recommend this restaurant. This Mediterranean style restaurant is consistently great

The lamb donner sandwich was so good! The turkish bread was nice and fluffy, and the meat portion was very generous. Your sandwich also comes with a free drink which includes turkish tea. The baklava was also really delicious.

The food here is legit. Bland Utah dude right here that has never eaten shawarma, and it was amazing. If you are visiting, skip the overrated time square stuff and eat here. The people are super nice too.

Only ordered takeout from here during the 2020 quarantine. Overall, pretty impressed with the food. They have a variety of dips and meat selection. For the dips, the roasted eggplant sauce, hummus, and baba Ganoush were all delicious. My favorite surpringsly was the roasted eggplant sauce. For meats we ended up getting the lamb shish kabob and lamb kofta kebab platter. The meat was a little dry (I think maybe because it was takeout) but if you dipped it in the tzatziki sauce and hot Sauce it tasted great.

Got the small appetizer with hummus, baba ganoush, toasted eggplant and tzatizki and they were so good along with the Turkish bread. Got the combination platter with lamb kebab and lamb Adana and they were delicious too. A lot of rice but it was tasty

Another meh experience this past week with a not so great restaurant (should we call it that?). I've been to my fair share of Turkish restaurants and I wasn't so impressed with this place. I didn't realize that this was better for a takeout and get out experience than a sit in experience. Maybe the pictures I saw on Yelp beforehand were a bit misleading. I also didn't realize how cramped it was in the back and the limited seating available. In fact, they didn't even have a legit dining in menu (like a booklet or laminated paper), I was given their 3-folded takeout menu. Let's start with pros: * Aesthetically pleasing setting: while the place is cramped, I liked the surrounding design and the traditional serving ware used (makes instaworthy photos) * Turkish tea and sigara borek (Philo rolls) were good. But hey, you can't really go wrong with these items at a Turkish restaurant, imo * Convenient location- 5 minutes from the subway Cons- * Not good for sitting in and dining. You're not going to get that dining in experience here. Waiters are super busy handling the grub hub orders coming in (oh yeah, you'll hear the grub hub announcement going off every now and then too). It was hard to get their attention. * Their menu wasn't the most clear. Even though it says all the dishes under the Meat section are served with rice, salad, and bread, it's only in fact the first 3 or 4 dishes on the menu. There was no perforated line or anything separating the last couple of dishes on that section to indicate those were treated differently! I ordered lamb iskender and it was a lot of meat with soaked in bread. Ugh. It's a gravy filled dish, so some rice would have been nice. * Ok, so I'm not really one who comments on restaurant bathrooms but this one really got to me. It was basically a closet in my opinion. It was hard to get in since there is soo little space between the toilet and the door. Horrible. The bathroom mirror was put waaaay above the bathroom sink, making it futile. Either the contractor who made this bathroom was not the brightest or this bathroom was not built for the vertically challenged or anyone beyond a size 2, which is sad since the waiters were not that much taller than me (just saying...) Overall, for the price I paid, it really didn't live up to my expectations and I prefer many of the other Turkish places I frequented. Probably good for grub hub orders though

Amazing! This place has to be one of the most authentic restaurants when it comes to Turkish Mediterranean food. It's just that good. This was our first dinner in NYC so we had a bit of everything and everything was prepared to perfection. Hummus was some of the best I've had, bread excellent, salad fresh, falafel good, lamb chop perfect, Chicken juicy and flavorful, kofta...need I continue. This is a must. They would know me by name if I lived here. Loved seeing everything prepared right in front of me.

Popped in for lunch while showing someone around from out of town. Great place for a quick bite that is reasonably priced. We ordered grape leaves and shawarma sandwiches on the homemade lavash. The grape leaves tasted canned but good nonetheless. The shawarma sandwiches were perfect!

Came here quickly for a bite to eat. I was in the mood for a gyro and was on a quick break from bartending down the block. I found this place organically, I was pressed for time so I didn't have a chance to read reviews but it worked out. It was a small place but luckily there was a table available for me to sit and eat. I ordered a lamb gyro which came out pretty fast. I was really pleased with the amount of white sauce I was given. It was a lot since I sat to eat and I used it all up! I was excited to see the check in offer of a free dessert! I always check in on yelp! The gyro was about $10 with tax which is average especially for the area it's in. I ate the baklava this morning, sooo good!! Once I returned to bartend, 3 guys at the bar ordered gyros also and inhaled them!! (The bar I worked at doesn't serve food yet but allows customers to order food in.) I'd recommend this place to order out of. It's kind of small to sit and eat especially with all the foot traffic from people ordering takeout and deliveries going out.

Only a month into my new office location, IKH has already made the shortlist of go-to lunch places. To protect my arteries I will try to keep my visits down, but when I tell you that I was excited to see a doner place in Hell's Kitchen where you can grab a filling lunch for under $10...well. On my first and only trip so far I opted for the Turkish bread (the more expensive option, I think), which was probably more bread than I needed but made for a ridiculously decadent lunch sandwich. Succulent chicken tucked inside a giant flatbread, plentiful salad, and the requisite white and hot sauce will keep you satisfied--and then some. The doner keeps your falvor buds busy as you make your way through this behemoth sandwich. If you're looking to stay awake after lunch, go with a lighter bread option, like pita or wrap.

Came back from Istanbul a week ago and saw this place as I was walking about Hell's Kitchen. I had to give it a try and see if it was reminiscent of Istanbul! I will say that the music and all the decorations did remind me of Istanbul. I can't speak of the kebab as I got the falafel, but the falafel was made fresh to my order, crispy and flavorful. Finally, the price of this meal with the service, decorations and flavor you get are worth it! 5 stars for my experience here!

The food at this tiny joint might be some of the best kebab I have had in the city. This place exactly what New York's vibrant food scene is about, grabbing a bite before or after your Broadway show is the perfect was to complete a night out in the city experience. It may not be the fanciest of places but if you want a party in your mouth and for your stomach to thank you for the delicious food, definitely checkout this spot!

Food was delicious, service was excellent. It was a late night dinner, almost closing but they didn't rush us or cut any corners. Definitely will return when back in NYC!

We had an excellent meal at the Istanbul Kebab House! Our order of chicken kebabs, red lentil soup and rice pudding were prepared to perfection. The chicken was moist and succulent. This is a great place for a quick pre-theater dinner that doesn't break the bank. The dining room is small, so come early!