Zahter
Turkish restaurant · Soho ·
Innovative Turkish cuisine with wood-fired dishes and mezze
Innovative Turkish cuisine with wood-fired dishes and mezze
"Nestled in the hugely popular Carnaby area, Zahter brings the flavours of Istanbul to London via an all-day menu of dishes that reflect the diverse mixture of culinary cultures found in Turkey’s largest city. The chargrill and wood-burning oven play a key part in the menu, which mixes hot and cold meze with ‘main dishes’, like köfte piyaz, that are packed with flavour. The kitchen counter helps to add a lively buzz to the atmosphere and, as this is the West End, their pre-theatre menu is an appealing proposition." - The MICHELIN Guide UK Editorial Team
"This shiny and slick restaurant off Carnaby Street serves food inspired by Istanbul. Which means the mezze, both hot and cold, is spectacular. Luscious muhammara, sweet with peppers and pomegranate, is made for scooping up with the crisp and warm wood-fired pide. Give us bread and a bucket of this and we're happy. A good portion of the mezze at Zahter is vegan which is the best part of a meal here anyway, so order a selection, and get more pide that you can feasibly eat." - jake missing, rianne shlebak, daisy meager, sinead cranna
"Come on, did you really think we’d get to the end of Things We Ate This Year That We WhatsApped 8-10 Close Friends About—formal title: The Best New Dishes Of 2022—without causing our dentists some serious emotional turmoil? Of course not, and now without further ado we would like to introduce Zahter’s baklava. It is expertly, tongue-suckingly sweet, but never crosses the threshold into sickly, thanks to the inclusion of the piney mintiness of the pistachios and a dollop of thick, fresh cream. The filo is razor-thin and delightfully light, except the top layer which is thickened by syrup and allows you to participate in a little hobby we like to call ‘attack of the fork’. It has texture. It has style. And like most things at this glossy Turkish spot in Soho, it has a big price tag. But if you’re ever going to spend a tenner on dessert, it should be for this fantastically moreish looker." - daisy meager, jake missing, rianne shlebak, heidi lauth beasley
"If you’ve just returned from Istanbul and want to keep that holiday spirit alive, then get along to this colourful Turkish restaurant just off Carnaby Street and sit at the counter for extra atmosphere. The chargrill and wood-burning oven are used to good effect, whether it's the potatoes with red onions or the prawns with chilli and garlic. Hummus comes with crispy fried chickpeas and is a great way to kick off, while the chicken thighs with peppers and tomato are succulent and flavoursome." - Michelin Inspector
"Considering the riches of Anatolian cuisine in London, you might feel a little put off when you sit down at Zahter—a shiny and slick restaurant off Carnaby Street cooking the food of Istanbul—to see that a single palm-sized pide with yoghurt would cost a fiver. £5? We're used to our bread being low on price and plentiful in Turkish restaurants. But equally, why should a few slices of sourdough and smoked butter be seen as standard at the same price? Restaurants like Mangal II have said the same thing when it comes to the price and preconceptions of Turkish food, and it’s something we should all consider when we start complaining about the cost of certain cuisines. Especially, when the food is as good as it is at Zahter. The mezze, both hot and cold, is spectacular. Luscious muhammara, sweet with peppers and pomegranate, made for scooping up with their crisp and warm wood-fired pide. Give us bread and a bucket of this and we're happy. But we're even happier when crunchy, caramelised beef manti are involved. These aren’t the soft kind of dumpling. They’re crisp and fattily glued to the cast iron they sit on. Excellently snackable (and also very sausage roll-like). Best of all though is the kayseri yaglamasi. Layers of pita bread, spiced beef mince, garlic labneh and walnuts. Think of a pancake tower made of lahmacuns. It’s a real greedy guts creation that speaks to our ultimate form: happy, hungover and feeling gluttonous when we open the fridge. Ultimately, yes, Zahter does add up to an expensive restaurant. But that's because food this good is worth it. LDN Guide London’s Best New Dishes Of 2022" - Jake Missing
