Zengi

I was surprised to read Stephen's review as my friends and I, a group of 18, had such a great night at Zengi. We were given warm fresh bread and olive oil as soon as we sat down and our food arrived pretty quickly. Most of my friends had a grilled main with mezzes which were good proportions. We went on a saturday . All in all a great place. I wonder if they have different staff on different days?
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Florence
8 Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 8
Monday, January 25, 2010

Complete disaster, went here on 22.1 as a party of 27 people (prebooked in advance) and were split into little underground "tunnel" tables at 8 a piece plus another support table.

We waited for 1 h 30 minutes having ordered food to find NOTHING delivered despite ever more persistent requests, one of our party was a pregnant lady and even she was not given a piece of bread! finally in disgust we left, Manager not bothered. It was like Fawlty Towers ....
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Stephen Doran
0 Overall rating
Food 0 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 0 | Value for money 0
Friday, January 22, 2010

After reading rave reviews by Time Out a couple of weeks ago, Dr G and I decided to visit this newly opened Turkish/Iraq restaurant on Commercial Street, E1. I normally go to Green Lanes, particularly “Antepliler” for my fix of Turkish food, but we were curious to try a local BYO place with some interesting Iraq dishes on their menu.

The entrance is not the most attractive part of this new restaurant, and I firstly wondered where we would be sitting as there is little sitting area at that level. The basement is where Ali, the owner’s son, brought us to, and we were pleased to find a warm and comfortable dining area there.

The décor is simple but elegant, with white, arched alcoves furnished with colourful cushions & hanging lanterns creating a relaxed and private ambience. I don’t normally like eating at lower ground (unless it is Hakkasan) but was pleasantly surprised to find such a well furnished and cosy spot.

Ali was very attentive, and took great care and time explaining the various dishes on the menu to us. Soon after placing our order, he brought us a basket with freshly stone-baked bread which was hot and delicious.

The first of the three mezze dishes that we ordered to arrive was “Mutabel” @ £3.50, an aubergine based dip with yoghurt, garlic and tahini. Despite the somewhat unappetising look of the dish, it tasted good and had a creamy and nutty finish from the tahini.

The second mezze was “Soudah” @ £4, a plate of fried chicken livers with onions, chopped peppers and coriander. I could also taste cinnamon and cayenne pepper in the spicy sauce although not much else. Despite loving chicken livers, I felt that this dish was a bit disappointing, good but not outstanding, and a tad dry.

The “Mosul Kibbeh” @ £3.50, a traditional dish of northern Iraq was an interesting choice. I had eaten kibbeh many times before but never in this way. Similar to a flattened stuffed croquette, a thin layer of cracked wheat had been filled with spiced meat, almonds and sultanas and fried.

I really wanted to enjoy this dish but I was slightly underwhelmed by it – I felt that the fried cracked wheat “envelope” was hard and that there was not enough filling to justify all the chewing.

For main, I went for “Char-grilled Lamb Chops” @ £9.50 - this is my favourite dish at Antepliler, so I ordered this to find how Zengi’s version would compare. Zengi’s chops were delicious, well-seasoned, and perfectly cooked but unfortunately there was not enough meat on them. At £9.50 I felt that the quantity of meat was a bit stingy, a problem that I never encountered at Antepliler.

Serving them on a large white plate (when there is not enough food to cover it) did not help either – the accompaniments, salad and rice, were passable - the salad did not look as vibrant and fresh as it could have done but it tasted fine.

“Dr G’s “Zengi Grill” @ £11.50 was a better choice. This consisted of pieces of lamb, kufta (or kofta) lamb shish kebab, and chicken tavouk (pieces). The meat was again well seasoned, very tender and perfectly cooked.

We were served two small sauces (one garlicky and creamy and another spicy tomato relish) which accompanied the meat well, really bringing out the lamb flavours. Ali also brought us some delicious pickles which had been made in the premises, and refilled our bread basket at no extra charge.

I noted in their menu a “Zengi Burger” @ £6.50 which unfortunately I was too full to try. According to the menu, it is made of grilled lamb burger, with sliced falafel and halloumi cheese topped with sweet pepper sauce and pickles in a stone baked sesame roll. It sounds very yummy, and I will most certainly come back for that.

Ali brought us our bill, and I noted that he accidentally overcharged us on the lamb chops but had forgotten to add the Mosul Kibbeh or the hot bread to the list of items. The total bill was therefore £32 for two excluding service.

I enjoyed my visit to Zengi and would like to return specially for their Turkish Burger and some of the other Iraq dishes I did not try this time. Ali was knowledgeable and passionate about his food which helped me to appreciate the menu and the food on offer.

Verdict - Despite the teething problems, in my opinion, Zengi offers good quality food at very reasonable prices. Being a BYO makes it an even more affordable option although portion sizes and quality of accompaniments should be looked at. Excellent service. Recommended.
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The London Foodie - View all reviews by this user
9 Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 9
Saturday, January 16, 2010

i was passing this restaurant when i decided to pop in. Decor was very nice and the smell of food immediately hit me! I was approached by the owner (i think) and it was nice to a more personal touch to restaurants. He showed me around and i was amazed to find that there was a hidden seating downstairs. It even has private coves for seating 6 people, ideal for business meetings. Food was fresh and tasted very good. Iv been to alot of turkish restaurants but this gave a different variety of turkish and middle eastern food which was refreshing. The downstairs seeting is very nice, and takes u away from the busy london street. Service was great and the tea at the end of the meal was a nice touch.

My partner and i ate alot of food and the whole bill came to about £30 with drinks. All in all very pleasant atmosphere and i think the food was really good! Full of flavour. I have been back there since and the owner still has the time to say hi to me.
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John
9 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 10
Friday, December 04, 2009