Pasha (Islington)

I've been coming to Pasha since I moved to London in 1997, and it was always one of my favourite places to visit, a kind of stalwart as other places opened and closed. We don't live in North London anymore but were in the area on Friday so decided to pop in. The meze starters are still excellent but overpriced compared to the Iranian/Middle Eastern restaurants we frequent in West London. And pitta bread was good. Mains were awful though - Turkish ravioli was parcels of horribly thick, rubbery pasta (have the settings on their pasta machine broken?!) filled with about 1/8 of a teaspoon of minced meat, the whole thing drowning in far too much passata with a ton of yoghurt and Parmesan on top. If this is an authentic dish, I'd be surprised. The other main of baked prawns with pilav I had eaten at Pasha before, but sadly they decided to reinvent the dish: six king prawns atop a pile of very tired looking salad, with a tiny bowl of boiled rice on the side. For £14.95. Hardly good value. We should have complained, really, but we were both starving, and it was all just about edible. (What we both really wanted was a classic kofte kebab with rice and a baked tomato, like they used to do - but they no longer make this classic dish. Why oh why not? It's precisely the kind of thing you crave when you're in a Turkish restaurant.)

Dessert almost redeemed things: what tasted like a homemade baklava, filled with coarsely ground pistachio and beautifully sweet, with cinnamon ice cream. Service from our waitress was lovely. But it's not 1997 anymore, and we're spoilt for choice now when it comes to London for great food, so I think that Pasha will now be consigned to a memory, rather than a place that we'd ever return to.
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whipped
6 Overall rating
Food 6 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 5
Monday, May 13, 2013

Our party of 4 had a fantastic night out at Pasha in Islington. We had all previously visited other Turkish restaurants in London and the South East but we were unanimous in our opinion of Pasha. It was the very best Turkish restaurant that any of us had ever visited. The food was amazing. We started with a full mixed meze which in itself was as good, and as filling, as any main course to be had. I lost count of the number of dishes that arrived on our table. For main course I had Pasha Chicken which was one of the best dishes I have ever had. Our waiter, Hasan, was very friendly, informative and attentive. And there was a great atmosphere in the restaurant, which was very busy and lively, and seemed to draw in a wide cross section of Londoners. We finished the evening with several cocktails from the bar including a "Nutty Turk"! I thoroughly recommend Pasha to anyone either trying Turkish food for the first time, of for seasoned veterans like ourselves. It was a great night out and was excellent value for money. We're now intending to make Pasha a regular monthly get together venue.
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Andy Horner
10 Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Monday, May 06, 2013

I have to Pasha a few times and have not been disappointed. My food has always been delicious and impeccably cooked, the service has always been attentive and the atmosphere friendly. I would recommend this restaurant to anyone.
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8 Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 8
Thursday, October 04, 2012

Come on... This place is not that bad. The restaurant is a bit like a posher Turkish kebab place, but I had a nice enough evening.

The waiters were a bit slow with drinks, esp if you sit at the back, but they were fine. The food is your standard Turkish fare, not exquisite but perfectly edible.

My only complaint is that I was super thirsty after the meal, and I reckon the flavour of the food came from MSG.
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7 Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 7
Thursday, September 20, 2012

I just been to pasha with my family for dinner.food wasnt all that.when you order kebab from any turkish restaurant you get pitta bread and also nice salad.half of the meat we had was all fat, salad was terrible and i had to ask for pitta bread twice and end up getting re heated pitta probably from left overs.The prices where on the pashas website menu didnt match with in the restaurants one.we have been overcharged and also had to pay a service charge of 15%.i wouldnt recomend this restaurant to anyone.
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sasha
4 Overall rating
Food 2 | Service 5 | Atmosphere 5 | Value for money 2
Monday, May 02, 2011

Took a punt on this restaurant on the off chance on 27th Dec., Liked the look from the outside and decided to stroll in.

Started with a mojito which was made just the way it should be.

I had the pan fried king prawn for starters which came with a small bowl containing the nicest dip I had in a while.. I asked the waiter and he was only too pleased to explain howi it was made. I had the lamb chops and my partner had a lamb roasted in what looked like an aubergine parcel.

We were pleasantly suprised at the excellent quality of the dishes we ordered and look forward to going back again,

The waiters seemed very friendly and unpretentious, which was nice.,

When we got home I looked up Pasha on the web and discovered that Boris

Jonshon also recommended it back in 2008.

Excellent food at reasonable prices. Nice surprise >>>we will be going back.
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Mike D
8 Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 8
Tuesday, December 28, 2010