Turkish By The Seaside

It is rare to have sunny hot days in the UK. But whenever we do I tend to like going to the seaside, particularly Great Yarmouth. It may not be everyone’s favourite destination but it will be after I tell you this – they have 3 Turkish restaurants down the road. Today’s dinner was at Shish – a Turkish Bar and Restaurant located in Lowestoft.

Décor/atmosphere

This restaurant has its own private car park. I like restaurants that have their own car parks. It helps with close proximity and hassle of finding a parking spot (especially when you don’t know the area), and also it gives a prestige wow factor. When you enter the car park and see the building you just know you’re at a good place. The outside looks clean, tall and inviting.

The restaurant is located up stairs. The downstairs is a bar which is also owned by the same owner. The restaurant is fairly grand and has its own balcony. The balcony looks over the sea which has a brilliant view.

Décor verdict 9.5/10

Service

We were shown to our table and I confirmed with them that the food was Halal. That’s as far as the quality of the service went. There were 7-8 waiters working but they all seemed like they didn’t know what to do. Granted it was still early on Saturday evening. I got asked for drinks 4 times (1 of them being after I’ve already ordered the drinks). I was also asked for desserts twice at the end.

Service verdict 6/10

Food

Bread

As most Turkish restaurants do, they provided complimentary bread with dips. The bread was cooked too much therefore became too crispy. We kept looking for the soft parts to enjoy the dips with. The dips were garlic sauce and chilli sauce. The garlic sauce was good. The chilli sauce is fire therefore be warned.

Meat platter for 2 (£20, Meat platter for 4 also available for £40)

This comprises of a large plate full of various meats – lamb shish, adana kebab, chicken shish, lamb ribs and chicken wings served with 2 portions of rice and a tortilla wrap. We exchanged the chicken shish for extra ribs.

The lamb ribs were amazing – maybe one of the best ribs I’ve ever had.

The chicken wings were good. They smelt so good and you can really taste the charcoal flavour.

The adana kebab was standard – perhaps maybe a little soft and needed to be cooked a little more. On the flipside the lamb shish was a little chewy and maybe should have been cooked a little less. I think overall the platter was decent, and the ribs made up for the other items.

Incik (Lamb Shank) (£12)

Lamb shank cooked with potato and carrots served with rice. The lamb shank was huge. The meat was really tender and had good texture. The flavour was good but personally I would have liked it a little bit spicier.

Food verdict 7.5/10

Price

The prices were very good. I think it helps having 2 other Turkish restaurants in town so they had to be competitive. I asked for garlic sauce with the platter and when the bill came I was surprised they charged me for it. Especially because I got it free with the bread at the start of the meal.

Price verdict 8.5/10

Conclusion

I think the décor and the views of the sea are great features of this restaurant. You don’t get this everywhere so they add positives. The service needs to be improved, and the food is nearly there – just a few minor tweaks. As mentioned the ribs were excellent so make sure you try them. The pricing is really good. Would I go there just for the food – yes but only because it’s quicker than going London.

Final verdict 8/10.