Location: London, England
Cuisine: Turkish
First visit
Victor and I first visited Mangal II in January 2022. Having visited so many wonderful Turkish places in Dalston over the years, we hadn’t yet tried this modern take on Turkish cuisine. Mangal II has been well-loved for a long time by locals, celebrities and London foodies. Once Covid-19 had calmed down a bit, we made the point of finally visiting a place right next to where we live!
On this first visit, we started with the classic Sourdough Pide with Cultured Kaymak Butter. We also got Grilled Leeks with some sort of cheese that I don’t remember, but it was delicate and delicious, and also some sort of stuffed leaves (that I also don’t remember the name of!). But, both were delicious and really interesting. For dessert, we got the Künefe and some Turkish coffee. The Künefe was absolutely perfect.
Second visit
For my second visit, Victor and I took his parents here to try it as they love Turkish food. We had to start with the Sourdough Pide with Cultured Kaymak Butter. Kaymak is a creamy dairy food similar to clotted cream, consequently making the butter super duper creamy. You can see from the photo that the butter had changed a bit from our previous visit, but definitely for the better. The butter was even more fluffy. We also got the House Çökelek with Spring Peas, Young Broad Beans and Pastirma Oil. Çökelek is a fermented and acid/heat-coagulated fresh cheese. My pro tip for anyone having Turkish cuisine is to get anything with yoghurt or cheese, and this Çökelek didn’t disappoint!
We also got the Courgette and Potato Mücver with Smoked Herring Roe. Mücver are Turkish-style vegetable fritters, and these were decadent and scrumptious.
For our first courses, we got the Fermented Red Pepper and Savoy Cabbage Sarma with an Asparagus Sauce and Leek and Aged Kasar Börek with Spinach and Smoked Cream. Sarma is made of vegetable leaves rolled around a filling of minced meat, grains such as rice, or both. Kaşar is a cheese that is usually made with pure cow’s milk or a mixture of cow and goat’s milk. Börek is a pastry made with filo dough.
For my main, I got the Aged Pollock Sarma with a Green Grilled Ezme and a Wild Garlic Sauce. Ezme is a classic Turkish sauce and appetizer that’s usually served on the side of kebabs with some fresh bread. This was a green version, which was an interesting (and yummy) take on a classic.
For dessert, we shared the Mountain Tea Sütlaç with Honeycomb and Sea Buckthorn. Sütlaç is essentially a Turkish version of rice pudding. The flavour combination was really interesting, definitely a winner.
Third visit
In June 2024 I went for the lunch set menu with Victor and a friend of ours. The set menu is an amazing deal. I started with the Sourdough Pide with Cultured Kaymak Butter. Still amazing! The other diners got the Cull Yaw Fat Sourdough and while they said it was yummy, they kept taking my butter!
For our first course, options were the Cacik with Carousello Cucumber and Grilled Peas or the King Prawn Şiş with Dried Kapya Pepper. Victor and our friend got the shrimp while I got the veggie dish. I loved the fresh and spring taste of my dish. Cacik is a yoghurt and cucumber-based meze or side dish, and the combination with the peas made it even more refreshing.
Moving onto the second course, options were Chicken and Cabbage Manti with Burnt Calçot or Smoked Mushroom Sehriyeli Pilav with Grilled White Asparagus. Both dishes really shined. Manti is a Turkish dumping. I tasted a bit of the sauce from this dish and it was wonderfully flavourful. The smoked flavour of my Turkish rice pilaf was extremely satisfying, and I honestly have never seen such large asparagus.
Even though we were quite full, our friend and I couldn’t resist a dessert. Victor reluctantly agreed (poor him haha) and we shared the Smoked Olive Oil Cake with Lavender and Honey. Victor isn’t a fan of strong, floral tastes so it was a bit too much for him, but I thought it was so yummy. The smoked olive oil was my favourite taste note.
After three visits, I can safely this is one of my favourite neighbourhood restaurants. I find their food delicious and comforting, yet refined and interesting. I also love that they offer a set lunch menu, something that’s really hard to find outside of central London.
Looking for more restaurant recommendations in London? Check out my other reviews here.
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