The best Middle Eastern restaurants in London

Striking blue furniture and geometric art are dotted all around Hazev making for a bright and inviting entrance into this Turkish restaurant. Grilled meat, vegetable mezze and cheese filled pastries are a few of the things you’ll find on the menu. Split into a bar area, deli or restaurant area, dining options are endless.

This stunning minimalist Middle Eastern restaurant doesn’t just boast beautiful décor, but incredibly presented dishes too. Grilled octopus, smokey aubergine with tahini and tuna shish all feature on the menu. Pop around the corner to try Honey & Co. too.

Celebrity chef Yotam Ottolenghi’s café/ deli has been a popular spot for Londoners looking for tasty casual middle eastern dishes. With seasonal menus and all-day dining, Nopi’s healthy and wholesome dishes include beef short ribs, sea trout with Koji rice and raw cauliflower with sprouts and Gorgonzola.

Hidden away in Kingly Court, Le Bab’s short menu and tasty options make picking easy. Hummus, pork shawarma and double cooked fries all feature and at such reasonable prices this is the place to be for weeknight dinners and quick lunches.

From the team behind Palomar, The Barbary serves up the increasingly popular Israeli cuisine. From grilled swordfish to goat stew, if you liked Palomar, The Barbary’s rustic interiors and exciting menu are a must try.

Drawing inspiration for Tel Aviv, Russia and Iran, Delmina’s homely vibe and exciting dishes are what have made it so popular in the city. From Jerusalem artichokes on whipped manouri, Turkey Shawarma and squid in za’atar, each dish shows clear influence of all the cuisines incorporated in this restaurant.

With a luxurious setting, simple but effective menu and great location in Islington, The owners of Antepliler have had 20 years to perfect their restaurant. With traditional Pide and charcoal grill meats, you’ll only find the most authentic dishes here.  

Re-imagining Turkish cuisine, Danish couple Lee and Kate Tiernan offer up a different take on the popular cuisine. From charred onion with pomegranate to a mixed grill with tomatoes and hash browns. The Turkish might not approve but we certainly do.

Having been in the city for over 20 years, Iznik’s menu features all your usual suspects. Think: hot and cold mezze, mixed grill and lots of aubergine. Décor has authentic touches throughout too.

With over 90 cold mezze dishes on the menu and the option of ordering lamb 20 ways including lamb testicles (yes, you read that correctly) Al Hamra's traditional décor and weird but wonderful menu make it well worth a visit. 

Part of Kings Cross huge new development, Coal Drops Yard, The Coal Office comes from the team behind hit middle eastern restaurant Palomar. The menu includes ironed chicken, kubaleh bread and shikshukit kebab.

Chef-founder Yuma Hashemi has moved away from serving Modern European cuisine to focus entirely on a Persian feasting experience, inspired by his favourite family recipes. There's no fixed menu as such, but the tahdig is a regular fixture and well worth a visit in itself.

Originating in Bahrain, Villa Mama’s Chelsea location offers up authentic middle eastern breakfasts and tapas-style sharing plates come evening time. Expect khubus with eggs in the morning and lamb koftas with mash later in the day.

Featuring a traditional oçakbasi-grilled, you’ll find the middle eastern staple of grilled meats in abundance here. Sharing mezze dishes work as a great starter before you move onto meatier options you can watch cook right in front of you.

Named after The Amber trade route, this all-day dining restaurant combines its Mediterranean routes with London influences making for an authentic menu with a fun modern twist. Expect everything from acai bowls to ceviche on this menu.

Calamari marinated in vodka, tabbouleh and incik are just a few of the dishes worth noting on this Ottoman-style menu. Taking inspiration from Ottoman history and culture, you’ll find dishes and décor to match at this family run restaurant.

Arabic for treasure, opulence is the word at Kenza. With stunning authentic interiors and home-cooked Lebanese food, mezze dishes are followed by chargrilled chicken and moussaka. Head down to the cocktail lounge for music and belly dancing too.

Offering the best of both Greek and Turkish cuisine, Hovarda’s formal dining room and décor makes this restaurant ideal for special occasions and corporate meetings a like. Seafood is the main attraction here but the baby chicken is worth a try too.

Serving up Beirut street food, this tiny restaurant is a hit with Londoners. Featuring lamb kibbeh, fattoush and shawarma, we suggest booking ahead if you don’t fancy a wait to get your hands on this Middle Eastern goodness. 

Taking inspiration from all over the middle east, Arabica’s huge menu means its hard to pick just one dish. Thankfully sharing plates of lamb kibbeh, moutabel and knafeh mean you can try a bit of everything in this archway restaurant located in Borough Market.

A favourite of Middle Eastern families visiting the city for the summer, you can be sure that Ishbilia will serve only the most authentic dishes and experience to match. With an outdoor terrace great for summer lunches you’ll find charcoal grilled kebabs, moutabel and stew with rice.

Watch the chefs at this Turkish-inspired restaurant bake endless rounds of pide bread in its charcoal oven while you shovel down some of its incredible sharing mezze plates. The baklava is a must. 

As one of the hottest restaurants in Istanbul, at Yeni you can rest assured, anything you eat is endorsed by the Turkish themselves. Sharing plates include the likes of pan fried feta, roasted beef ribs and braised celeriac.

Berenjak has all the typical features you’d find in a middle eastern restaurant. With a tandoor, menu of sharing plates and colourful, busy décor, just like the other restaurants in its portfolio (think Bao and Hoppers) Berenjak is a hit in the city.

Using a traditional Ocak grill to cook all its grilled meat dishes, Visiting Mangal 1 is definitely an experience. As a favourite of both Jamie Oliver and Yotam Ottolenghi, you can guarantee great dishes every time too.

With riverside views, a menu filled with the classics, think baba gannouj, foul moudamas and lamb cutlets, friendly staff still make this London restaurant seem like it and all its visitors are part of a community.  Don’t forget to enjoy a shisha by the river before you leave either.

This restaurant does theatre style dining like you’ve never seen it before. Cooking up high-end kebabs on an open grill you can watch from the bar as everything is made fresh in front of you. They also suggest eating everything with your hands by the way.

As one of the most popular Israeli restaurants in London, it’s no wonder The Palomar’s always buzzing. Located, rather strangely in China Town, dishes include grilled chicken with black rice, fattoush and malabi syrup pudding.

Having moved from the hustle and bustle of Piccadilly, Al Waha now resides in the significantly quieter neighbourhood of Notting Hill. Focusing on great quality ingredients and traditional cooking methods, you can find labneh, pastry stuffed with spinach and Armenian lamb on this menu.

Combining North African and Middle Eastern cuisine, Josh Katz’s (former Ottolenghi chef) industrial archway restaurant offers up cauliflower shawarma and sticky harissa chicken wings. Berber & Q is no reservation though so get there quick.