OPENS 2020
Serial restaurateur Alan Yau, the founder of hugely popular dining spots including Hakkasan, Busaba Eathai, Yauatcha and Wagamama (among several others), is due to launch two new restaurants in 2020, in addition to relocating his popular Turkish pizza restaurant, Yamabahçe. Currently, the fast-casual restaurant is situated in Marylebone, but next year it will move to a new site in Westfield Shepherd’s Bush.
For those who have yet to sample its delights, Yamabahçe is a concept based around the Turkish flatbread called pide, which is cooked with fresh and raw ingredients jumbled together. Popular toppings at the restaurant include Spanish grass-fed beef, fontina cheese, black olives, sucuk (spicy Turkish sausage) and chargrilled aubergine, all of which are available in various combinations at Yamabahçe.
At its current Marylebone location, Yamabahçe can accommodate 47 covers indoors, and a further 70 outside, but it’s not yet known how big the new site will be or whether it will include new dishes on the menu. Currently, Yamabahçe is open from breakfast onwards and serves up a whole range of tasty dishes, including the likes of Turkish-style eggs and breakfast pide, alongside meat and pastry dishes cooked in a wood-fire oven, salads, desserts and drinks.
Delivery, collection and takeaway options are also available and with an average price point of £13 per head, it’s an accessible addition to Yau’s restaurant portfolio, which has always ranged from the high end to the high street.
It’s not known exactly when Yamabahçe Marylebone will close or when Yamabahçe in Westfield Shepherd’s Bush will open, but we’ll keep you posted. We would suggest visiting the original Yamabahçe while you still can though, whether it’s for an egg and sucuk pide and coffee on a weekend brunch stop, a bowl of soup with a warm flatbread for lunch or slow-roasted lamb with Turkish herbs followed by kunefe for dessert in the evening.