Yosma is an upmarket Turkish restaurant on Baker Street in Marylebone with a really good reputation for traditional Turkish cuisine, especially from their mangal – open charcoal grill. Shiima and I were very intrigued by Turkish cuisine as we’ve never tried it, and our interest was peaked by Yosma’s menu at Taste of London 2018.

We went for dinner last Thursday and although we arrived about 7:20ish (late for out 7PM reservation lol) the restaurant was still a bit sparse, but it did pick up about 8:30ish. On the other hand, the beautiful bar that was showing the Argentina vs. Croatia world cup match was fairly busy.

The restaurant is exquisitely furnished, with an open kitchen and mangal at one end of the fairly large room, and the service was friendly and really attentive.

What we ordered

We were really hungry, but even before we ordered we were provided complimentary bread, which we absolutely loved so we were certainly going to order more!

The menu is simple; it’s split in Cold Meze, Hot Meze, Steak, Salad, Soup, Mangal, Mains, and Sides. We ordered bread and hummus, which aren’t in any particular category. We also ordered Manti, Chicken Wings, Borek, and Calamari as starters from Hot Meze. For mains, Shiima ordered Baby Chicken from Mangal and I ordered Beef Rib.

 

The Food

Starters

The bread was incredible and the best of the starters by a long stretch, so much that we ordered two more portions! The hummus was decent, but not amongst the best we’ve had recently.

The borek was really good – really delicious pastry with tasty spinach filling. We weren’t particularly enamored with any of the other hot meze. The chicken wings seemed promising but they were a tad too dry and charred. The manti had a unique taste, but also an acquired taste, and the calamari okay.

Mains

I didn’t really enjoy my beef rib, mostly because I didn’t like the glaze. It was perfectly cooked though – fall of the bone succulent.

Shiima’s baby chicken really wasn’t to our taste either. It was a tad salty, and beyond that it seemed to be lacking a distinct flavour. It was served on a bed on corn and we both enjoyed that more than the chicken.

Dessert!

The dessert menu had quite a few intriguing options, but we went for warm tahini cake and cheesecake.

Shiima ordered the warm tahini cake, which perfectly warm and had creamy melted centre, which she didn’t enjoy… something about a spice she didn’t like (I think it was the tahini! Ha!). She really enjoyed the hazelnut ice cream though.

I tried a bit of the tahini cake, but I much preferred my rich and creamy cheesecake, especially with the pistachios. A top-notch dessert!

 

Verdict

Yosma was fun, although we didn’t especially enjoy the food, the restaurant is beautiful and the service was excellent. It’s perfect for both casual and romantic dates, casual dining with friends, a business meal where you are looking to impress, and special occasions, particularly for large groups. They also have an excellent breakfast menu, and as I mentioned earlier the bar is beautiful. Plus, it’s the summer and they’ve got a few tables outside for some al fresco dining. Yosma is moderately expensive, so do consider that as well.

Cuisine: Traditional Turkish and Mangal
Dress Code: Casual/Smart Casual
Shiima & Amen’s Star Dish: Bread!
Price: £30-£40pp (excluding alcohol)
Rating: 3.5 out of 5

Yosma
50 Baker St, Marylebone
London W1U 7BT
Reserve at OpenTable,
or call 020 3019 6282