Turkish food is definitely up there as one of my favourite cuisines, so when Antep rocked up on Ladypool Rd, I knew it had to be tested. Especially as I was hearing only good things about the place, I knew I had to stick my two-pence in too.
The place is slightly awkward to get parking for, but we struck gold and secured one. There is a great atmosphere in the restaurant, it has been decorated well with gold ascents with a mainly black colour palate, which gives it a luxurious yet homely feel. For starters, we chose hummus and falafel. The hummus is served with bread and the bread was warm and so beautifully soft and tasty. I saw that they also make pizzas out the same bread and it comes on a long wide platter, I didn't get to try it but I definitely will in future. The hummus came with a sprinkling of sumac (a favourite spice of mine), a dash of olive oil and an olive in the middle. The portion was very generous and lasted throughout our main meal too. Now the taste - it was creamy, flavoursome and had lots of depth. It is the best hummus I have tried to be honest and I have to tell you, I have tried a fair few. The falafel also did not disappoint and was slightly different to the usual falafel, as it was made of chunky lentils and had been spiced beautifully; as well as being served with cucumbers, tomatoes and hummus. Starters were a winner so we couldn't wait for the mains. We decided to share a mixed grill platter aka the Antep Platter.
It included Lamb and Chicken Doner, Chicken Shish, Lamb Shish, Adana Kofte, Lamb Ribs, Chicken Wings, Rice and Bulgar Wheat; as well as salad (there was no space on the platter so they gave this separately, shown below). I have to say that this was simply amazing. Yes, it is a mass of meat but it is 6 different kinds and they all have a different taste to them. My favourite had to be the chicken shish (long kebab), cubes of chicken, the salad and the bulgar wheat. Their version of doner meat was completely different also, I found it quite chewy and tasty but not as good as the chicken shish. This is a great dish for those that are going to the restaurant for the first time, like an introduction to the food that allows you to pick what you like. There was two of us and we weren't able to finish the dish but the waiter was stunned about how much we were able to have; why does this make me so proud?! Anyways, the leftovers were used as lunch the next day and that was AWESOME!
Overall, the service, food and general ambiance of the restaurant won me over and I cannot wait to go again.
Food - 5/5
The food was to die for, well seasoned, full of flavour, good portion sizes and good value.
Dairy-free options? - 5/5
I didn't ask about the allergens as I was pretty sure that what we ordered was ok, however I am sure that allergens wouldn't be a problem.
Service - 5/5
Knowledgeable and friendly. Really liked how there was a mixture of female and male employees, I think it may be family run but not sure. Cannot fault them.
Cleanliness - 5/5
Considering the constant flow of customers, they kept on top of it and everything was clean to a high standard.
Location - 4/5
Easy to find but parking can be a problem.
Value for Money - 5/5
Everything came up to £30, this included the Antep Platter and 2 starters.
Worth trying? Somewhere where you don't get the average kebab, you get an extraordinary selection instead.
Instagram worthy? Yes!
The menu - http://www.anteprestaurant.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/antep-birmingham-turkish-restaurant.pdf
Have you tried Antep? What other Turkish place is worth trying in Birmingham?
*All views are my own. I was not paid for this review, I just loved the food*
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