The Best Turkish Restaurants in Europe — A Guide to 8 Cities

Turkish cuisine is one of the world's richest, and it has left a deep mark on European cities over the past 50 years. Germany's Turkish diaspora exceeds 4 million, the Netherlands has 400,000 Turks, the UK 300,000. That means real Turkish food has become part of the street.

For each city below we've separated 'old-school' and 'modern' addresses. Each link goes directly to that city's restaurant page on our site — sorted by Google rating.

Over 200,000 Turks live in Berlin, and döner kebab as we know it today was actually invented here in 1971 (thanks to Kadir Nurman). Kreuzberg and Neukölln are the heart of Turkish restaurants — every corner has a kebab house, a Turkish bakery, a greengrocer.

Mustafa's Gemüse Kebap (Mehringdamm) still has lines around the block; Imren and Hisar are old-school kebab masters. Zeyrek Restaurant nails real home cooking. Damaskus Konditorei (Sonnenallee) is essential for baklava, künefe, kataif.

London's Turkish community is over 300,000. Hackney, Stoke Newington, and Green Lanes (Harringay) are the Turkish-Cypriot strongholds. Mangal 1, Mangal 2, and Likya Restaurant are cult grill spots. FM Mangal in Stoke Newington has been running 30+ years.

For breakfast, Mez Mangal or Cypriot Cafe; for sweets, Pasha Patisserie. For evening grill, Skewd Kitchen (Cockfosters). For Turkish delight, head to Yasar Halim.

Amsterdam has roughly 80,000 Turks. Sloterdijk and Bos en Lommer are dense with Turkish businesses. Big halls like Anatolia and Saray host weddings as well as everyday dinners.

For a quick lahmacun and ayran, hit a corner shop. For sweets, Konditorei Yasemin is famous for baklava.

Paris's Turkish quarter is rue du Faubourg Saint-Denis in the 10th arrondissement. Urfa Dürüm is the street classic — real Urfa-style wraps. Petra Restaurant a few steps away.

Vienna has nearly 100,000 Turks. Favoriten (10th district) is the center. Kent Restaurant is an authentic, long-running spot; Turkuaz is the upscale evening choice.

Brussels's Schaerbeek is the Turkish-Belgian neighborhood. Chaussée de Haecht is lined with Turkish restaurants, butchers, greengrocers. Kervan for grills, Pasha Sultan for evenings.

Cologne's Turkish community is around 60,000. Eigelstein and Mülheim are the main neighborhoods. Akropolis's lahmacun, Manuk's köfte plate, and Ürfa-Stube's pide are local classics.

In Frankfurt outside the financial district, Bornheim is where Turkish restaurants line up. Specifically named classics like Türk Pidesi are still going.

Each city above has a sorted-by-rating restaurant page on our site. Click the restaurant category for real, ranked listings.