If I were to pick one region’s cuisine to eat for the rest of my life, it would likely be the Middle East. Turkey, Egypt, Syria, Israel, Lebanon and many more were once part of the Ottoman Empire, while Iran developed alongside it as an independent Persian empire. Despite their different political histories, these regions have influenced one another’s cuisines for centuries through trade, migration, and cultural exchange. Their food cultures are varied, full of herbs and spices, and with a great balance of sharing dishes (meze, mezze, mazzeh, mazze, spell it how you will) and grilled meats and fish. Plus, due to immigration from these parts of the world to the Netherlands, it’s a cuisine that’s well represented here. There are literally hundreds of Middle Eastern and Turkish restaurants in Amsterdam, but these are some of my favourites.
Want to eat more than Turkish food in Amsterdam? Download my Amsterdam Restaurant Guide:
Best Turkish Restaurants in Amsterdam
esra
You know it must be good when two friends who don’t even live in the Netherlands are telling you to go. That was the case with Turkish-ish restaurant esra, which was a triumph all round. Picky eaters beware: there’s no choice, just a sharing menu for the whole table that’s set by the kitchen. First, you’ll be treated to a couple of mezze dishes – in our case, a tangy feta, yoghurt and mint dip, plus a caramelised onion, walnut and pomegranate number – served with pide. Next came an array of tasty brassica, cooked in various ways and accented with grated aged ricotta. Then cod with a Turkish take on beurre blanc, followed by a meaty mixed grill with beef-fat chips. There was dessert, too, but by then we’d ordered (ahem) four bottles of wine between five of us and I struggle to remember much about it other than that it was good. In fact, the whole experience was more than good. It was exactly what dining out should be: surprising dishes that you wouldn’t cook at home, interesting wines that you don’t find in many shops, perfect service that can be hard to come by in Amsterdam restaurants.
Ali Ocakbaşı
With a gorgeously decorated interior and canal views, Ali Ocakbaşı is a classy establishment for a night out. Their mezze selection is brought around in a giant basket from which to make your choice. My favourite was the çiğ köfte: finely minced raw beef with bulgur wheat and chilli, hand moulded into sort of knobbly cylinders. Eat them wrapped in lettuce leaves with a squeeze of lemon. But everything else was equally delicious, from the ali tarator (black garlic yoghurt with carrot and caramelised onion) to the kopoglu (fried aubergine, potato and green pepper). Try to leave room for one or two of Ali Ocakbaşı’s kebabs – they’re famous for them, and you can see the chefs grilling the meaty skewers over open flames downstairs. Plus, don’t forget to try the Turkish wine!
Orontes
With two locations in Amsterdam, Orontes De Pijp on the Albert Cuypstraat and Orontes West on the Hugo de Grootplein pay homage to the Antakya region of Turkey. They import hard-to-find products from the area and cook them up into excellent dishes, including succulent lamb skewers, aromatic aubergine, and mixed grills cooked over charcoal. Nesip Can’s wine selection is wonderful, too.
Maydanoz
An unassuming Turkish restaurant on the Ceintuurbaan in De Pijp, Maydanoz has an extensive mezze selection that’s worth working through before moving on to the grilled meats. On the mezze menu the night I visited: cacik (yoghurt with cucumber and dill), hummus and baba ganoush (both of which were very accomplished versions of themselves), cheese “cigars”, fried meaty “torpedoes”, and my favourite: ispanak, braised spinach with pepper, tomatoes, pine nuts and raisins. If you have room after all that, their grilled meats are good too: perfectly cooked and with a tasty BBQ char.
Best Middle Eastern Restaurants in Amsterdam
Bar Bachrach
Ever since it opened to much critical acclaim, Bar Bachrach has been serving up some next-level Israeli stuff, featuring flavours I’ve not tasted before in Amsterdam. Especially impressive were the beef tartare that was singing with preserved lemons, silky-smoky aubergine from a kamado-style BBQ in the kitchen, and a stunning dish of raw langoustine, pickled cabbage, crispy bulgar and sweet-sour pomelo. These were all small, shareable dishes, but there are larger dishes like whole grilled fish and sticky ribs as well. To taste the full gamut of Bar Bachrach’s impressive skills in the kitchen, order the chef’s menu for a little bit of everything. I loved the Alsatian pinot blanc and the Valencian tempranillo that we ordered, too. Food this good is matched by the price tag but it’s well worth every cent. Simply stunning.
Night Kitchen
It’s hard to categorise Night Kitchen, as they dabble in the general Mediterranean area as well as the Middle East. Yes, you’ll find plenty of za’atar, labneh and sumac, but you’ll also find Italian-style gnudi, French-style mussels and Portuguese-style octopus. Luckily for us, they do all these things (and more) extremely well. Night Kitchen is a cosy spot to prop up the bar with a perfectly mixed cocktail, and then wander through to the restaurant with its dark split-tone walls, copper pots and hanging plants. Your best bet is to order the shareable “dinner with friends”, and relax while dish after dish appears on your table. My favourites were possibly the celeriac with feta, za’atar and pistachio, as well as the octopus with spinach, potatoes, smoked paprika and yoghurt. But fish lovers will also highly rate the grilled sardines and the seabass sashimi. The excellent natural wines are easy to pair with the dishes, too.
Editor’s note: I was invited to eat at Night Kitchen as a journalist, and I didn’t pay for my meal. Obviously I try to be as objective as possible, but I always disclose when I’ve had a freebie.
Mitts
Med-led Mitts is a cosy little place on the Javastraat, with natural fabrics covering cushioned benches and greenery adorning the walls. The mezze-style menu is designed to be shared, and the dishes are split into a longer list of veggie options and a shorter list of meat ones, of which we tried what felt like a representative sample. Roasted beetroot with burrata and pistachio nuts was creamy and wintry, while grilled broccolini with tahini and za’atar tasted fresh and healthy. Meanwhile in the meat department, two small kofte-style lamb kebabs were possibly my favourite dish: served with a spicy tomato and herb salsa and more tahini. Pulled chicken with hummus, pecan nuts, pomegranate seeds and herbs was also delicious, especially when piled onto pillowy pitas. Mitts’ cocktails are also excellent.
De Aardige Pers
Warning: do not eat for at least four hours (more if you can manage it – I can’t) before stepping foot inside De Aardige Pers. There’s no way you’re getting out of there anything other than food-baby full. With the fasting out of the way, start by ordering the trio of starters – the chef’s selection – all top notch. Then move onto the grilled meats: simple but perfectly cooked kofte kebabs, chicken thighs, lamb loin and so on – all served with fragrant saffron rice and grilled tomatoes. De Aardige Pers isn’t fancy looking, but the food is more than decent and the prices very reasonable.
Hummus Bistro d&a
With two locations (one on the Jordaan, the other in Zuid), Hummus Bistro d&a serves officially the best hummus in Amsterdam – in variations involving falafel, chicken, siniya (minced lamb) and many more. In addition to the hummus, I also loved their shakshuka, stuffed aubergine, and a plethora of little side dishes that were either spicy or pickled or both. The service was friendly and the prices reasonable.
Beyrouth
Its name a riff on the Lebanese capital, Beyrouth has been a favourite Amsterdam restaurant for as long as I can remember (owner Kamal Estephan opened it in 1990 when I was just 10). The range of mezze here is huge – you can pick from separate dishes or order a selection of as many as 10 or 15 – so I usually fill up on those alone. Their tabbouleh was perfect: green and grassy with oodles of fresh herbs.
NENI
NENI’s enormous premises in the converted Citroën garage on Stadionplein make it ideal for group dining. But even if you’re having dinner for two, or flying solo, the size of the space doesn’t detract from the quality of the food. NENI’s owners have Israeli, Romanian and Spanish roots, so you can expect an Eastern Mediterranean party on your palate. The hummus is silky smooth, the aubergine smoky and grassy with olive oil, the seabass crudo laced with pomegranate – even the olives are outstanding. The veg-led dishes were definitely the highlight: try the sabich – think the Israeli answer to focaccia, studded with aubergine, eggs, tahini, a tangy mango sauce and a fresh, fragrant, herb-rich salsa. Try also the generous fish cakes with char-grilled vegetables. Prices are reasonable and the atmosphere buzzing.
Editor’s note: I was invited to eat at NENI as a journalist, and I didn’t pay for my meal. Obviously I try to be as objective as possible, but I always disclose when I’ve had a freebie.
Lebanese Sajeria
With a few locations in Amsterdam, the Lebanese Sajeria does an industrious line in manoushe: a type of flatbread that’s rolled and eaten with your hands. I tried one of the vegetarian versions featuring za’atar and halloumi – the latter of which was not what you’d expect, being grated and melted rather than sliced and fried. The za’atar was rich in sesame seeds and dried herbs (and don’t worry – it comes with pretty much whichever version of manoushe you choose), while the flatbread itself was flavourful from the whole wheat. The entire thing was wrapped up with mint, cucumber and tomatoes and served in paper for around a tenner. Bargain.
Want to eat more than Middle Eastern food in Amsterdam? Download my Amsterdam Restaurant Guide:
On your travels and want to use this article offline with GPS-guided navigation? Download the travel guide app via GPSmyCity!
