Located north of Finsbury Park, Harringay has for long time been placed on the fringes of the explorable part of London. Thanks to its turkish-cypriot restaurants has been then discovered by the Time Out and, following a regeneration project put in place by the council, the area has smoothed its rough edges and polished up shop-fronts and pavements. Some of the charm have been lost in the process but, passing the Overground bridge is like stepping in a different place, a city within a city.
Some of the restaurants have pushed a bit the limit splashing money on some rather tacky decorations, but if people keep coming here is because they can find some of the best turkish food in town. Here are my favourite restaurants in Green Lanes, in reverse order.
Hala
Green Lanes, London N4 1LG | Google Maps
Phone: 020 8802 4883 | Menu
It was once little more than a glorified kebab shop with 4 tables at the back, now they expanded to match up their neighbours’ grandeur, however I wasn’t too impressed with their Yogurtlu Adana. They are masters of grilled meat and still my favourite take-away: their wraps and stews (coming with bread, salad and rice) to go are still the best in the area.
Antepliler
46 Green Lanes, London N4 1AG | Google Maps
Phone 020 8802 5588
The guys working here made their best to spoil the reputation of their restaurant by being smug and rude. Now they even opened four places back to back, each catering different food, making it rather confusing. Make sure you enter the one with a wooden-fired oven to get a lahmacun or a pide, the typical turkish pizza. They lost all their peculiarity swapping the quirky low chairs in carved wood with bland modern furniture but their baked products are unmatched.
Gökyüzü
26-27 Grand Parade, Green Lanes London, N4 1LG | Google Maps
Phone: 020 8211 8406 | Menu
Its large dining room, polished yet informal, makes Gökyüzü ideal for a group meal or a dinner date. During one of those not-quite-romantic dinners, me and my mate celebrated my departure from Green Lanes with a mix grill for two: a mountain of rice and cous-cous covered in layers of meat, every kind of meat they offer is there. Despite being famously voracious we struggled to finish it, despite what’s written on the menu it’s better shared in 3-4 people.
Diyarkabir
Grand Parade, 69 Green Lanes, Haringey, London N4 1DU | Google Maps
Phone: 020 8809 2777
I will never, ever remember how to spell the name of this restaurant. This, and the uninviting the shop sign contributed to the fact that this was the last restaurant I visited in the area. But after my first dinner here I made up the lost time coming back at every chance. Now they opened another larger flashier restaurant but this one is still the best, as confirmed by the locals crowding it.
The quality of the meat is superb and the starters are superior: not only you get salad and warm bread, but also a trio of dips, including one made with aubergine and tomato sauce… mouth watering!
Glossary
- Lahmacun is like a thin small pizza. The topping is minimal but tasty: tomato, minced lamb, parsley and onion or garlic. Can be wrapped up and filled with salad to make a great snack on the go.
- Pide is the turkish pizza, it looks like a calzone opened on top.
- Shish is the skewer.
- Adana is the typical sausage made with lamb mince and red peppers.
- Ayran is a yogurt-based drink slightly salted. Its flavour is quite unusual but I love to drink it with meat as it also helps soothing the effect of spices and hot peppers.