Yenikoy

The latest venture from Zeki Atilgan, known as the confectioner behind Gaziantep Sweets & Pastry in Auburn, Yenikoy is a new Sydney Turkish restaurant down Newtown’s King Street that takes a page from its predecessor. Diners here are greeted not only with a smile, but with a cabinet full of sweet, tempting Turkish delicacies – a tease presaging dessert before the main event has even begun. The main event itself is all about authentic Turkish cuisine, with a selection of modern Australian dishes added to the range for good measure.

Yenikoy’s menus cover all the bases, and then some, beginning with breakfast and running through lunch to dinner. It’s also a cafe, inviting those in search of a good (Turkish) coffee to drop in on their way down Newtown’s King Street. But Yenikoy goes the extra mile with its lavish banquets, and offers one of the best Ramadan menus in Sydney, perfect for iftar or the long-awaited eid. Winding back to breakfast, Yenikoy is fast becoming a popular spot in the inner west come the weekend, so if traditional gozleme, menemen, borek, sucuk and cheese pide, or kiymali yumurta (our favourite: fried eggs and veggies with spicy ground grass-fed beef served on toasted Turkish bread) tickle your Saturday or Sunday morning fancy, we’d advise you to book.

Lunch at Yenikoy sees this Newtown Turkish restaurant and cafe throwing inventive burgers into the mix, with the Yenikoy Royale topping the list: organic, grass-fed beef with organic cheddar, rocket, caramelised onion and mustard on sourdough. There’s a big emphasis here on organic produce, with organic chicken or lamb finding itself alongside apricot rice and sauteed vegetables in the traditional Turkish sac kavurma come dinner time. A fine way to explore not only what’s on offer at Yenikoy’s King Street premises but also one of Sydney’s finest and most diverse offerings of Turkish cuisine is to book a banquet. Put yourself and your next celebration in the capable hands of these veteran restaurateurs and really indulge.