6 Mouthwatering Middle Eastern Restaurants in Newcastle
Our round-up of some of the tastiest Middle Eastern eateries in the city
The countries around the eastern Mediterranean and Arabic peninsula have some of the richest, most varied cuisines in the world but haven’t had a huge impact in most of the UK beyond the hotly disputed kebab (is it Turkish? Iranian?).
Newcastle, however, has plenty of Turkish and Lebanese restaurants, especially in the West End, as well as a few more adventurous eateries offering all kinds of delicious Middle Eastern fare. Here’s our round-up of some of the best.
Persia Restaurant, Marlborough Crescent
Persia Restaurant offers a fine selection of traditional and more contemporary Persian food in the centre of town. Unfamiliar but appealing dishes like fesenjan (a sweet and spicy chicken stew), mahiche (slow cooked lamb shank) and meygoo (barbecued king prawns) share the menu with variations on more familiar options – kebabs, falafel and grills. They deliver too.
Alsham, George Street
Just on the western edge of the city centre, Alsham is a lively and welcoming Lebanese restaurant that places a great emphasis on tradition and quality. Most of the menu is familiar – wraps, grills, and Lebanese pastry dishes (smabousek and manakesh) - but there’s room for the unusual too: tagines, mandis and maklouba (a delicious ‘upside-down’ rice and vegetable dish). There's a decent mezze selection too and pizzas, parmos and chips if you’re not feeling adventurous.
Wafi Lounge, Clayton Street West
Wafi Lounge has a reputation as an exotic party venue as much as a restaurant – there are DJs, alcohol-infused hookahs, private booths and cocktails – but it’s no slouch in terms of its food. It’s all familiar fare - plenty of wraps and grills and mezze - but there’s some interesting combinations and the portions are plentiful. It’s open till 1.30am every day too so you can enjoy a kebab and then enjoy the party.
The Bake, Eldon Square
The Bake is the city centre outpost of a popular family business in the Byker/Heaton area. Unusually, they’re open from 10am so they offer breakfast too – a fine menu of dishes like foul moudamas (broad beans), eggs, fried halloumi and omelettes – while their regular menu is dominated by some very tasty shawarmas (there’s even a Mexican-inspired shawarma on offer!).
Red Mezze, Leazes Park Road
This Leazes Park Turkish restaurant is colourful, light and lively and has been serving up fine Turkish grills and more for over a decade. Their mezze games is strong – a couple of pages of plates that range from the typical (hummus, olives, kalamari) to the less familiar (sucuk sausage, avci boregi pastries). There are plenty of vegetarian and fish options (the veggie moussaka is great) and some fine stews and grills too.
Ottoman, Clayton Street West
Ottoman bills itself as an ‘aspirational fine dining experience’ which is a bold claim, but it certainly has the reviews to back it up! The lengthy menu has plenty to please the less adventurous diner – the expected grills, kebabs and wraps – but there’s some pleasingly surprising dishes on offer too, from kleftiko (lamb shank with potato puree) and ali nazik (smoked aubergine) to seafood guvec (a kind of stew) and cheesy meatballs!
Whether you’re looking for a really tasty shawarma or you fancy getting deeper into Turkish and Lebanese cuisine with some spicy stews or smoky aubergines, Newcastle has some fine restaurants where you can do just that. The world’s your falafel!
