Marmaris – Turkish – Nottingham

On the strip for Turkish restaurants in Nottingham one has returned to the site that previously housed Bosporus. The closure of that and Istanbul left just Tipoo as top Turkish in town. These places are often overly bling but Marmaris takes things to full Dubai marina levels of gold leaf. The music blares, the staff are loud, the table’s so shiny I can see my face in it. It certainly can’t be accused of a lack of atmosphere. The menu is mainly the tried and tested various grilled meats however they do open early and offer a Turkish breakfast option unlike their neighbours.

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Marmaris Nottingham – (taken from http://www.marmarisrestaurantnottingham.co.uk)

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One of the great virtues of these restaurants is the hearty portion of free bread and dips you always get, don’t forget to factor that into your order otherwise you might only finish half your main course! Despite that I always have to order lahmacun. A thin, crispy bread with a coating of a little minced lamb, tomato and lashings of garlic. A bargain at £4 and infinitely better than almost all garlic breads. Wanting to try the main attraction I opted for a lamb & chicken shish combo (£17) which came with rice and salad. The rice was nicely flavoured with a little oil and spices and much more appealing than its rather bland appearance. The meat itself all seemed of a good quality and was expertly charred on the open grill you can see as you come in. I’m a sucker for the blackened veg too so it was nice to see a decent amount.

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Lamb & Chicken Shish (and spot the lahmacun) – Marmaris Nottingham

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You’re certainly likely to get a large, enjoyable plate of food at Marmaris. If I go again I’d be tempted to share a combo plate or go for a less expensive main alongside the bread. It felt equivalent to the other good Turkish restaurants, although perhaps a few £ more expensive. I suppose they need to pay for all that gold in the decor somehow.

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