Hanedan

Long wooden tables are shoehorned together in this tiny, excellent Turkish restaurant in the southside, a few doors down from the Cask and Barrel pub. In fact the name of the pub’s worth remembering, as the chef, Gursel Bahar, has been known to send customers up there to kill time with a pint while he turns a table, then comes up the road to fetch them.

Bahar and his Scottish wife moved up to Edinburgh from London a decade ago, and have been running Hanedan ever since. It’s built up a solid reputation, particularly amongst the neighbours in the area who have become its most loyal regulars, and it tends to be full when it’s open - although when exactly the opening hours are can depend on Bahar (he’s been known to close unexpectedly, so a phone call in advance might be a good idea).

The cold and hot mezze are a good place to start, with Turkish cannellini beans and red onion (piyaz), hummus, spicy garlic sausage, melon and feta or hot squid and walnut salad sitting alongside the odd Scottish finger food, including Orkney herrings. Main courses are mainly char-grilled -- lamb, chicken and beef arrive on skewers and in herb-covered cutlets -- although the rich, bubbling moussaka is a highlight (the vegetarian version is almost as good.) To finish, there’s a steaming cup of apple tea or potent Turkish coffee to go with your plate of baklava, as well as more than forty teas to pick from.