LDNReview
Kyseri
This spot is Permanently Closed.
Peaking too early is something everyone and everything worries about. It’s like winning a tenner on your very first lottery ticket, assuming this stroke of luck is going to lead to bigger wins, but never winning again. No one wants to feel like the best has passed. That it’s not going to get any better than this, or that was it. This is especially the case when it comes to eating a meal. Kyseri is run by the folks who run Oklava in Shoreditch, which is also a modern-Turkish place. Their second restaurant is a very nice but imperfect affair. A victim of its own success, that peaks too early.
Kyseri’s success is the first half of its menu. It’s Sunny Delight in the late 90s. Fruity, tasty, and completely all-engrossing. The menu is ‘designed for sharing’ which is shorthand for ‘it’s designed for the bill to surprise and faintly horrify you’. But that’s London, baby. To be honest, you won’t want to share some of the dishes here, like the feta and candied watermelon salad or hellim bread and fondue. Both are delicious and not your usual snacking suspects. The pasta though, is Kyseri’s peak. It’s you, in your own head, after three drinks and a haircut. Everyone just wants more. The beef and cherry manti - a Turkish dumpling - is the life of the party here. You want one between two. Minimum. Otherwise once you get to the main courses, you’ll regret it.
The problem with Kyseri is that post-pasta, everything pales in comparison. Like that eighth episode on Netflix at 4am, you’ll wish you stopped earlier. Beef short rib, trout, and cabbage are all perfectly nice, but you just don’t need them. Especially when they’re priced £20 or more each. This applies most to the pistachio parfait, a theatrical dessert made tableside, on an ironing board, in a restaurant as wide as a bathtub. Watching it being formed is like watching Austin Power’s three-point turn.
There are two sides to peaking early. Rueing everything that happens after, or savouring the good times. At Kyseri, we’re going with the latter. Because if you play it right - two or three snacks plus every pasta on the menu - then this is a complete success story.
Food Rundown
photo credit: Karolina Wiercigroch
Hellim Loaf And Fondue
photo credit: Karolina Wiercigroch
Sheep’s Milk Feta, Chilli Ezme, Candied Watermelon
photo credit: Karolina Wiercigroch
Eriste, Walnuts, Lemon Greens, Tulum Cheese, Sage, Egg Yolk
photo credit: Karolina Wiercigroch