1901 - The Turkey Cafe in Leicester

Went to check out a private room for a party, was refused entry because I had a hat on. Took the hat off, was refused entry because I owned a hat. Offered to give the bouncer the hat so that I could go inside and see the room firsthand, was refused entry because I owned a hat. After confirming the room, was notified in the run up to the party that the room was not available causing a lot of stress and panic to try and find somewhere to accomodate a large group of people. They turned around and then said it was free very shortly beforheand. Had it booked from 7pm - 3am, turned up just after midnight, and apparently this was an issue. Was £20 short of the minimum drink spend, so they kept the entire £50 deposit.

Do not book an event here unless you want to be scammed. Seen some other reviews here saying the same thing - they basically keep your deposit even though they have no right to.

1 star all around. I booked the top room in this club for my birthday last night, and they won't give me back my £50 deposit. I booked it several months in advance in order to avoid any stress later on, and when I messaged 1 week before the event to double-check that everything was still fine, then they informed me 'currently our top floor is not fit for service as we've been undergoing renovations' and they offered another room but that was public / i couldn't put my own playlist as planned, so that wasn't really an acceptable alternative. I was really stressed for several days trying to find another venue last minute and they then informed us they managed to resolve the issue, and everything was back on track. Had a really fun night with my friends and asked Turkey Cafe to send back my £50 deposit and they refused. They said that we were £20 below the required minimum spend so I said fine take it and give me back the £30. They just made up a bunch of excuses and have essentially scammed me and not given my money back. Kept running around in circles with no satisfactory result. Would not recommend coming here or booking any event here.

Came here for a birthday party and had alot of planning stress beforehand. They are unprofessional and did not return the £50 deposit even though we did nothing wrong. Would not recommend coming here or booking an event here. It's a shame we have to write this review but the whole thing has been a shambles from the start. One positive point is that the bartender was really nice and did serve us well. It’s the management that wasn’t good.

Unprofessional and poor communication! Came here for a birthday party and had alot of planning stress beforehand. They are unprofessional and did not return the £50 deposit even though we did nothing wrong. Would not recommend coming here or booking an event here. It's a shame we have to write this review but the whole thing has been a shambles from the start

Came here for a birthday party and had alot of planning stress beforehand. They are unprofessional and did not return the £50 deposit even though we did nothing wrong. Instead chose to argue with us on dms about how we didnt use the whole time and missed the minimum spend by £20. We even offered to pay the difference and get the £30 back but they refused. This lack of grace makes this a place I wouldnt book again. Would not recommend coming here or booking an event here. It's a shame we have to write this review but the whole thing has been a shambles from the start. We were served by a great bartender but management has seriously let us down. Had a fun night but never again as this stinginess has seriously upset the birthday girl!

Came here for a friend’s birthday party and she had a lot of planning stress beforehand. They refused to return her £50 deposit with a string of excuses which really put a damper on her day. Would not recommend coming here or booking an event here. It's a shame we have to write this review but the whole thing has been a shambles from the start. I will add that the female staff member who served us behind the bar was lovely and this is in no way her fault.

Maybe a Saturday night is different cos this review doesn’t match the rest…but you have to wonder what kind of venue it is when the bouncer pushes open the toilet cubicle door and says it has to be kept open for ‘reasons’ whilst you pee.

Small wee bar, very good bartenders, elite service. But the atmosphere was too basic.

Awesome venue .. Lush Cocktails 🍹 Lush Staff .. Especially Kaitlyn & Hollyanna .. Definitely Going Back For More Fun Times .. 🦋😊🍺💋

Was out with some friends and I bought everyone a round of drinks, the girl working there said the card reader was not working and walked off with my card. She came back and said the card was cut up...after minutes gone by she kept saying what? What? Then threw the card at me and she proceeded to have some sort of breakdown. Avoid this place at all costs, it has the worst staff!

Do not go. If you do keep a hold of your drink as they will take it. There are other much better bars in the town. Don't go there. Weak drinks. Unprofessional staff. Cheap surroundings. Poor... Very poor. Don't waste your hard earned money. Many more trendy bars in Central Leicester.

Racist ! I try to report an abuse and the security guy start to push me and physical assault me even if I’m an girl! Avoid this place

As a neighbor, I’d like to complain about the unbearable noise in the middle of the week as the telephone is being switched off of this club. Leicester Council has been informed about this, too, and this is not the first complaint they have received. I am kindly asking to be mindful and turn a few volumes down on weekdays.

Friendly bar staff, cool atmosphere, nice drinks; but the cocktails need a bit of work. A nice little hideaway.

Bartenders have no idea about theirs job ! They rather flirt with customers and serv the ones they choose first instead people waiting in que , they don't use jigger ? Measuring tool instead dripping alcohol "on the eye " which makes drinks my gf and mine completely different , when we asked for tequila girl working behind the bar have us two glasses of tequila on their own , when I've asked for salt and lime she said they don't have it , so I've said we won't drink that ( she clearly didn't know how to serve tequila ) but somene behind her hear that and told her how to do it ... and gave us missing salt and limes , glasses are dirty ... ( picture attached ) it's probably the place when you going after u had loads to drink at home :(

Wth I had no idea places like this still exists

Decent bar at the night time on weekends very busy with some good music catering for all with mixed genres 🎶 🎵

Great atmosphere and brilliant drinks

Great place and great staff. The process for booking the venue for a private hire was very easy and professional.

Really enjoyed visiting the bar this past weekend following the festival in the city. The place was extremely busy but we were still able to get to the bar; the drinks were not cheap but it was worth it for how good the atmosphere was!

Venue was great, lively and we enjoyed the music.

Neil and his team hosted a brilliant Cocktail Masterclass event at our accommodation building The Arches on Friday. Residents very much enjoyed and the cocktails were ace! Would recommend!

Disgusting. We walked in and felt extremely unwelcome, this place used to be the best in Leicester for cocktails and a nice evening. It has clearly changed hands. The bartenders were not nice and clearly had not been bar trained and taught how to properly poor a pint. Christmas decorations still up. We asked for the toilet and was told there was only one which was bizarre. I walked up the stairs and was horrified to what I saw. I will simply leave the picture to sum it up. Absolutely horrific and unacceptable. Sort it out.

Absolutely amazing. Door staff are so kind and the music is 11/10. They play all types of music both old school and new and more recent music too. I would recommend this place to anyone and also the drinks are cheap

Cocktails are nice, but music was too loud, I even had an earache because of it.

The music was good on Saturday 09/10 so It was great for us . Dj had just the right mix. Made it fun for me and my family. 👏🎶🤗🥳

Great place and the staff and friendly and polite. Love it here

Very nice bar good vibe shame about covid restrictions

Cozy, stylish bar, opened till late.

It's gone right down hill over the last few years. Even at the weekend the basement and upstairs are usually closed, this wouldn't matter if they kept the areas that are open a bit cleaner

great atmospheric bar on three levels and they sell draught peroni

I booked this venue for engagement drinks. I paid deposit which I still haven’t received back. The owner double booked the downstairs so we had a hectic evening trying to work out if we still were going to be able to get the place for the drinks. Since October I have been trying to get hold of my deposit and had no luck! Please be careful when booking as it’s a pain trying to get this. I would have thought I could Atleast have this back. The evening was hectic and the other party was then upset as they were also promised the downstairs!

I booked this venue for engagement drinks. I paid deposit which I still haven’t received back. The owner double booked the downstairs so we had a hectic evening trying to work out if we still were going to be able to get the place for the drinks. Since October I have been trying to get hold of my deposit and had no luck! Please be careful when booking as it’s a pain trying to get this. I would have thought I could Atleast have this back. The evening was hectic and the other party was then upset as they were also promised the downstairs!

Great place to hold our Christmas do. Lovely buffet.

Whilst the bar is very beautiful and has many floors to find a quiet cosy corner, the cocktails are awful and the service even worse.

Had a brilliant time for my son's 50th party everyone was friendly.

Well made cocktails, both new and classic in a stylish bar. Let down by the 18 year old clientele

Took a long time to get served even though it wasn't busy, and even then the drinks - whilst nice - were 90% ice

Great cocktails and the cheese board is fantastic

Come here whenever I go out because it’s such a great place, staff are lovely and owners a brill! Really nice atmosphere with a good dj!! We only really ever come here as it’s such a good place...

Went in here on a hen do. We had contacted them before hand to say we were coming and was told to ask for the bar manager on arrival and they would look after us. We arrived to nobody expecting us. We then asked for 2 bottles of prosecco on their 241 saturday evening offer but they only had 1 bottle. We were told more was on it's way within 30mins so we chose to buy them based on this. 40 mins later still no other bottle and to be told they were still another 15mins away. We had to keep asking and in the end asked for something else which seemed like a big issue but we had reservations else where and needed to leave. In the end we were given a bottle of wine instead. There were flies and wasps all in the bar bit and no attempts to get rid of them or keep them off glasses and cocktail making equipment. The hen is allergic to wasp stings so this was quite I concern. Unhappy customers who will not be returning.

The staff here are amazing! So friendly and always happy to talk you through the drinks menu or recommend drinks! Dani especially is really lovely! The drinks are always delicious and made to perfection, would recommend to anyone!

just walked out of my 50th suprise afternoon tea rubbish food and no tea as they have no kettle to make it. The manager hadn't got a clue We left they had our £5 deposits that came to over £60 which was worth more than the food that was dumped on the bar. Disgusted and upset.Feel bad for my children as they have totally ruined my birthday surprise .We asked if we could bring children they had said yes then came down telling us to keep the kids silent this made us feel uncomfortable as they wasn’t even bad. The woman was swearing to other staff members never again

Absolutely ruined my mums birthday surprise, we got shoved in the room downstairs and had children who we had already asked if could come and was told they had to be quiet, food was just shoved on the bar, which was not a lot considering the amount they wanted us to pay and how many of us there was, after been there for 40 minuets we had to purchase our own drinks and when we asked about the tea for our afternoon tea the man didn’t even have a clue what we was on about and then said that the coffee/tea machine was broken. Ended up leaving and not paying for the tea as the service was so awful they had our £5 despoil that came £60 and was not even worth what we received, would not recommend this place to anybody!! And if I could give no stars I would!

A suprise afternoon cream tea for my 50th birthday and walked out in disgust. Food brought down dumped on bar dry cake and scones and not very appertising sandwiches. We were told to keep the children quiet as it echoed upstairs. But they were told children would be in the party and we had to pay for them . We asked the lady about drinks tea or Cocktails if you wanted to pay more she said she would take orders and went upstairs after half an hour nobody came. So I asked a man that had been in and out carrying boxes. He said they had no facilities to make tea kettle was broke. I said you don't have afternoon creme tea without tea children weren't even given a glass of juice. I asked to speak to the manager he said he was the manager. He said he would go see what he could do we waited I went upstairs he was just serving people at the bar. I said what's happening because I am waiting to eat my food but want tea with it. He said they have a coffee machine he will try sort something but it will take a while. I said we had been in there over an hour with children we had to keep quiet the youngest being two I wasn't waiting any more and we paid our deposit and wasn't paying any more I told the family we were leaving. They had around £60 deposit the food was no were near that much and most of it was left. My birthday was ruined . Disgusting service we would if been better treated at MC Donald's

Geat atmosphere with friendly entertaining staff

Great bar. Really friendly people and the landlord was an absolute legend. Will definately be back here again when I'm next in Leicester.

Just had the nicest afternoon tea. Merengues were to die for. Lovely people that worked there. Woukd definatley recommend cocktails and afternoon tea

Yummy Christmas cocktails. #cocktail #christmas #veryberry #verycherrychristmas

I went on a Saturday evening. A nice vibe and atmosphere with good drinks and the bar keep are friendly and helpful. The music was a good mix of electronic house, dance and familiar house classics that are easy to flow with. Unfortunately the Downstate dance area was closed off for a private function. Will definitely go back to experience this also. All in all a good night out!

Great Drinks & Music.. especially on a Saturday

Place is no good and has tarnished what it used to be.Owners are no good to this place

I booked the upstairs venue giving them £100 deposit for a hen party, which was held on 11th August 2018. On the night, the service was fine. However, I was told I would get a refund of the deposit. Since the party was held which was in August, I have been chasing up the refund and I have never come across a service that are so quick to take your money but are so slow in refunding the money. I have been corresponding with a manager called Wendy, and I keep getting excuse after excuse about the refund. It’s now three months on and yet I’ve still not received my refund despite my several attempts of chasing this up. I am now resulting in writing this bad review and I’ll also be physically going to the bar to get my refund!!!!

Nice place, tasty food but I've found a hair in my desert😭😭😭

What a wonderful bar staff amazing

Went on a quiet Tuesday night, really nice place and decor. Bar man was fab, a dude called Alex, was cool watching him make our cocktail and set it on fire.

Very Nice Friendly Staff Enjoyable Visit

Real cocktails, better earlier in the day if your older like me!

Last night we had the pleasure of visiting this delightful watering hole. We sampled a range cocktails, The ‘All Star’ being the crepe de la creme. We followed on with a few bottles of prosecco. The bar manager was kind enough to offer us some complimentary prosecco while we waited for the next bottle delivery - after we drank them dry. Don’t forget to invest £3.00 and join the loyalty membership program. So far we racked up over 1000 points, and we all know what that means... Points Mean Prizes!!

Great cocktails; Really good combinations that are well presented and have a nice flavour profile.

Great little place, friendly staff, great list of drinks but does attract a few odd people. Will definitely go back.

I have been a regular at the Turkey Cafe for some years now and have never been let down. It’s fast paced at night due to the numbers of customers but still retains great customer service and attentiveness. During the day when there is less pressure and fewer customers, the service from the staff far exceeds expectations. The drinks are great and made with extremely great quality ingredients and spirits. The menu is interesting and exciting - drinks that look like science experiments with dry ice and presentation that wows. If you are after an amazing cocktail that doesn’t use cheap spirits and relies on mass bought purees, and prefer a place where the cocktails are developed by the team, than the Turkey Cafe is the place for you!

Came here with my best friend on the morning of the royal wedding We had afternoon tea with cocktails Was great n fab cocktails too Staff were great n really friendly will be going back again on my next visit to Leicester for sure

Superb cocktail afternoon tea at 1901 Turkey Cafe! One of the best afternoon teas I've ever had. It was so delicous, it came with a selection of sandwiches, devon scones with jam and cream, a slice of lemon drizzle each, an individual eton mess each and a cocktail of your choice. We recieved brilliant service from the staff who were very helpful. Highly recommended!

I love this place and I feel like im becoming a bit of a regular customer, I have worked my way through most of the cocktail menu. I love the variety of drinks, that both look amazing and taste great.So for my birthday I decided to try their afternoon tea. I wanted to celebrate by having a treat with my friends and what a treat it was! A selection of sandwiches which perfectly suited my tastes, not too fancy but just the right flavours. A delicous devon scone each with jam and cream (extra of both on request), the scone tasted homemade and wasn't at all dry. Then a slice of lemon drizzle cake each that again tasted and looked homemade. And to finish an individual Eton mess each, the perfect blend of cream, meringue and raspberries. We chose to have the cocktail afternoon tea and were given the choice of any cocktail. I chose one titled All The Tea In China, it was tasty and brilliantly presented. There was also the option of a prosecco afternoon tea or a classic afternoon tea. I was really happy with the service I received, the staff were friendly and happy to help, we were given full table service. Before my visit, I enquired about the afternoon tea via their Facebook page, Wendy was very helpful, answering all my questions and arrange for my visit.

We weren’t impressed with the cocktails we had. Far too watery as full of ice and daughter’s one had several teaspoons of some sort of powder in it which made it taste synthetic. Not cheap either. The reviews on here are great so we were expecting much more for the price we paid.

Got turned away for wearing trainers. Used to go all the time in trainers. Terrible attitude from the bouncer. Probably give it a miss in future

Love this place! Always make a visit whenever I’m close by. Incredible cocktails, always something new and quirky to try.

Fab for cocktails, range of flavours, although quite expensive and very ice-heavy. Was very cold in the seating area (take your layers!!) Would come again.

Love The Turkey Cafe! It's our go to place whether it's for just the two of us or with our friends. Cocktails are great, the bar staff are always friendly and chatty and so is the owner Ryan. Always worth a visit!

This is a great little cocktail bar! Friendly atmosphere, amazing-inventive cocktails and the owner is cool too. Looking forward to coming back :)

Not been for many years until last night. Very short on cocktail ingredients - asked for 3 different ones until I found one they could make. Staff were pleasant so I didn't complain. Towards the very end of my boyfriend's glass of wine he spat out something that resembled the equivalent of the 'skin' you get on hot milk. We showed the staff who then offered a replacement glass but only a very small one (we'd paid for a large). At this point one of the barmen started to be less than polite. We then asked for a refund instead of the replacement which I don't think was a full refund. My boyfriend was meanwhile taking a photo of the weird thing in the glass and the barman held the glass and tried to forcibly remove it from us. A real shame as the rest of the staff were very nice and the whole thing could have been handled much more nicely. No need for rudeness and aggression, could have been discussed amicably. Sour end to my visit - I probably won't visit again, definitely not when that barman is there.

Been a regular here for ages. Friendly staff good service.

Nice bar but service is slow in the basement area + gets a bit too warm down there.

Only been during a quiet time in the day but the drinks were beautiful. The bar staff were also very friendly and helpful.

Absolutely love this place. Cocktails are amazing, good music, great bar staff. We only went in for one drink and loved it that much we stopped nearly 3 hours.

Unexpectedly really good venue. Very chilled out atmosphere.

Good drinks but can feel a bit dingy being under in a basement and rammed with peope

Can't decide which I love more, the Parma violet or refresher cocktail. They are both so beautiful!! 😊

Found this gem earlier this month, popped in on a saturday evening and it was pretty empty. They had a large selection of cocktails which was great. I had two, a refresher -

Afternoon Tea was fantastic. Repeat visit for evening cocktails was also great. Nothing to much trouble. Just ask and they deliver.

Great selection of gin and cocktails

The staff are really friendly and are happy to chat. The drinks are more expensive than other places but they make up for it with great taste. Also, the only place that serves peat monster whiskey in Leicester.

Lovely bar with friendly staff and drinker alike.

Friendly staff, relaxed atmosphere and great cocktails.

Un edificio fantástico con una cálida y amable bienvenida del personal experto. Gran variedad de cócteles, muy bien presentado y estaba buenísimo, no puedo esperar a volver y probar el resto.

Tuvimos un cóctel hoy como un regalo de navidad y nos encantó! Primera visita y no 't me decepcionó. . Nosotros fuimos a pasar el cócteles festivos que eran geniales! Y una Misa del gallo tarta. gracias

Nice place to sit and have a chat. When busy it can take a while to order drinkd

Tomó la madre y hermana para el té de la tarde (de hecho) cócteles fantástica relación calidad-precio, personal amable y encantador ambiente. Fantástico, volveremos!

Teníamos el té de la tarde. Era increíble. Comida muy fresca y sabor delicioso. (preguntad por el sandwich de salmón y crema de queso. Sabía definir) mucho para comer. Con scones, tartas y pasteles Misa del gallo para después. pelotas Sirvieron té en un recipiente...

Hermoso edificio que atrae, tentándole a lo que puede recaer en el interior. El interior es interesante también. Zona de bar tan pronto como entras en cerámica de color con coloridos detrás de la barra añadiendo una sensación fresca joven y moderno al lugar. Zona...

Nous y avons passé une très bonne soirée après le match de Champions League entre Leicester (dites "Leiste") et le...

Service wasn't great and problems with the booking, drinks weren't too bad though

El Café en Turquía mis opiniones si el mejor bar en Leicester. Los cócteles son increíbles y creativos, hay algo para todo el mundo! Mi favorito "Blue army bramble incluyen", "Estoy en amor con el coco (cocopops cóctel! "El Retoque) y tiene una real" (hielo). lolly El bar tiene un bonito ambiente relajado pero sofisticado. El personal es extremadamente útil cuando se trata de ayudarle a elegir algo para beber, y sin duda saben lo que hacen. No hay café donde, como Turquía, es simplemente el mejor en la ciudad.

Its a funky kinda cocktail bar ideal for before or after a meal ... décor is cool, staff helpful, great cocktails at 2 for 1 happy hours but a tad expensive outside that. Nice enough atmosphere thought

We visit here regularly after work on a Saturday night. We were excited to try the new menu as we heard so much about it! When we arrived the bar was full upstairs and downstairs but even so we got served quickly! We tried some new cocktails and well as having shots! (The skittles shot is amazing) All the bar staff were amazing and kept us entertained with somewhat out of tune dancing behind the bar whilst serving us! Credit goes to Ryan and his team.

Thought we'd check out the newly renovated Turkey Cafe after a few drinks with work nearby. Myself and a friend sat at the bar and waited......watched the girl behind the bar make £60.00 worth of cocktails......waited.....watched the barman make a couple of other nice looking cocktails for two girls.....waited......two more girls arrived......barman, evidently thinking a little flirt was in order started service these new arrivals....We advised him we had been waiting now for 15-20 minutes......his reply was that he hadnt seen us......awkward considering we are both 6ft+.......we then asked him why he was just serving the girls....his response was 'if you keeping giving me attitude you won't get served at all'.....given this response it was becoming apparent that the attitude problem lie with him.With the levels of customer service ever on the increase (sarcasm) we decided to leave....upon leaving, this charming gentleman decided it would be appropriate to call us 'tossers' then we obviously left. We went on to another bar which was equally rammed to the hilt with 7 people and were served within 30 seconds of arriving. Guess which bar will get our custom in future.It was a Thursday night so no exactly a busy night which might explain why Mr Customer Service was on shift but if you want to be made to feel welcome and given a drink before all moisture in your body disappears, I'd avoid this place.

So after a work function ended my friend and I decided to go for a drink at 9pm on Thursday........there were a handful of customers and two bartenders. The female bartender was slow but given the cocktails she was making we decided to wait as they looked nice. The male bartender with his nose pierced (douchbag) needs to sort his attitude, as he decided to ignore us when we have been waiting around 20mins and served some female guests who just walked in. When I challenged him as we were next his pathetic reply was "carry on with the attitude and you wont get served at all". Clearly we were not welcome and decided to leave to which he swore at us not wanting to cause an argument we left quietly and went to a more reputible establishment known as Hakamou down the road who had same amount of customers if not more but served us straight away with no attitude. Turkey Cafe really should be ashamed of themselves!!

Visited here this evening for cocktails prior to a meal for a friends birthday.Myself and a friend came in separately from the rest of the group and sat at the bar to order our drinks. The staff were attentive and engaged us in conversation and seemed to have a great deal of knowledge about the alcohols on offer; we were excited as this level of passion is rare from bar staff.Unfortunately the drinks we had were extortionate, small and nothing special considering the price. I had the Parma violet drink which consisted mainly of egg white froth; it was flavourless and the best part of the drink was the sweets on the side. My friends classic mojito was also very average. At £16.00 for the two drinks I felt cheated. I will most likely not return and if I do I would have a simple pint.. This place could be something wonderful but, on this occasion, left us very unsatisfied.