Anatolia Restaurant in St Albans

Visit this shop on a weekly basis with the family for take away - the staff are always so polite and friendly! The food is good value for money and plentiful! Nice to see them remaining open during lockdown whilst following the social distancing!

Nice people and good food. Clean waiting area. Easy to park outside. The service is friendly and you don't have to wait too long.

Visited on Thursday evening and the lamb kebab was fantastic. The staff were also very pleasant. Excellent.

I have been to many keebab shops around the country and many in St Albans. Anatolia by far has to be the best for service , great food quality and cleansiness. There is a take away bar which allways proves popular and a sit down area with friendly table service. I have had to put the whole menu on this one as there are so many great tasting dishes, all to eat in or take out. Anatolia has to be the finest kebab house in the are by far. I strongly recommend this eatery for everyone. The food here is amazing and so are the staff.

Generous portion sizes, excellent flavour, reasonable prices and fantastic food! Will be coming again.

We stopped to have something quick and were welcomed by lovely people. Kebabs were lovely and we will be back to enjoy more.

First choice for me for kebabs excellent food great staff been here many times and my only local choice for kebabs

It was a shame when the Anatolia restaurant (with take-a-way) turned itself into more of a take-a-way (with some seating). My chicken shish kebab could not be eaten without a knife and fork, but tasted fine.

In the old days this was a good restaurant with a takeaway bit. Now it's just a kebab shop, and not the best anymore.

The Anatolia kebab never fails to deliver, the Chicken shish is decent, portion sizes are generous and the staff are welcoming and really friendly! Great value too and plenty of parking available right outside. It's a shame there are a few negative reviews but everyone has off days, give these guys a try!

It's gone from being an amazing small family run restaurant with a separate take away counter serving good quality food to a really badly run takeaway with sub standard overly greasy food. The service is rubbish, how can it take 20 mins to make a doner kebab? Half way through making it he put it down to take 2 other people's orders! Then 5 min later picked it back up to put the salad in! Obviously when I ate it it was stone cold. There is way better with in a 5 min walk - med grill, chicken shop, oasis, Lebanese kitchen etc. Avoid at all costs! It's rubbish!

I used to go to Anatolia (for takeaway only) when it was also a restaurant and the service has massively improved since it's purely a takeaway. I used to have to wait ages for my kebab to be cooked but as you'd expect it's much quicker now but the quality is still there. Very generous portions sizes and the chicken shish is absolutely delicious. The staff are polite and friendly and always very pleased to see you. Don't be put off by some of the negative reviews, give it a go!

This used to be the best place for Turkish food but since the change and refurb it is a generic takeaway store. It is not a bad takeaway if that's what you want but it no longer has any of the charm or uniqueness of the old establishment.

We loved the anatolia in it's previous incarnation. Many good evenings spent in the restaurant and many more from the old take away counter. It was unique and had charm. Now I looks like just another tacky kebab shop. Plus the food is not up to previous standards. A real shame

Wrong picture shown on Website. No room just couple of tables, naff seating, doesn’t have long table shown in photo. Ceiling is different not lattice as shown. Owner agreed gallery photos are wrong, says from old website. Place more like kiosk than a restaurant, driven from afar with friends expecting place to be the setting shown on Web page. Disappointing, went elsewhere.

Metimos en el restaurante pequeño y pintoresco para una comida ligera antes de ir al teatro. Elegimos 'Bodrum Meze', dos platos, aperitivos fríos meze seguido de selección de platos calientes. Muy buen servicio y presentación. Volveremos pronto para una comida más sustancial y la decoración un poco antigua, pero una sabrosa delicia.

I've been here 20 times plus over the past 2 years as I live under 5 mins walk away. Have had both take away and eat in. Food is always great - from a take away kebab to a dine in full meal it's always very good! Drinks are a good price too .Service is great - the owner and his family are lovely ! Doesn't look great from the outside - you could easily miss it, but it's great!! Give it a try!!

We regularly go to this small restaurant for tasty food at a reasonable price and a chat with Ishmael the owner - an intelligent and educated man. If you want an inexpensive midweek meal this is the place

Ordered a take away from here yesterday! My husbands turkish & there are lots of Turkish restaurants we love in London and didn't realise there were any in St. Albans. The food was fantastic & the portions were very generous too. The person I spoke to on the phone was very friendly & I expressed that I particularly like the Turkish pickled chillies and he included a box of these with our order complimentary, which was a nice touch! We will def visit the restaurant at some point too now that we know that the food is great! Like others have commented, a real gem! Thumbs up!

Went there last night for my birthday. We were greeted by the Manager/Owner? who was not particularly welcoming. He vaguely gestured towards the table, and didn't smile once during the whole visit. A real shame, because the food was very good, there was lots of choice, it came at reasonable intervals, and the drinks were fairly priced. There were quite a few diners there who were obviously regulars, and got a warmer reception than us. Don't know why he was so unwelcoming, we were very polite and grateful. Probably won't bother to go back there - there are too many other places in St Albans which offer good food, but also make you feel welcome. Shame really and on my birthday too.

This is the kind of restaurant you could easily miss; it's tucked away in a row of shops a little way out of the centre of St Albans, and from the outside you might be forgiven for thinking that it's just another take away kebab shop. But inside there's a really good little restaurant. We've been visiting the restaurant for about fifteen years, and have never been disappointed.The staff are always polite and friendly, and there's a good selection on the menu, freshly cooked on the charcoal grill. We usually have a bottle of Turkish wine, which makes a great accompaniment to the meal, and finish with Turkish coffee and baklava. Overall the restaurant offers excellent value for money.

We eat here regularly and our friends choose to drive out of London to come here. The food is always excellent and the service friendly. And it's such good value! Have eaten here in groups of 4 to 8. Can highly recommend the delicious mixed mezze and the wonderful melt in the mouth Lamb Kleftika that falls off the bone and melts in your mouth. I had moussaka last time which was also very good.We have certainly never had any reason to send food back or any rudeness from staff. I'm shocked at the one or two negative reviews here, as other diners always seem to be happy too. It's a tiny place attached to a take away, but don't let that, or the slightly 'rustic' decor put you off, Anatolia is a little gem.

Yummy food, relaxing ambience and bargain price! Been looking for a new favourite and this is a winner!

I visited this restaurant recently with my husband and daughter. Good vegetarian choices on the menu and lots of menu choices for the meat eaters. Very polite and friendly service with lovely atmosphere. Wine also good and all priced to please. We had a very tasty, relaxing meal . the restaurant is small but not cramped. Well worth a visit.

Lots of menu choices and reasonably priced. Don't be put off the size of the restaurant..... small is best.

Small intimate restaurant.Advice booking at the weekend as it's very popular. Fabulous Turkish cuisine always beautifully cooked. Highly recommended.

Don't order an extra pitta bread with your large kebab or you'll be accused of trying to rip the restaurant off by only paying for a large kebab and extra pitta instead of two small kebabs. Personally I don't have the appetite for two kebabs but do like an extra pitta.I was extremely embarrassed the other evening by the manager in here with his rudeness and aggression. It's a real shame that he lets the place down as the food is great. The guy clearly has a problem with his attitude towards his customers.

My husband & I had dinner here for the 1st time last night- the food was amazing and the staff were extremely friendly, couldn't fault it at all. Can't wait to go back there with a party of 20+ for our christmas works do.

We were planning on picking up up a takeaway but restaurant looked inviting, family run restaurant, waitress very attentive and polite, food excellent as always

A regular diner at Anatolias, I can only recommend this family run restaurant. The food is freshly prepared and they are always willing to accommodate any fussy eaters like myself. We have had large gatherings there with friends and family and these same people now intend to travel up from Surrey to eat there again and explore the menu further.

I am stunned by the ranking of this restaurant compared to the others on here that I have been to that are frankly rubbish and expensive. Everything about anatolia's is perfect, the price, the quality , the presentation, the service. My partner and I visit the restaurant at least once a week and have never had a bad meal there. We are both very fussy about food as we have been in the catering business and will not pay for poor service or hygiene. I can only think that the bad reviews have been written by competitor businesses trying to cut into Ismail's market share as there are a number of other inferior mediterranian grills springing up in the area. So whether you are carnivore or herbivore try this restaurant. It won't break the bank and you will have a great meal in a secluded family environment. Thoroughly recommended for everyone, and so much tastier cooked on a charcoal barbeque.

This is a real family owned, charming restaurant. The food is very good, and mostly freshly prepared. Don't order Dolma, however, as they serve some terrible pre-packed dolma with a horrible preservative-like flavour. The food that is cooked there, which is most everything, is near to what you might find in Turkey. The service is excellent and will try with the kitchen to do anything special you want.

My brothers and I decided to take our mum out for a Sunday lunch and we decided upon the Anatolia. I have to say I am very surprised by the couple of bad reviews that I have read here because for us the welcome was very warm and the food even better.The starters were very fresh, plentiful, nicely presented and perhaps most importantly delicious tasting.We each had different main courses and once again they were excellent in every respect.To date this was my first visit to this restaurant although my brothers had been there before and rated it highly. I will certainly be going back there in the near future.

went with friends, i ordered chicken sheesh, when it came out it was cold so i asked for it to be replaced.Second sheesh, Ate almost half of my chicken sheesh before realising there was a funny smell coming from my food. told the manager but he refused to acknowledge that the food could be off. and stared speaking to us rudely, so we paid and left.Next day i was vomiting pretty much the whole day, I never write review but after all that vomiting and stomach pains i had to.I felt so angry, the fact that i told them food could be off and they didnt care if it harmed the customers.... wish i didn't pay them now, will never vist again and advise others not to either.

Good to be back and to catch up with Ismail after a few years break.Had a loverly meal with our family - cold and hot meze starters, and the mixed kebab, followed by deserts. All delicious. A little taste of Turkey in St Albans

We live close to a few local restaurants in the Fleetville area of St Albans but this is the only one we go to regularly. The reason is the warm welcome and the quality of the food which is always good. They also have some Anatolian wines which are pretty good.

my family have gone here for years - it's the best turkish food in st albans by far. i am EXTREMELY surprised by the review on here saying the manager was 'surly' and unhelpful. Ishmael is very friendly and courteous, exactly what a good manager should be. Never had a bad plate of food from here - the donners are brilliant (and you can get them to take away). They are always of great quality - unlike many places. Their lamb chops are also great. Can't recommend it enough, go there!

The hot starters are worth a try, esecially the sausage and sigara boregi, and the kebabs are well presented and tasty. The wine list is interesting, and you can have fun trying the interesting Turkish wines you've possibly never heard of before.

Great welcome. Excellent menu, good value. Starters of humus and sucuk and main course kebabs all excellent. Huge portions! Washed down with a couple of bottles of Efes and nice complimentary Turkish delight with the bill.Both of us very happy and nice chat with the owner. Happy to return at the earliest opportunity.

I saw this and felt i needed to add some balance to the previous review as i would say they had a bad one off. I only live 5 minutes down the road and so i'm in and out of Anatolia quite often, granted it's normally for a takeaway but we have also eaten in on occasions.Every time i come out the first comment is normally along the lines of "wow they're friendly" as they're always chatty and smiley. I've never grumbled over the service. The location is a bit out of town so i would imagine they are a little quiet in the week - we've certainly been the only ones in there too. The food is great, fresh and tasty which is just what you want from a Turkish restaurant and it's not massively expensive. I keep going back so that's the best endorsement i can give.

We had been before to the Anatoylia Restaurant in St Allbans some time previously so we decided on a revisit to celebrate a birthday. It was around 8.15pm on a Thursday, so not early evening, and on arrival the restaurant was competely empty - an indication perhaps of what people thought of the restaurant. A few simple questions to the member of staff (manager?) was met with a very surly and unhelpful attitude. When we have been to Turkey on holiday, one the nice things about our visits was to be able to have some friendly banter with shop keepers and staff in resturants and hotels etc. Not this person and because of that we left immedaitely. He obviously didn't want any business from us and perhaps because of the empty restaurant he didn't want any from anyone else. We won't be going there again and I suggest you don't waste your money or spoil your evening by trying to eat at this restaurant..