Gokyuzu in Waltham Forest

This branch in particular has gone downhill. Understaffing is the main problem. A few reviewers have mentioned this now.

Same as others Turkish nothing special service was ok about 3 waiters took our order

Ended up paying £96 for food They gave boiled tea .Horrible.

Not too bad, kids can enjoy a dinosaur and mini golf course.

The food was very tasty. The service was also very nice. Surely going back.

I had a truly disappointing experience with my family at this restaurant. The service was shockingly poor. I had booked a table for 20 but later updated it to 30. Unfortunately, this change was not communicated to the staff, and we arrived to find seating for only 20. On top of that, only three sets of starters were brought to the table, (for a group of 30!) and I had to repeatedly chase the staff to provide more. When I brought this up, their response was, “Well, it’s complimentary, so why are you complaining?” Despite repeatedly asking for basic things like water, tea, placing our order, and even having the table cleaned, I was met with resistance, excuses, and a complete lack of accountability. Instead of addressing our concerns and requests, the staff would simply say “okay” and then never follow through. When I raised a complaint, I was essentially told there was nothing they could do — as if the poor service was just to be expected. Over half an hour after we had finished eating, I had to practically beg a staff member to clean our table. Their excuse was that they were short-staffed, yet it was clear there were more than enough employees on the floor. We ended up clearing the table ourselves. What made it worse was seeing other parties around us being attended to with far more care and attention, making us feel completely overlooked and unimportant. There was no apology, no accountability, no empathy, and absolutely no sense of customer care. The staff were cold and unwelcoming. At no point did they check if we were okay or attempt to make us feel looked after — it felt like they just wanted us to leave. I even suggested a small gesture of goodwill, like a discount or something complimentary, given the poor experience — but all they offered was more tea, which we already had after repeatedly asking for throughout the evening. No meaningful effort was made to make up for the service issues. What was meant to be a special birthday dinner was completely ruined. The food itself was average at best and very overpriced. The only redeeming part of the meal was the kunafa. I strongly advise others to avoid this place. There are far better restaurants out there that actually value their customers.

Always on point Never fail to disappoint.. service can be slightly slow but the food is al fresh Salad is always good as always 😍

Went in with my friend around 9pm for food - ordered kuzu sarma beyti & chicken soup. The sarma beyti and the complimentary dishes were amazing however we had to send the chicken soup back as it wasn’t nice. This was handled well by the staff. Asked to sit outside to have our tea & rice pudding however after 10 minutes of sitting down a waitress brought us the card machine and bill. We didn’t ask for it and was offended as they still had 2 hour left to close. I think they had assumed we were going to leave without paying, I asked the waitress why she brought the card machine as she kindly told me it’s because we’re outside. I don’t blame her she was probably instructed to bring us the bill. This was poor service - if management isn’t comfortable with customers sitting outside without paying I suggest they inform the customers before allowing them to sit outside as both me and my friend were very offended. Usually go to the Haringey branch however after this incident I won’t be going back to any of the Gokyuzu branches.

Food is not as good as it used to be. The meat was dry and chewy, for the price I expected so much more. Service was not good at all, it's more like a playground for staff and the plates and cutlery were dirty we were given new ones but those were also dirty. The atmosphere was okay, nothing spectacular.

Very nice restaurant the food was amazing as usual. Was a little slow to serve us at first hence the loss.of the star

Rubbish and rude staff I nearly left place there very rude unprofessional staff manger aswell

Fantastic presentation inside, matched with great food. Got a platter that was labelled for 3-4 people with my family and honestly there was so much food. Everything is well seasoned. My favourite were the lamb ribs and adana! Had tea through the meal and it was sweet and mellow not bitter at all. Ended with some kunefe which is obviously made turkish style. It was wonderful just wish it was a little bit more burnt onto but still a 10/10. Accompanied dessert with Turkish coffee and that really gave me a kick to the teeth in terms of energy boost. Great experience would return.

Not the first time visiting here but it was certainly one of the best. Made a large reservation for a 40th birthday dinner, and got there about 30 minutes before my table booking. The table was ready and I was allowed to sit down early. Although we were a large booking (around 30), the waiters made the service very smooth and were attentive all evening. The food was DELICIOUS. So well seasoned and by far the best food that I’ve had from Gökyüzü in my many years of going. We weren’t kept waiting for the food for long (we ordered 6 platters all of which came quickly and hot). We were given complimentary tea and very kindly given plates to serve our guests cake. This was very kind as I know many restaurants have taken away the ability to bring your own cake or are rather charging a fee to cut the cake, which Gökyüzü did not. Would highly recommend the Chingford branch for birthday/event celebrations and for their delicious food.

I visit this resutarant last 5 years . Every time was good service but today wasnt good. Waiter just took order and food served on time but bread wasnt fresh and not hot. My boy like fresh bread i aaked if they have waiter respond only this and i have asked plain lahmacun she said impossible and ofer weap bread son didnt yet. Not good service

Expensive but so much tasty food we all loved it definitely be back

Celal - looked after us very well

My favourite Turkish restaurant 💯 recommend, never been disappointed, Delicious food always , very cozy and clean , special thanks to Fatima today , she’s been lovely thank you and see you soon!!

We have been going out to Gokyuzu for ages.Have been our favourite. But last couple years it's becoming like a bistro.While food is nice ,staff isn't always. For example today I spent 100 quid for my partner and me and our toddler.Just in and out . Asked for two take away cases and bill from a young kid named Celal. He brought one and said that will be enough for us.Luckuly other girl brought us another one.Then he went to talk to another table and forgot about our bill.When I walked up to him and nicely asked if he forgot about bill and I want to pay for it at the till he says that I should chill and relax and sit and wait.I couldn't.Its nearly 10 and my toddler needs to go to bed.What a rude young boy .Is he someone's son ?Because obviously he doesn't belong there.He acts like a little wannabe gangsters near chicken shops.Bitter aftertaste. Shame ,because I was going to Gokyuzus all branches and original one before this kid was even born.Not going back defo.Felt almost like I walked in there as a beggar and some staff member was doing me a favour.no wander ,reviews and stars says it all.

We have been going out to Gokyuzu for ages.Have been our favourite. But last couple years it's becoming like a bistro.While food is nice ,staff isn't always. For example today I spent 100 quid for my partner and me and our toddler.Just in and out . Asked for two take away cases and bill from a young kid named Celal. He brought one and said that will be enough for us.Luckuly other girl brought us another one.Then he went to talk to another table and forgot about our bill.When I walked up to him and nicely asked if he forgot about bill and I want to pay for it at the till he says that I should chill and relax and sit and wait.I couldn't.Its nearly 10 and my toddler needs to go to bed.What a rude young boy .Is he someone's son ?Because obviously he doesn't belong there.He acts like a little wannabe gangsters near chicken shops.Bitter aftertaste. Shame ,because I was going to Gokyuzus all branches and original one before this kid was even born.Not going back defo.Felt almost like I walked in there as a beggar and some staff member was doing me a favour.no wander ,reviews and stars says it all.

Great experience and good food.

Awesome great place to dine with a group or with a partner. Lots of parking, fantastic ambiance.

Make frequent visits with friends, amazing food and service!

Quite average, the food was edible but lacked seasoning in most dishes. The children’s menu was poor… something out of Icelands and that is being polite.

Great tasty food, reasonably priced! The salad is amazing and the platter contains lots of food. There is parking on site which is a plus. Would definitely recommend.

Good food. Shame some waiters actually avoid eye contact. But mostly the others do well.

We went on Sunday with big family as usual, food was good as always, atmosphere was also good but customers services was terrible specially guy name Huseiyn was arrogant , liar and not professional at all. We asked for Turkish tea and he said we not serving and in front of us they served others. It was horrible horrible experience, killers all of our moods.

I went with my family on the weekend. The food was amazing as always. However the service was shocking we waited about 1hour for our food to come and the way the staff reacted to us just questioning how long it would be was rude. I understand places may be busy but the way they spoke to us and dealt with the situation was very unprofessional I definitely will not be going back and wound it recommend. I was very disappointed

This is one of my favourite restaurants. The food is always 10/10, have not found any reason to complain. Service is usually very good, may take a bit of time during busy periods but regardless they are very attentive compared to other places. Do recommend this place!

We had the best family lunch here. A big table of 19. The service was incredible and the food was amazing. We definitely got our moneys worth. Very kid friendly too

Lovely food, can't fault it. Front of house staff welcoming, inclusive and helpful. Waiter service disappointing; staff were disinterested and inattentive, perhaps just a busy shift. Drinks were warm and we were handed stacked glasses to pass around ourselves. Staff didn't check in and appeared put out when asked for drinks and the bill. Cleared the table, didn't offer desserts or hot drinks, had to ask for the bill when they didn't return. A shame as the food was great and the front of house staff were very accommodating and friendly. Let down by the service during and after the meal. Something to work on, we loved the food but the uncomfortable service has put us off returning.

Very arrogance staff, poor customer service, late service, price exaggerated, i don’t recommend at all

The food was decent, but unfortunately the service really took away from the experience. Most of the staff seemed unfriendly, with no smiles or basic courtesy. It felt like they didn’t want to be there, and even our thank yous were ignored. The only exception was a lovely Vietnamese lady who was kind and attentive throughout—she truly stood out.

Such a let down in terms of food this place has really gone downhill unfortunately which is sad cos it used to be one of the best places for great Turkish food however now their food is just so bland and tasteless? Dry rock hard beard, no spice or seasoning within the food kebab was dry and rubbery(possibly overcooked?) the sauces on the top literally had no taste? The rice was terrible was so mushy felt like microwave rice. It was so bad we was all fasting which made the experience even worse as we was all so hungry and we was greeted with this low quality food which cost us around £35 very high price it has definitely gone up in price aswell 👎 we defo will not be coming back here again when there are better turkish establishments that are thriving and is better priced better quality of food. The only plus I can really is the restaurant is still very nice and clean lots of waiters and waitresses on hand aswell.

One of superb and best kunefe in whole london

This has been a regular haunt but the decline continues. The food ok quality wise if overpriced (notable increase again this time). The bread though is dry and tasteless, no drizzled butter or spices. Normally the selling point of Turkish restaurants its a let down here. But why not great? In short it's the service. Efficient but charmless. No welcome, no engagement during the meal and no send off. May seem little things but this is not a self service restaurant and for in excess of £40 a head I'd expect miles better. These are 'bot' like staff who have little interest in their guests. One particular thing that hacks me off is the the consistent practice here of arriving with the mains when you've not finished your starters and doing what's necessary to squeeze them onto the table which has no room and is uncomfortable to say the least. After nearly 20 years travelling 30 plus miles to come here we've decided to call it a day and head back to other establishments in green lanes. The Chingford venue has got so big it's now more like ' World of Foods'. It's get them in, serve them and get them out quickly.

This has been a regular haunt of ours but sadly, the decline continues. Why so? The food is generally good if prices higher each time I go. The bread remains a letdown. ..dry no drizzled butter, no spices. Bland. It's not a patch on other Turkish restaurants where the bread is the draw. The real issue is the staff. Efficient but unfriendly and cold. No eye to eye contact. If AI and humanoid bots are on the way, they could start here. Would not notice the difference. It's a case of get them in, serve them, and get them out. The result is a poor dining experience. Possibly better in a large group, but if you're couples, this place is charmless.

Love this place. Hussain always provides an amazing service.

Service was fantastic. They offered dates and water free of charge for breaking mine and my wifes fast. The food was phenomenal, and the staff were extremely professional, polite, and allowed us to have a great time! 5 stars!!!

Friendly helpful staff, proper busy on a Saturday night. staff running around busy. Very busy. Queue outside Saturday night at 8pm when we left, so get there early. The food was very nice, colourful and tasty. Will go back.

Wonderful food with good service. Sometimes you have to book a table, otherwise will spend an hour queueing with hungry people:)

Very nice, big portions and quality food, with friendly staff

Worst service in the universe even a village would have better service. Our plates sat there and nobody removed it until we asked. We had to ask for tea 3 times they didnt bring enough. The portions are small. Staff are rude and the food is undercooked. Dont bother with this restaurant if you want a good service go elsewhere.

Service wasn't as before, but it wasn't bad. The menu has changed a lot. No humus on the complimentary starter. Which is sad

Gokyuzu Restaurant is a good place to dine, just off the A406 with plenty parking onsite and free. The price is high, but definitely worth it. Everything was properly cooked, and I'd definitely rate their platter was one of the best I've had at a Turkish restaurant. There a lot of indoor spaces with plenty of seating, so you wouldn't necessarily have to book a table prior to coming. I came with two of my daughters for iftar in Ramadan, we got there just a few minutes before iftar. We were served with dates and black olives on the house. I was taken a back when I asked for a prayer space for Maghrib, and they had put up a green tent outdoors for customers to be able to pray in peace. Kudos to Gokyuzu - you can also see the video I've uploaded of the prayer tent. Highly recommend for others to visit and enjoy.

Nice service, friendly staff, Little expensive

Went in today and it was quiet as only opened. Started off by getting diet coke with 2 long hair inside the glass, gave it back to staff right away. No acknowledgement, no apology from their side whatsoever. From that point I just couldn’t wait to finish our meals and get out, however when we asked for bill after the meal, though the place was half empty and had around 6 staff on floor, we waited about 30 minutes for paying the bill before we had to get up and walk up to the staff ourselves. No offer for taking the drink off the bill or anything as compensation either. For no reason we spent 2 hours in the place mostly just waiting for staff to do their work. Horrible experience.

I’ve been there tonight, the food was so nice, excellent service and great atmosphere.

Food : was awesome . Every item was presented with care, perfection and Perfectly cooked. Taste: 10 out of 10 . Can’t complaint about any single item. Carry on!!! Atmosphere: wonderful. Space for private party, regular inside seating also outdoor seating and smoking place . Kept right room temperature and light. Service : staffs were very open and approachable. From food preparation and service it was very smooth and quick though it was moderately busy. And offcourse , huge free 🅿️

Over priced in my opinion. Nice meze …

Great place to celebrate a birthday..

AVOID. The staff are so rude and slow, they need to get this sorted. The customer service in this restaurant is ridiculous!! WILL NOT BE RETURNING.

Reasonable price, lovely food, strong waiters that can carry alot of plates at the same time.

Great place and busy which tells you it's good food. Lovely atmosphere.

Food was ok, bit pricey for what it is. But the service is awful. Staff are incompetent and the management are worse. Send them back

We went to celebrate my Daughters wedding registration. The restaurant is very big, however as it was still early at lunchtime it was not that busy. The food was excellent as well as the service. Highly recommended restaurant.

My last visit left me underwhelmed. I used to often visit the Green lanes branch around 2017/2018. Food was always on point so too the service. My experience here few weeks back wasn’t the best the food is very expensive yet the quality isn’t what I remember previously, the bulger side was soggy and had no flavour to it . The main dish was lacking too in flavour and it isn’t nice when you spend almost £24 on a mains alone. The only thing half decent here was the starter of lentil soup. I guess popularity of this chain has allowed them to get complacent and their quality and service has dropped yet the prices have continued to increase and they slap on a service charge too. There are far cheaper and better Turkish restaurants around north London.

Plus he is a very good person, I am very pleased 🙂🙂

We had an amazing time as a group, we want to thank Onur for his service today. He was very kind and helpful the whole night😊

Today we went here with my family for breakfast. When we entered, all the tables along the window were full. Just then a customer left and we sat there. We asked the waiter that we had just arrived and asked them to clean the table. He understood. But a female attendant who came afterwards was seriously angry with us. Why didn't we sit at the empty table, why didn't we move to where the waiters showed us. I told her that we sat because my wife and daughters liked the window seat, but things started after that. They made the service with a sour face and asked for extra bread, it came very late, we asked for water, it came close to departure. The tea came cold. We definitely did not deserve this behaviour. They ruined our Sunday breakfast. I will not come here again and I would not recommend it to anyone.

I swear when I say this but the service is trash I’m here on Valentine’s Day but omg the thing is crowded i don’t care about the the people who say this is top notch I mean good is but service not at all 💀

Amazing food amazing people soon nice

Love this restaurant. One of my very favourite Turkish restaurants. Food is always on point. Sharing platters are worth it for large group. Have tried quite a few options of the menu and have never been disappointed. Massive place so no need for reservation and can always walk in. Always lively atmosphere and nice ambience but can be nosy sometimes. Baklava is very tasty too. Update 10 Feb 2025 I was very disappointed with my last visit as food took long to arrive. We have repeatedly ask for things to be served that to on not a busiest for the day. The fish was very dry and burnt. Mixed shish was ok and so was the mezze but really disappointed as I always have high expectations going here.

Friendly staff. Excellent Service!!!

I was sadly disappointed by this place having visited for brunch with friends. The quality is low considering the high price point for what is quite a basic set of ingredients for breakfast. We spent £17.50 on a Mediterranean breakfast, and really didn't feel there was anything special about the presentation of mix of ingredients to warrant that price.

Absolutely beautiful place and great food. Service is on point and the vibe is perfect. Highly recommend this restaurant.

Their food is good (albeit a little overpriced) but their kanafe is great - I say this as a non-kanafe fan. Also, good parking (many bays and free) in the Chingford branch.

The food is good. The atmosphere is very good.

Always come here with my friend Emre after the football and the food is always amazing, today I took my mother for the first time to my favourite restaurant and the staff couldn’t have been more accommodating if they tried quick service and they even brand us some traditional Turkish tea for her to try misafirperverliğiniz için teşekkür ederim we’ll be back again soon :)

I was disappointed by the way the staff treated me and my children. I will not come again.

Food is great and service is great too but at our most recent visit they have removed the service charge and hiked prices 15%. I assume this is because previously they weren't passing service onto staff anyway -and legislation changes led to menu adaptation. Be aware of this when dining here please.

Great food with fantastic service.

It is close to what we had back home, Lamb Döner was is par with a decent Turkish restautant. As a dessert we had Künefe, it was good which was recommended by our waiter Denis.

I had very good service from Ivan yesterday, he looked after us very well. Whenever he was bringing food or anything else to the table, we used to say thanks and he used to respond by “Quzalqort” which seemed a very interesting word. So, I asked him what does that mean and told me that means “No worries”:) Very satisfied with the service I got from him.

I was very pleased with my experience at goykuzu i came with my family,there was excellent service from the team especially from Diyar, Rildi, Oresti and Celal. They were extremely helpful and polite and made the experience 10/10.

One of my favourite restuarants to go to had a lovely time here definently reccomend

Thank you Ivan, Arti, and Kader!

I stopped of for quick lunch and all the boys was just amazing. I ended staying 3 hours and doing my work and the Tea was just brought out to me with hospitality. I often come with my family for dinner but I will be stoping by with my work. The food is always top quality grilled Turkish food and money for value. Just amazing. Thank you Berkan and Arti always so polite and all the boys make you welcome.

Server Ivan was really good. And food was really delicious 😋

We were 12 people and half of the order was missing until our friends finished with their food. No compensation or whatsoever was offered. Kids didn't have fun as got hungry and tired waiting for the missing food. Maybe is good to thing of a something interactive for young visitors. Toilets were disgusting-messy, toilet paper everywhere,water puddles... Get a person to take care of it! Good place with a lot of potential if the management wasn't so incompetent

Great food for the money Great service

Yum. Yum. I think it's my favourite restaurant of all time.

We had my husband and brother's birthday celebration here and it was a wonderful experience. We had the whole top section to ourselves; it spacious and had good toilet facilities. Delicious selection of hot food for adults and children; and vegetarian options. The staff made us all welcome and ensured we had a lovely time. Thanks Ivan, Art and the rest of the team; we'll definitely be back.

This is the best restaurant for big family and large number of people. The food is always great. These people are great and very friendly always have a smile on there face Well done to you all.

Very tasty! Great service from Celal!

The service was perfect recommend to everyone, the food was delicious will be definitely come back

I come here all the time & honestly love it. The food is always so good & the staff are very attentive and friendly. Pricing is a bit expensive but it’s standard for a turkish place tbh. Their beyti options are always nice too and such big portions! Recommend the chicken shish, it’s delicious. The cake is also yum. Also, I love that the moment we sit down, staff bring out complimentary warm bread and sauces. Honestly nothing much to fault, deffo my go to place in walthamstow. The only thing I can say is it’s a bit obvious when the staff are attempting to flirt with you and they come around smirking when you have a ring on your finger. I don’t appreciate that but it’s only happened once out of the many times i’ve been there so it’s whatever!

Art was really friendly and gave us really good service, would definitely come here again :)

Best restaurant ever the waitresses were very friendly especially Ivan

The food absolutely emasculate howbeteh the waiter spilt coke all over the table the restaurant felt really crammy

Amazing! The best Turkish food we've ever had, better than in Turkey itself!! Always worth the trip

Ibrahim was so brilliant, wonderful service by him definitely coming back because of Ibrahim… WELL DONE IBRAHIM

Staff are very friendly and helpful will 100% recommend

Diyar was very helpful and great customer service!! Food was very nice too

Great dining experience. In awe of the timely service.

We visited Gokyuzu in Chingford to celebrate my cousins wedding. The venue, food and hospitality was absolutely amazing. I would recommend anyone to come here for real authentic Turkish food. I would recommend this 10 stars if it was available. Thank you to the entire team and especially Art for providing exceptional service.

Amazing place, best turkish in uk

Arti and Denis were both brilliant, service was good and food was absolutely delicious

Very good service. Celal in particular was very good.

Great place to eat, spectacular grill area piled high with food for barbecue quite a display Always friendly and helpful. Portions are generous and meat is very good quality

The food here is amazing. Always the best!