Delicious Turkish cuisine – but truly high-class: Restoran Gül (22. March 2019)
The Restoran Gül is the first high-class Turkish restaurant you can find in Zurich – it opened only recently and it is definitely a place to visit. The concept is rather simple – you order as a table and all the things go into the middle and you eat whatever you feel like having. This evening, we went for “Midye Dolmasi (mussels filled with rice, herbs, pomegranate and lemon)” (CHF 12.50 for 6 pieces) which were good.
One of my personal highlights were the “Cig Köfte (Turkish style vegetarian tatar wrapped in a salad leaf)” (CHF 14.00 for 6 pieces). I have no clue what the ‘tatar’ was made of but it was absolutely mouthwatering! Although I am among the more skeptical people in this world when it comes to vegetarian dishes – this was delicious!
The “Classic Lahmacun (with bio lamb)” (CHF 23.00) is served with …
… “sorrel, parsley and lemon” which I didn’t understand at first as I was wondering what kind of weird dish the herbs with lemon were. Once you’ve understood and you combine the two, it actually makes up for a great combination of flavor.
Given, one of the group was vegetarian, we also had ordered “Izgara Kis Salatasi (grilled lettuce, endive, Trevisano, smoked cream, bergamot and tangerine)” (CHF 15.00) which was somewhat tasty but not really the best dish of the evening.
The “Eriste Pasta (Eriste with octopus and mussel bolognese and grated walnuts)” (CHF 12.50) was tasty but a bit of a small portion for the price.
What I liked a lot was the “Icli Köfte Mama Oskan Style (with bio lamb and beef)” (CHF 5.50 per piece) which was basically some kind of dumpling. The stuffing was great but the dough was a bit too thick for my personal gusto.
The “Ali Nazik (bio lamb served on eggplant and yogurt)” (CHF 32.00) was one of my favourite dishes. Not only because the meat was perfectly cooked and didn’t taste like lamb at all – but also because the eggplant base was absolutely mouth-watering!
The “Chicken Külbasti (boneless bio chicken legs with parsley, sumac and onion salad, served on Yufka bread)” (CHF 34.00) was basically some kind of dürüm but different. The bread as tasty, the chicken was juicy but the pieces were a bit too large to just eat it like that. The salad on top of it was giving it the proper spice up.
The “Ekmek (home-made bread)” (CHF 4.50) itself is rather standard but …
… in combination with the “Kuymak – The Turkish Fondue” (CHF 14.00), it is actually quite good. I mean, I already liked the “fondue” but I must say the consistency of the cheese is rather interesting.
For dessert, I went for the “Dondurma Arabasi (Saffron Ice Cream)” (CHF 6.50) which was good – not really a ‘sweet’ but a great dessert to finish off the evening.
The place looks appealing from the outside but is also nice inside – and on top of everything, the service is friendly, attentive, and very helpful.
The only thing I did not really like was the “two flights” concept – when you book at 7pm, you are supposed to leave by 9pm. Somehow, I suppose because we ordered more than enough, we were allowed to stay till like 10:30pm. That helped a lot that they didn’t push because I really don’t like the ‘you have only that much time to eat’ concept. To sum it up – book in advance, book early, and enjoy to the fullest!
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Contact Details:
Restoran Gül
Tellstrasse 22
8004 Zürich (CH)
Tel.: +41 44 431 90 90
E-Mail: yemek@guel.ch
Homepage: http://www.guel.ch
About the Author: Sven
I started the blog in October 2009, while living in Milan which I definitely consider to be one of the food capitals of the world. I was in touch with food since my early childhood (as my father is a former chef). Whenever I can, I travel the world to discover new places, to meet people but mostly to try local dishes and to find hidden gems! If you know a place worth going, please drop a line to: info@thediningexperience.org.
Currently, I am a member of the following food-related associations: Chevalier @Chaîne des Rôtisseurs Zurich-Ville; Membre Gourmet Dégustateur @Ordre Mondial des Gourmets Dégustateurs [OMGD]; Gesellschafter @Goldener Fisch and Member @Slowfood Convivium Zurich City. 
