The Sofra (meaning dining table in

Turkish Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...

) is a restaurant chain in London, United Kingdom, which serves Turkish cuisine. The chef patron is

Hüseyin Özer Hüseyin Özer (born 1949 in Reşadiye, Tokat Province, Turkey) is a Turkish British executive chef and restaurateur, who owns a restaurant chain based in London. Early life Hüseyin Özer was born in 1949, in a village of Reşadiye town in T ...

. It was established in 1981 as a small restaurant, which turned later into a chain of restaurants, currently in

Mayfair Mayfair is an affluent area in the West End of London towards the eastern edge of Hyde Park, in the City of Westminster, between Oxford Street, Regent Street, Piccadilly and Park Lane. It is one of the most expensive districts in the world. ...

and St Christopher's Place, off Oxford Street. Sofra restaurants are regarded the best Turkish cuisine restaurants outside Turkey, ranking first in a list published by the newspaper '' Hürriyet''. The restaurants are simple decorated. Özer declares the reason why there are no paintings on the walls and no music with the words that "his guests are distinguished, who deserve good food, and they go to art galleries or music halls when they wish to enjoy the best of art or music". Typical Turkish cuisine meze and salads served before main course are fried

eggplant Eggplant ( US, Canada), aubergine ( UK, Ireland) or brinjal (Indian subcontinent, Singapore, Malaysia, South Africa) is a plant species in the nightshade family Solanaceae. ''Solanum melongena'' is grown worldwide for its edible fruit. Mos ...

, börek (baked filled pastries), falafel (deep-fried ball made from ground

chickpea The chickpea or chick pea (''Cicer arietinum'') is an annual legume of the family Fabaceae, subfamily Faboideae. Its different types are variously known as gram" or Bengal gram, garbanzo or garbanzo bean, or Egyptian pea. Chickpea seeds are high ...

s, broad beans/horse beans), grilled sujuk in addition to broad bean/horse bean, cacık (cucumber with yogurt, dried mint and olive oil),

hummus Hummus (, ; ar, حُمُّص, 'chickpeas'; full Arabic name: ''ḥummuṣ bi-ṭ-ṭaḥīna'' ar, حمص بالطحينة, 'chickpeas with tahini'), also spelled hommus or houmous, is a Middle Eastern dip, spread, or savory dish made fr ...

(cooked, mashed chickpeas blended with

tahini Tahini () or tahina (, ) is a Middle Eastern condiment made from toasted ground hulled sesame. It is served by itself (as a dip) or as a major ingredient in hummus, baba ghanoush, and halva. Tahini is used in the cuisines of the Levant and E ...

, garlic in olive oil), baba ghanoush (

mashed and mixed with paprika, garlic in olive oil), tabbouleh ( bulgur, tomatoes, cucumbers, finely chopped

parsley Parsley, or garden parsley (''Petroselinum crispum'') is a species of flowering plant in the family Apiaceae that is native to the central and eastern Mediterranean region (Sardinia, Lebanon, Israel, Cyprus, Turkey, southern Italy, Greece, Por ...

with onion, garlic in olive oil). Hüseyin Özer owned an upscale restaurant, named "Özer" after himself, which was located in London's

Oxford Circus Oxford Circus is a road junction connecting Oxford Street and Regent Street in the West End of London. It is also the entrance to Oxford Circus tube station. The junction opened in 1819 as part of the Regent Street development under John Nash, ...

. It was announced that this restaurant would be closed after its 14-year existence on 20 December 2013 because the lease contract was not extended.

References

External links

Official website
{{Restaurants in London Restaurants in Istanbul Restaurants in London Restaurant chains in the United Kingdom Turkish restaurants Restaurants established in 1981 1981 in London 1981 establishments in England