Elif Turkish BBQ Restaurant

I first tried Elif a few years ago, and my memory of my last trip left me with pretty high expectations this time around.
Elif certainly delivered! The food was lovely; we went between 3−6pm and had their Early Bird special of one starter and a main for £12.95. I had the Guvec with king prawn and it was absolutely delicious. Everyone in my group of 4 enjoyed their food, even their salads were top notch.
Service was quick, attentive and friendly. And the Turkish delight with the bill was a nice touch.
Highly recommended.

Elif is a great, tiny place, on Lark Lane. It is a bit far from the city centre and a little on the expensive side for a student budget. Most weekend nights you must make a reservation or there is no chance of eating before 10pm. If you like Turkish food, and can afford the time and money, you won’t be disappointed.

One of my favourites rstaurants in Liverpool. Good quality of food. My friend is Turkish and she said food in Elif taste like in Turkey. Very nice staff, big portions.

I have wanted to go to Elif since it opened as it smells so darn good! You can smell it a few streets away and it always smells so delicious! Last night I finally went there with a friend.
We went in on a Saturday night on the off chance there was a free table. The restaurant was obviously busy but they accommodated us. We were shown to our table, presented with menus and our drinks order was taken.
We both ordered a Karisik, which has a mixture of chicken, lamb chops, Sis and Adana. When it arrived it looked amazing. It also came with some bread and a side salad which was delicious in itself. The meat was cooked to perfection and every mouthful was amazing. Even the rice was perfectly cooked and delicious.
The toilets are small. The ladies toilet is a single disabled toilet and the men’s toilet is a single toilet. The toilet was clean, tidy, and had a variety of toiletries to use.
The only negative thing I can say is that the waiter didn’t come over after our meals were served to check that everything was OK, but the restaurant was full to capacity so we can forgive that.
This was the nicest kebab type dish I have ever had and the best restaurant I have been to in a long time. I will definitely be going back.

Turkish food is often overlooked, except by late night drinkers and students — which is probably why it is overlooked.
This is something which Greek food has been able to avoid despite the fact the two share much of the same flavours and styles. Elif is a cosy restaurant — yes small but not awkwardly so — and has a family feel to it — I have no idea if this is the case or that the middle eastern people are just very good at generating such an atmosphere?!
Like Greek cuisine it is not the best idea for vegetarians but it is a good start to a night down the lane.

Turkish cuisine is just up my street, said one of my friends from Lark lane. It’s up mine too I replied, just not as literally as was the case with my right honoroble friend, but still. Ever since my first holiday to Turkey it wasn’t just the perfect beaches, weather and people that made me fall in love with the place. The food was central to my affinity with this beautiful country. It always seems to look uncomplicated until it enters your mouth, at which point the complexity of the plethora of flavors literally send you in a confused journey of delicious pleasure.
With Elif, presentation is not the star of the show in this restaurant. The star of the show here is the food and nothing but the food. The artistry is in the cooking and the seasoning and not decorating the food. I am a massive fan of this type of philosophy. Fine dining has its place, but the majority of my fine dining experiences have been aesthetic fraudulent exercises. Where food was decorated like a piece of art but tasted like feet.
The concept here is simplistic they cook the food slap it on a plate for you and let the food do the talking inside your mouth rather than in front of your eyes. Average price per head would barely amount to less than £15 and I can assure you you will leave with an appetite so fulfilled you may never eat again for a week. I am trying to think of something to recommend but for the first time I won’t bother. I guarantee whatever you order from this humble abode of a restaurant you will be entirely satisfied.

Elif is a fabulous barbecue restaurant down Lark Lane, and as Marcel has said, you can smell it’s delights from the other end of the street. If you’re vegeterian I wouldn’t suggest it because there aren’t many options on the menu and you’ll be far too tempted to dig in!
My favourites for the starter would be a tie between Taruk Kandi and Biber Kozleme — both absolutely delicious. By now you’re bound to be thinking, maybe we should have shared a starter… the portions are huge and the main course is no different. If you order the Adana, you will be faced with a huge pile of yummy lamb. My mouth is watering at the thought.
I would advise on dessert but unfortunately I’ve neve been able to reach dessert…

You can smell Elif as soon as you start to walk down Lark Lane from the Aigburth Road end!
You’re mouth will begin to water instantly as you look in and see a huge hot plate Barbecuing special Turkish meats and delicacies for everyone to enjoy!
Then once you’ve tried it you’ll want to go back every time you find yourself wandering down Lark Lane because this place is truly brilliant.
It’s great for big groups of people and it’s always mad busy, the service is excellent and the food is great! The food is prepared right in front of your eyes in a clean environment which is always reassuring when you go out for a meal!
I would recommend the Ali Nazik as a starter and the Patlicanli Kebab as a main! They offer a host of traditional Turkish dishes and Mezzes as well as a great wine list!