Here's Where You Need To Eat In London This Week

Turkish food served with an extra helping of performance art? Then I know just the place for you.

It's not hard to find good Turkish food in Dalston.

Instagram: @shark4chipdrink

Truth be told, and as anyone familiar with this part of town will tell you, you are spoiled for choice when it comes to good ocakbasi (Turkish grill) in Dalston.

Look for anywhere burning lumpwood charcoal beneath a vast metal extraction chimney and with a variety of fresh meats on sticks in a chiller cabinet, and you're more than likely to have a good meal.

But Mangal 2 is the best of the bunch.

Instagram: @glenn__howard

Despite everything else it has to offer, the food at Mangal 2 is still the main draw. Its popularity and turnover means everything is as fresh as can be, from the grilled onion and pomegranate salad (an ocakbasi staple, often cooked ahead of time in lesser joints; not here) to the piping hot flatbreadbread straight out of the oven.

Everything tastes better on the grill.

Instagram: @andyspencer

And the meats, from chicken wings to lamb chops, lamb adana (minced) to king prawns and everything in between, Mangal 2 are the masters of the grill, everything infused with the lovely smoke of real charcoal, delicately crusty on the outside and moist inside.

You'll be spoilt for choice.

Instagram: @stesabelle

Simple and no-nonsense it may be, but the dishes served at Mangal 2 are anything but dull. It's all vibrant, flavourful and incredibly enjoyable stuff, from people with a long and noble background of preparing grilled food. And if you want to try something a bit left-field, why not try one of their offal specialities – grilled lamb's kidneys, or a plate of rich sweetbreads.

And their Twitter presence is legendary.

Instagram: @humansofthearsenal

Most restaurant Twitter accounts are content to bleat about the occasional special offer and retweet praise. But owner Ferhat Dirik (above) has made himself a minor Twitter celebrity (and won over 20,000 followers) with an approach to social media that teeters hilariously close to self-sabotage. Follow them here.

And the clientele are noteworthy too.

Instagram: @alexandreholder

And speaking of a bit different, turn up at Mangal 2 around 6:30 of an evening and no matter how busy you may find a certain table being kept conspicuously free. This is because none other than British art legends Gilbert & George make a regular habit of eating here, always immaculately dressed in tweet suits. Which means your dinner here can feel a bit like being a part of some kind of strange performance art. Albeit performance art with nice fresh kebabs.

What's the damage?

Instagram: @glenn__howard

And so for all these reasons and more, for fantastic fresh food, the chance to spot a celebrity or two, for surely one of the most entertaining Twitter accounts of any restaurant in London and (most importantly) for a bill that rarely exceeds £15 a head, you can't go far wrong with a meal at Mangal 2. Oh, and you can even book. Hipsters - as I'm sure @mangal2 would say – need not apply.

Looking for more recommendations? I've just released an app, Where To Eat In London 2016.