OUR PHILOSOPHY
A great meal is not just about the food and wine, it is an emotional experience and we try our best to create an extraordinary ambiance that will transport our guests to an exotic foreign land. A great meal is not one that fills you up; it is a journey that returns you to a source of pleasure you may have forgotten whilst exciting all of your senses.
From the warm welcome you receive upon arrival; candles are lit and the sound of beautiful music surrounds you. The contrasting flavors of our freshly prepared dishes will send your taste sensation on a separate journey. The beautiful lighting, priceless antiques and art adorning our walls are for your eyes to feast on, while the touch of our Persian carpets and comfortable pillows which are scattered across the Ottoman Tent, The Bosphorous Lounge and the Ataturk Lounge, are for you to relax and unwind from all the tensions of the outside world. The sight of our skilled belly dancers gracing the floor with their talent will take you on an enchanted escape.
OUR HISTORY
A’la Turka began as the shared vision of Gokhan and myself . We met while working on Five Star Cruise Liners around the world. Both in the service industry food and beverage manager, working for Royal Caribbean International and I was an International Spa Director on board for Steiner Transocean- a British based company the Health Spas for many years.
Our passion for travel and love of food and cooking inspired us and led us to create our own distinct identity in this little venture. Our goal was to bring an exciting new concept of dining, to the local restaurant scene. A’la Turka … the first one to test the waters, Gokhan being from Turkey and myself, from Lebanese descent designed the menu by combining the two cultures, but also infusing other Middle Eastern and Mediterranean flavors to tempt the palate.
Not knowing how the South African culture was going to respond to our concept, we went ahead and opened an absolutely enchanting little Turkish Restaurant in January 2004 in Garsfontein. From the day our doors opened, A’la Turka was the new buzz word and due to the size of this little gem, it was hard to get a table, making it even more desirable A’la Turka became a very popular destination restaurant among locals, and a large Embassy following as well.
The venue was out grown from day one, but it was important to establish a strong following and do enough market research before relocating to a bigger venue. We Relocated after 5 years & opened a 280 seater restaurant in Irene village mall, and after 6 years it was time for the dream location, and moving on to bigger better things.
THE NEW VENUE AT YADAH CASTLE
It was time for change & challenge. Gökhan and My creative juices were flowing and it was a time of expanding, growth and a fresh identity, without losing sight of where we were from. Yadah Castle was the choice venue for the relocation which has since become the home of our continued vision.
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