Garlic Turkish Restaurant

Unclaimed

In the short time, that I have lived in Shanghai I have been to restaurants that did not deserve a second visit but Garlic is not like that. We will be going back for a second visit although I do not know when we will be. We arrived around 17:40, the sun was still up and the dining room was bright, clean, tidy and very nicely decorated with a charming style that does not show any signs of age. My one gripe was the lighting, as the sun went down the dining room was not bright enough, overhead there were lots of bulbs with glowing elements that looked very nice but did not provide enough illumination. Our group were not the only people to think this, twice I noticed patrons at other tables using the flashlights from their phones to look at the menu. The staff were very nice, although one woman was not confident enough assisting us using English and my Chinese is less than great, especially when I have had a few drinks. Throughout the 2 hours we were there the staff were very good removing empty dishes and refreshing glasses. Towards the end, I thought that they were doing this as a hint that they wanted to clear the table for the next customers but this was not the case. It did take us more than a few minutes to get the bill when we wanted to leave but the dining room was busy and close to full at that point, so I will not hold that against the staff. The food was great, my wife and I ordered the set menu, which was more than enough with five cold starters, two warm starters then the “grill” which was a very large plate with vegetables and several meats. One of our friends is a vegan, he was happy enough with several different starters, three other friends all ordered the same kebab and no one had any complaints about their choices.

We recently went for a dinner to Garlic, my favourite Turkish restaurant in Shanghai. We received recommendations from the chef as we were accompanied by a Turkish colleague who agreed the menu with him. The order and presentation of the dishes was great and original in flavour. I will be back.

This comment is from a foreigner point of view... Great food. Nice atmosphere. Prices are great for the restaurant level that is good. As in anywhere around, English is not the most widely spoken by the waiters. Then sometimes is difficult to express what you really need. Great place if you have given up and tired of trying to use chopsticks. Silverware are already at your table. I would totally recommend the place, beautiful food!

An elevated Mediterranean restaurant with great selection of wines (including some Turkish options) and unique dishes beyond your usual hummus and kebab. The warm hummus with lamb was such an amazing discovery! Also they bring you delicious puffy bread and variety of condiments - which will make you full, beware! The owner is super approachable and nice, makes each guest feel very welcomed. Very mixed crowd of western and local people, lots of beautiful girls:) The ambiance is nice enough to dress up and not too posh if you wnat to be more casual.

I visited twice during my trip to Shanghai, and both times the food was outstanding! The staff were highly professional and made the experience even better. I highly recommend it to all my GCC friends — definitely worth a visit! ????