Best Turkish Food in Side: What to Eat & Where (2026)

Everyone lands in Türkiye with the same plan: "we will eat proper kebab." Then the hotel buffet happens, the beach happens, and suddenly it is the last night and the plan is unfulfilled. Do not let that be you — Side deserves one real Turkish dinner, done right.

Hawaii Restaurant & Bar has grilled Turkish classics on the Manavgat coast since 2000. Our Turkish section is fifteen dishes deep — here is how to navigate it like someone who grew up on this food.

From the grill

• Şiş kebab — cubes of marinated meat on a skewer over charcoal. The benchmark of any Turkish kitchen.
• Lamb skewers & chicken skewers — same craft, your choice of meat.
• Lamb chops — charcoal-kissed and unapologetic. Regulars' favourite.
• Köfte — hand-formed grilled meatballs; Türkiye's ultimate comfort food.
• Mixed grills (for 2) — the taster board: several classics on one platter. First-timers, start here.

From the pot and the oven

• Testi kebab (for 2) — the showpiece. Meat and vegetables sealed in a clay jug, slow-cooked, and cracked open at your table. Read the full story in our Testi kebab guide.
• Lamb / chicken casserole — bubbling clay-dish stews, deeply savoury.
• Ottoman kebab — rich, slow-cooked meat in the palace tradition.
• Shepherd's kebab, Diyar kebab, Anatolia, Turkish pan, chicken pan — the house's regional repertoire; ask your waiter to match one to your taste.

How to build the perfect Turkish night

1. Start with meze — the mixed meze plate and warm bread.
2. Share a grill — mixed grill for the table, or şiş + köfte.
3. One theatrical dish — the Testi kebab, because dinner should have a moment.
4. Finish slow — Turkish tea or coffee, and if you are brave, a glass of rakı with it all.

Where and when

We are in the heart of Side, open daily 10:00–02:00. Summer evenings fill up — book online or WhatsApp us. Bring an appetite; Turkish portions do not believe in minimalism.