I was in North London a couple of days ago to visit a friend who lives just off Green Lanes. I’ve passed through Green Lanes a number of times but never stopped off to eat. On this occasion though it was all about the eating. My friend has lived in the area for over 15 years so was the perfect candidate to be my foodie tour guide. I was seriously hungry when I arrived though, so wasn’t up for being too much of a food tourist and quickly wanted to plot and eat.
Green Lanes is famed for its many Turkish eateries. My friend dines there on a near daily basis, so was well equipped to inform me of which restaurants do what foods better. Some are good for lahmacun (sort of like a mega thin pizza), others better for stews and others for kebabs. I was in the mood for a kebab and Devran was the recommended place to go for it.
What was it like?
It’s only been opened approximately 6 months and had a very fresh modern look with a few dodgy byzantine paintings adorning the walls. It was quite bright inside so not really the type of place that you’d want to linger too much in after eating.
The food
When hungry I tend to over order and want to eat everything on the menu. I was advised that they serve huge portions so settled on a starter of whitebait to share and a lamb beyti (a minced lamb skewer), for main. Now, I wouldn’t say that the portion sizes were unusually large, what I will say, is that the other dishes that came inclusive with the meal were plentiful; tzatziki, garlic sauce, chilli sauce, aubergine stew, tabouleh, salad, copious amounts of bread, rice and chargrilled onions in pomegranate and sumac which was a revelation and the highlight of the meal.
I gave it a good go as it was all so delicious, but I was defeated in the end. Thankfully my friend, who had ordered lamb chops, stepped in and polished off the rest. Devran is definitely the place to go if you want a good feed and at decent prices. All the above came to £21 (we had tap water for drinks).
Devran Restaurant
485-487 Green Lanes, Haringey, London N4 1AJ
Tel: 020 8340 2288
www.devranrestaurant.co.uk
