Royal Istanbul - Doha - Qatar

Royal Istanbul – Near Family Food Center, Salwa Road – Doha, Qatar

Cuisine: Turkish, Middle Eastern, Arabian

All reviews will be based on the Cuisine and Fare the restaurant/outlet is known for / specialised in.

This review is based on inputs from myself as well as fellow foodies who have accompanied me to this restaurant.

Being a self-confessed Shawarma and Middle Eastern Grilled item expert, I am an easy bait for anything that says good Arabic food. I do get some bad experiences with these baits but the Royal Istanbul bait has been making me a happy foodie for nearly 5 years now!

ALL RATING ARE IN THE SCALE OF 5. A rating of 5 mean Excellent while 1 is Poor.

FOOD: RATING 3.5 OUT OF 5.

Item 1 – Salads / Appetizers - Mixed Appetizer – The best thing about Turkish cuisine restaurants in Doha is that they have something called the Mixed Appetizer that dishes you almost all the famous cold mezze goodies in one plate. It is not the greatest mixed appetizer plate I have had but Royal Istanbul does it well and the best part is you can mix match it at times.

Mixed Appetizer

Item 2 –Shawarma –Chicken: I just don’t know how they do it but Royal Istanbul and it’s shawarma are something to drool about in.  I am a plate shawarma fan and Royal Istanbul does give my taste buds a good run! Mind you the roll / sandwich version is also yum!

Shawarma - Chicken

PS : The fat rendering out from a shawarma makes all the difference as it keeps the meat moist and slurp!!

Item 3 – Grilled Items – Shish Taouk: If you are an Arabic grill expert, then you must have realised by now that a Shish Taouk is a default order in an Arabic restaurant.

For me it is more than that, I always believe the Shish Taouk define the expertise of the hotel. If you didn’t know, of all the grilled Kebab / meat on stick versions, the shish taouk meat is the thickest in terms of size. If the restaurant can make this item succulent, juicy most of all ensure all the marinate stick to the meat and is not charred, then you are sure to enjoy every grill item on the menu.

Royal Istanbul does a very nice job on this. Though I won’t say it is ROYAL! I would definitely say it is yum!

Shish Taouk

Item 4 – Grilled Items – BBQ / Grilled Chicken

This is supposedly the main star of Royal Istanbul though I wish it is the Shawarma. The main reason being, that the chicken is done well but I sometime feel the taste in the marinate on the chicken does vary from time to time.

BBQ / Grilled Chicken

SERVICE – 4 OUT OF 5

No Qualms on Service. They waiters are well versed in the menu, though I must say they tend to entice you to order more than you can eat.  Which I feel is not a great idea for I am not huge fan of over ordering / wasting an order / food.

LOCATION – 4.5 OUT 5

If you know Quality Hypermarket in Salwa Road, the you will find Royal Istanbul with ease.

There is good line of parking in the area but at peak hours you have to play a little bit of the waiting game.

If you don’t know Quality Hypermarket. Just drive down Salwa road and you will find it.

PRICING: 3 out of 5 (5 means cheapest while 1 means expensive)

I rate this place 3 (Affordable)

The price may be considered a little high compared to the other places that serve the same menu but then looking at the ambiance, seating space and location, I guess it is okay.

AMBIANCE: 3.5 OUT 5

It is near to a fine dine / nice family dinner concept, which I must say is rarity among comfort food serving Turkish Restaurants. The seats are good and the place is nice

DECOR AND SEATING CAPACITY – 4 OUT 5

The décor is feel good and the seating capacity is huge! A full on extended family get tighter is a walk in the park on the first floor. Since they had put up such an effort in getting the restaurant into this shape, I would have loved if they had the Majlis / Ground seating arrangement as well.

OVERALL RATING: 3.5 OUT OF 5.

Royal Istanbul has come a long way from that small restaurant tucked away in a little corner in West Bay area to an eye catching dining restaurant on Salwa Road. If given a choice, I would go back to the one in West Bay albeit without a car and worry for being cramped for space.

I feel the one in West bay dishes out more yumminess but the one is Salwa gives you an overall feel good factor especially when out for a dinner with family.