ISLAMABAD: The Turkish ambassador, Babur Girgin, on Friday morning opened the Ozsar Turkish Doner House, the first of doner kebab outlet in the city.

A ceremony saw some food lovers, media and representatives from the Turkish embassy treating their taste buds to lamb, beef and chicken doner kebabs at the new restaurant in the food court of Centaurus.

The outlet has been opened by MIA Vittles, a franchise licence holder.

“To better cater to our customers, we have taken the best from the world cousine ranging from Turkish to Taiwanese to American food,” said the company CEO, Osman Ashraf.

He explained that as a authentic Turkish Doner House, he had introduced concepts like veal doner, chicken doner, Iskender, which is a mix of lamb and beef with sauce and tandoori rooti. Speaking on the occasion, Ambassador Babur Girgin said he felt closer to home. “The company has brought Turkish culinary and culture to Pakistan,” said the ambassador, sampling the lamb doner kebab.

He also encouraged the Turkish business community to explore and consider Pakistani markets for business opportunities in all areas, especially food.

The morning saw some rush at the counter as the Turkish chef, especially flown into Islamabad for the opening day, sliced pieces of meat to go with tandoori rooti as he prepared the delicacies.

Plenty of Turkish sweets also went around for guests and a separate counter for various kinds of salads were in place where guests helped themselves.

Syed Javed Ali, one of the guests, welcomed the Turkish restaurant. “There are not many authentic restaurants in Islamabad and certainly not any Turkish doner kebab outlets and this is a very nice addition for food lovers of the city,” he added.

Appreciating the traditional taste with the modern presentation, his wife Munazza Javed said she found the taste of the doner kebab the same she had in Turkey and brought back memories.

According to the manager of the Turkish restaurant, the company was opening another outlet in Lahore in November.

Published in Dawn, September 27th , 2014