A few days back we had an unusual but pleasant dining experience when my wife and I joined a group of around 20 in order to enjoy an evening meal at Buzz Kitchen, a Turkish restaurant, and one of many in Basildon’s Festival Park, and the occasion was to celebrate the birthdays of two of our friends.

The introduction to the Buzz Kitchen website (see here) declares: “Welcome to Buzz Kitchen in Basildon! We invite you to explore our traditional Turkish menu, filled with delicious dishes that will transport you to the heart of Istanbul. From succulent kebabs to mouth-watering meze, our menu is sure to satisfy your cravings. Come and experience the taste of Turkey at Buzz Kitchen Basildon, In Festival Way”. All this was intriguing, especially as I cannot recall eating authentic Turkish cuisine other than perhaps when eating Kebabs brought at various takeaways over the years.

We arrived early and it was quite busy. It turned out Buzz Kitchen occupied the same premises as an Indian restaurant that we occasionally visited several years back. While the floor space was a lot larger than your average restaurant, the décor was pleasing. We were politely ushered into our seats in a nooky that was to accommodate the rest of our party. From the outset, the approach of our friendly, efficient and nothing was too much trouble waiter boded well for the rest of the evening. We were not to be disappointed. One minor, practical detail (and it is one that often is missed) was payment for me and my wife was organised at the outset so at the end when we came to pay we did so without fuss. We ordered our drinks (I started with water and my wife had a cup of English tea) as we waited for the rest of the party to arrive, which they did and we were all then able to order.

If we had come Sunday to Thursday we could have ordered from a reasonably priced set menu that had several options but since it was Friday we ordered a la carte where there was a large choice on offer, although most were with a Turkish slant. I ordered Sukuk (Turkish sausage) for my starter and also a glass of white wine from an extensive drinks selection; my wife ordered crispy calamari. Everything was well synchronised, especially given the size of the party, and timing for serving was nigh perfect with orders for members of the group taken at the same time. While we were waiting for our starter, we were served complementary naan type bread and dips (the Turkish equivalent of Indian poppadom with dips and just as nice). For main, I ordered the seafood mix and my wife ordered lamb ribs. Our mains came with salad that included lettuce, pickled cabbage and grated carrots and rice (which while not my preferred combination was quite acceptable). This was the case for most of the other members of our group.  The food was hot and tasty and there was lots of it. So much in fact that a number didn’t manage to finish, no doubt full up. Not a problem since those who wanted it could take their left overs home in containers provided.

It was a pleasant experience talking among friends and we were not hurried. Besides the food being tasty and plentiful, the value was reasonable for given what was served and we were well looked after including any added request being dealt with, without fuss, by our attentive waiters. While I liked our cosy corner, we couldn’t ignore the fact we were in something that reminded me of a large canteen, together with a lot more background noise than I would like. I confess, I was looking forward to ending up with a dessert at the end but that wasn’t to be. Some in our group had indicated they wanted to leave so our waiters took it as a cue we all wanted to and we were presented with our bill when it was seen that everyone had finished eating. Looking at the menu, with limited choice of dessert, I get the impression that desserts were no more than a mere afterthought.   

Someone who knows my habit of writing restaurant reviews for new and unfamiliar places wondered after recounting my experience if I would score Buzz Kitchen eight out of ten. Indeed, that is the mark I would give, which is still good by my standards. I would definitely be up for a return visit and recommend it to others, while suggesting they also take into account my above comments. Having said that, when it comes to ethnic cuisine, I still prefer Indian and Chinese over over Turkish or back to English – traditional roast or even fish that has just jumped out of the sea – but then that’s just me, and we are all different, yet I’m glad I’ve tried Turkish at Buzz Kitchen.