Turkish Restaurant for Mayfair, W1

Oxford Street is the official boundary between Marylebone and Mayfair, and Grand Bazaar sits ninety seconds north of it on James Street. From the Mayfair side — Davies Street, South Molton Lane, the run of Bond Street auction houses — you simply cross at the Selfridges traffic island and walk into St Christopher's Place through the pedestrianised arch. We're at number 22, with the Turkish dining room on your right as you come in and the chargrill open at the back.

Mayfair already has more fine-dining tables than most central London neighbourhoods, but a normal Thursday evening doesn't always want a tasting menu. It often wants a real Turkish kitchen with charcoal at the centre, a fully halal meat menu, mezze worth sharing, and the option to sit for a couple of hours without the kitchen closing on you at 22:00. Grand Bazaar has been doing exactly that on James Street since 2005 — open every day until 22:30, including Sundays and bank holidays.

The order most Mayfair regulars build a table around is the mixed grill for two — lamb shish, chicken shish, lamb chops, kofte, lahmacun and rice — supported by a four-plate cold mezze board with humus, haydari, kisir and ezme, and warm bread brought to the table to order. Iskender, layered over toasted pide bread with strained yogurt and warm tomato butter, is the second most-ordered main. The hot mezze list runs through sigara börek, grilled halloumi, falafel, octopus salad and grilled prawns.

On foot from the Mayfair side, you're around ten minutes from Berkeley Square, eight from Claridge's, four from the Sotheby's saleroom on New Bond Street, and roughly twelve from the Royal Academy of Arts on Piccadilly. By cab, the easiest drop-off is the corner of James Street and Oxford Street — the rest is a short pedestrian run. Bond Street tube's exit 3 surfaces directly opposite our pavement, so guests coming up from Green Park or Marble Arch on the Jubilee or Central lines arrive in under a minute.

We seat 42 inside and 75 outside on the pedestrianised section of St Christopher's Place. The dining room is calm by Mayfair standards — dim, warm, and quieter than the chains a couple of streets away even on a Saturday. Walk-ins are welcome at lunch and on weekday early evenings; for Friday and Saturday dinner please reserve online and your confirmation arrives by email within minutes. Group bookings of seven or more are best handled by phone so we can hold the right table shape and pace the kitchen properly.