My daughter treated me to lunch for Father's Day at Esnaf and everything was fantastic. I've never had Turkish Cuisine before so I didn't know what to expect. Everything we tried was really good and the service was top notch. The decoration is simple but quite unique, even elegant. The restaurant was packed but our orders were served in a very timely manner. Every detail was handled quite well from food service, to frequent refilling of our water glasses to very courteous service. If you haven't tried Esnaf you're missing one of the best restaurants in San Carlos. read more

Great food, service and ambiance! Staff were super friendly to us. We Will visit every time we are back I town.

We had a really great experience! The staff was extremely nice and attentive. The kebab trio was flavorful and the meat was cooked just right. The bread they bring you is SO good and fluffy and we loved it with the garlic yogurt dip. They also brought us flatbread to try because there was extra! SO nice! Can't wait to go back. Dog friendly on the patio also! read more

Esnaf - Flatbread, haydari, kebab Kebap Trio for Two - Turkish Near Me - San Carlos, California

Food was tasty. We ordered the eggplant and octopus appetizers and beef flat bread. Service was even better. Servers were attentive and so sweet. read more

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Fantastic lunch venue for our team of 20 people. The staff at Esnaf were very accommodating and provided us with excellent service. The food here is fantastic and we enjoyed sampling many of the appetizers - the meze trio, oven baked mushrooms, oven-baked prawns, crispy manti, calamari and the Turkish pizzas - all were fresh and flavorful. The freshly baked bread was a perfect pairing for the meze trio. Across our large group, we ordered every main course dish on the menu and there were very few plates that weren't empty by the end of the meal! My seabass (levrek) dish was delightful - an entire crispy, de-boned fish with a delicious lemon-y sauce accompanied by couscous. Somehow we managed to squeeze in some desserts - the Katmer, pistachio gelato and coffee mousse all hit the spot! The restaurant space is tastefully designed, and with the stellar food - this is a restaurant we look forward to visiting again. read more

Very delicious restaurant that will leave you feeling so happy and satisfied. I really enjoyed the food. It was all so fresh and flavorful. Looking forward to Going back! read more

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Stopped by to try, and it didn't disappoint! The menu looked great but I didn't want beefy, so I got the marinated chicken skewers and a starter of a nice yogurt dip. They seat you with fresh olive oil - you really t taste the olives - with drab herbs and balsamic, and an airy little brad loaf for dipping that's seasoned like lavash but has risen, Western-style. This goes perfect with the olive oil and the yogurt dip too - and it's refilled free and quick. In another few minutes I had my perfectly charred chunks of chicken, with a simple but generous white rice and basically pico de gallo. In all I could've been out of there in 20 minutes if I'd wanted, Service was friendly and atmosphere very nice. A "$$" rating is pushing it, but it was certainly a worrisome visit. Recommend. read more

An absolutely exceptional dining experience from start to finish. The food is truly magnificent every single dish was full of flavor, beautifully presented, and clearly prepared with incredible attention to detail. Without a doubt, this is the best restaurant not only in the area but even compared to nearby cities. The service is just as impressive as the food. From the moment you walk in until the moment you leave, you're treated with genuine warmth and professionalism. The staff is attentive, caring, and incredibly welcoming, making the entire experience feel special. This place absolutely deserves a Michelin Bib Gourmand recognition. It's legendary. If you're anywhere nearby, this spot is a must-visit. read more

We came here for an early Mother's Day brunch, and Alex was our server. He was super kind, friendly, and provided great service. The atmosphere felt very warm and cultural, the food was fresh, and I especially loved the hot bread straight out of the oven. read more

Delicious! Can't recommend highly enough! This may be my new favorite Turkish place in the San Francisco Bay Area. Delicious food, great ambiance, wonderful location. Great service. Endless çay read more

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Manti is one of my favorite foods and I wish I saw it on more menus. I particularly liked the crispy kind which they have here at Esnaf. Everything else we got was good (dips, kebab, lahmacun) too but the manti is what stands out the most. read more

Turkish cuisine has a special place in my palate and Esnaf did not disappoint! The ambience was warm and welcoming and we chose the outdoor seating on a late Saturday afternoon. Service was top notch too. Of the kebab trio we ordered, the chicken thighs and kofte were super soft, juicy and flavorful but the tenderloin had a bit of a bite to it. Overall, a great lunch! read more

Esnaf - Kebap Trio for Two - Turkish Near Me - San Carlos, California

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I tried this relatively new restaurant in downtown San Carlos. There is ample street parking nearby. They offer indoor and outdoor seating. We sat inside but at a table next to an open window. It was a beautiful evening! I recently tried another Turkish restaurant in downtown Redwood City so I wanted to see how this one compared. As soon as we sat down, they served us complimentary bread with olive oil. It was so fresh; the kids loved it! We sampled the Kopoglu (fried eggplant and peppers on garlic yogurt, topped with tomato sauce), Lahana Sarmas (stuffed cabbage rolls with beef and rice, served with garlic yogurt), Pide trio (Turkish flat bread with beef tenderloin, crimini mushrooms, and chicken thighs), and lahmacun (thin and crispy flatbread topped with Angus ground beef, tomatoes, onions and parsley). Maybe we didn't order the correct things as I'm not that familiar with Turkish cuisine, but I didn't love anything that we ordered other than the lahmacun. I thought the yogurt dip with eggplant would be more like baba ganoush, which it was not. It was simply yogurt, topped with a few pieces of eggplant and peppers with a drizzle of tomato sauce. It wasn't bad, it just wasn't what I had in mind. It paired beautifully with the bread though. The cabbage rolls were a bit bland in my onion. It was served with yogurt dip and tomato sauce so the flavors were redundant. Having just had a pide at Nomadic Kitchen, I actually liked their version better than at Esnaf. It was crispier and less doughy. This one looked moreso like khachapuri, the Georgian cheese bread. My favorite thing I tried was the lahmacun! It was meaty and seasoned perfectly. I highly recommend this dish! The service here is outstanding! All the servers were very nice and they offered to bring us more bread and filled our water glasses numerous times without us asking. I think would like to come back and try other dishes, like the branzino and the kebabs. And I would definitely order the lahmacun again! read more

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Excellent service, pleasant Turkish music setting the ambience and ABSOLUTELY delicious food! Could not fault anything with the food. The food portions may look small but they sneak up on you. We ended up putting our main course in a to go box as the appetisers (pide and meze trio) filled us up :) read more

Esnaf is our new favorite mediterranean restaurant. Even though it's slightly farther from our home, we love to go there for their beautiful space, authentic food, relaxing atmosphere, and great service. They have interesting dishes and we particularly love their complimentary warm sesame bread. It's ultra delicious and each time my wife and I have to resist the temptation to eat more in order to leave space for the main dishes. It's a great place both for a relaxing family dinner or for a friend's get-together. Highly recommend it! read more

As someone who was born and raised in Turkey, I can vouch for the authenticity of their meals! None of the menu items disappoint and they remind home. Delicious. The staff is very attentive and service was pretty quick. We decided to eat here for my wife's birthday dinner and the ambience was perfect. Certainly looking forward to their breakfast menu as well. read more

We thoroughly enjoyed the Turkish breakfast for two. Every part of the meal, from the bread to the fruit, was fantastic. The service was great as well. We'll certainly be back for breakfast and to try dinner as well. Thanks Esnaf! read more

Esnaf - Part of the Turkish Breakfast meal - Turkish Near Me - San Carlos, California

Food was delicious. Ate outside - place is small & I didn't want to deal with navigating my walker inside. Service was friendly and knowledgeable and helpful in making recommendations for dairy free options for one in our party. read more

Oh we had such a nice time yesterday - I had heard of Turkish breakfast and then randomly came across this place and looked at the menu - Turkish breakfast! It's a sign, I must go! Hubby and I came here around 10:30 and the place was half full - I'm glad becasue I don't like a terribly crowded restaurant - but I wish it was full just to keep them in business. I think when enough reviews come out, this place will be booming. We ordered the Turkish breakfast for 2 and we had too much food to finish. The eggs were creamy and light, the tea was hot and delicious, the simit, roll with oil and pomegranate molasses, olives, cheese, honey, preserves, sausage slices, labne - all were so good - a nice presentation of goodies. Next time I'll need to try the menemen and Turkish coffee and of course dessert. I can't wait to come back here. The host and waitress were very nice and personable. The bathroom location is shared with Drakes next door, you have to go all the way through the kitchen to get to it - and since Drakes is larger, there was a line that took a while to get through as there were kids needing help. Hopefully this isn't a consistent problem. Most people don't need to go - I always do lol tiny bladder. Anyway, everyone in the kitchen smiled and I told them the food was delicious. Got back to the table and shoved two more bites down my throat even though I was full because the flavors were so good. Come to Esnaf - you will be so happy that you did :-) read more

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Walked in for dinner at 6pm on a Saturday and nabbed the last indoor seating. Service is super friendly and the decor modern and welcoming. Enjoyed the warm complimentary bread with olive oil while waiting for friends. Best tasting dish was the grilled chicken thighs (tavuk şiş), which was super tender. Was curious about the crispy manti and it was just ok for me--feels a bit over hyped from other reviews. It was not mind blowing nor a dish I'd come back for. The three dishes (which we ordered as our mains) came out separately with probably five plus minutes wait time for each so it was awkward since we were all waiting until the last dish arrived before eating. A good addition to San Carlos dining scene. read more

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The food was okay, but it didn't satisfy me. The flavors were pretty bland and nothing really stood out. On top of that, the service was disappointing. We waited a long time, and the staff didn't seem attentive or welcoming. Overall, the experience wasn't worth it. I won't recommend here at all. Take ur business somewhere else. read more

I couldn't believe the reasonable prices!!! Had Thanksgiving dinner there last night. What a cultural treat! I've never had Turkish food, and while I was a bit worried about the spiciness, the food was indeed rich and spicy but not overly so. Tea with aroma of cloves, salad with heat that slowly dissipated, and ice cream that never melted! Staff was so kind and patient with my ignorance of Turkish fare. The music was a bit loud, but the subtle lighting is romantic and overall ambience was festive. A San Carlos gem! Definitely coming back for lunch. read more

This place runs my taste buds and puts me in a delicious food coma. The pistachio gelato is sooo good and i love the kofte.

All dishes came out amazing! Turkish wine and beer were great! Service was outstanding! Ambiance was cozy and stylish! Our family had a great time as we tried and enjoyed this new resto! Highly, highly recommend !! You'll thank me for sure :D read more

1. Fresh- we watched them making some of the food from our table. 2. Clean, modern ambiance 3. Friendly 4. Tasty - we thoroughly enjoyed our meal. We had the cabbage rolls in garlic yogurt - Lahana Sarmasi , tiny beef meatball in a open pastry with yogurt n tomato sauce- Homemade Crispy Manti, spinach flatbread - Ispanakli Pide. Everything was delicious. We plan to return to try more items! read more

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Everything is tasty!! I love Mantarli Pide (mushroom pizza??) and lamb chops which is very good pairing with their wine. The service is very nice and friendly. Camilla and Alex are our servers. A++ services. read more

Nice ambiance, good food. Fresh salad , also they bake their own bread with sesame seeds on top.

Went for lunch on a Friday. The food was delicious and ambiance was nice However we felt rushed by waitress asking if we want the food packed up when I was not finished eating and was having conversation with a friend. That was really strange. The restaurant only had about 5 tables occupied..Their water glasses are small and we kept asking for water refills. Their bread dip had too much olive oil and not enough balsamic type thing they added...Then the portion of buttered rice on the plate with our chicken and beef entrees was insufficient and lacking for the price of the entrees. Would we go again? Maybe if they improved service and smiled a bit and increased portions of the rice we may go back to give them a 2nd chance..there are many competitive restaurants with more value for the dollar. read more

Esnaf is a delicious, intimate spot in the San Carlos area. As soon as you walk in, you're greeted by a fragrant aroma. We've been a few times and our favorite dish is the kopoglu - delicious eggplant and peppers over a bed of garlicky yogurt sauce. So delicious and we always wipe the bowl clean with the fluffy complimentary bread. At our latest visit, we also tried several new dishes. The patlican ezme was a simple yet refreshing eggplant salad. The karides guvec was a bold and flavorful prawn dish with a cheesy sauce that came out in a steaming hot dish. The ahtapot (grilled octopus) was slightly lacking in flavor and a bit overcooked which made it chewy. The lahmacun is a large crispy flatbread, great for sharing. The levrek (branzino) was alright, though the cream sauce was a bit heavy. We preferred the branzino that they previously had on the menu which was more flavorful and came with a small side salad - wish they would bring back this prior version! read more

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Amazing Turkish food. We were party of 4 and enjoyed a leisurely lunch, service was great and they didn't rush us. We enjoyed the prawns, ezme, hummus, kebab platter and pistachio gelato. Ambiance was cozy and had plenty of seating. Highly recommend this spot! read more

Fantastic Turkish food -- flavorful, authentic, and even tastier than some meals I had in Ankara. Service was excellent, ambience warm and welcoming. However, one serious issue: the restrooms are at the back, requiring patrons to walk through the kitchen area. As I returned to my table, a large metal door swung open suddenly and hit my left arm -- a narrow passage with no space to avoid it. Thankfully just a scratch, but it's a real safety hazard. Please fix the layout -- everything else about this restaurant deserves praise. read more

Very nice! Waitstaff was super friendly and attentive. Ambiance was relaxing. Food was decently priced and delicious. I wasn't a big fan of the humus (not smooth enough for me) but other people in my party liked it. The lentil soup, stuffed cabbage, and eggplant entree were really good. read more

Beautiful decor and friendly service. Indoor and outdoor seating available. You get delicious fresh baked complimentary bread with olive oil dip. Enjoyed everything we ordered especially the crispy manti and lamachun. They have beer and wine available too. Free public parking garage available on Walnut St (4 min walk) if you can't find parking that is closer. read more

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Esnaf has become one of our favorite places to eat out! The have excellent Turkish food, and an excellent staff!

Food is great; service is exceptional. Being from Turkey, not hard to evaluate food quality which we found to be above expectations. Pide was nice and moist; citir manti really delicious. But the service is just exceptional. read more

Tasty Turkish flavors. One star taken for the serving size. We felt like we had tapas for the price of a full meal. We ordered the starter meze trio. It's basically hummus, tzatziki sauce and a pistachio spread. The pistachio spread is special, the other two taste regular. The crispy mantis are very tasty, but they made quite a small starter for the $23 price tag. The flatbread Lahmacun has a perfect grilled taste and crispy texture, paired perfectly with tomato and lemon, but again a small portion due to the thin texture. We enjoyed the service from the waiter that looked after our table. He was very welcoming. The interior design is tasteful and clean. A good add to this neighborhood. read more

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I just had lunch at Esnaf with my boyfriend. We both enjoyed it. Everything we ordered came out quick. We sat at a table near opened windows. It was a great seating. I like my waitress and she was so nice and attentive. I forgot to ask for her name. One of the dishes i didn't like much was Hummus. It is a little salty. We definitely come back to try other dishes next time. read more

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Another fantastic meal at Esnaf! Took the whole family and everyone loved it--other than they ate too much! Susan was our excellent waitress and all the staff were helpful and accommodating. The appetizers, mushrooms, salad, lamb chop and trio platter were amazing. And the gelato! We will return! read more

The restaurant management was incredibly rude. It's honestly surprising they chose to be in the restaurant business with this kind of attitude toward customers. Because they didn't like the way our reservation was made, they asked half of our group to leave the restaurant. I've never experienced anything like this before. It felt extremely disrespectful and unprofessional. I would not recommend this place to anyone who expects basic courtesy and hospitality. read more

Had a delicious lunch at this newly opened gem of a restaurant in San Carlos. The atmosphere is cozy but not tight, with both indoor and outdoor seating. The decor showcases a lot of Turkish pottery in a warm, contemporary space. We began our meal with a generous portion of complimentary homemade pide served with seasoned olive oil for dipping. The bread had a delightfully chewy crust with a soft pillowy center. We shared an appetizer of Citir Manti which consists of mini meatballs wrapped in a delicate dough topped with a tomato sauce and garlic yogurt. The presentation was so beautiful, each dumpling component shaped to form flower petals. Next came our main, the köfte plate which included 6 köfte, charred peppers, buttered rice and a fresh tomato-onion salad. The meat was perfectly seasoned and tender, cooked to medium. The heat of the pepper balanced perfectly with the meat and the coolness of the tomato salad. We completed our meal with some Turkish black tea brewed smooth and served in traditional tulip-shaped glass cups. The service was exceptional. Food came out quickly and our waitress was very friendly. It gave one the impression of being invited to a homemade meal. We will definitely be back soon to enjoy exploring the other offerings on the menu. read more

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