Pronounced “keets”, kiez is German slang for neighbourhood. “I think everyone’s going to butcher the name,” managing director and co-founder Sam Halterman tells Broadsheet. “But I think it does tell people what we’re trying to do.”
The idea grew from Halterman and co-founder Victor Lison's time living in Berlin. They were there for start-up work, but found themselves seeking out kebabs across the city. “Each neighbourhood in Berlin has a distinct style,” says Halterman. “I kept falling in love with the food and the kebab culture.”
Now, with two more friends on board, they’re bringing their own version to Notting Hill. Unlike the Turkish kebabs you might find on Green Lanes or in Dalston, the quartet is serving Berlin’s distinctive Turkish German interpretation.
“The core difference is the medium,” says Halterman. “London kebabs, perhaps in the more traditional Turkish way, are served either on a plate or in a wrap. The Berlin style is often in bread.” At Kiez, the kebabs are served in pide rather than wraps.
The veal kebab is the meatier of the two, packed with fresh fennel, sliced red cabbage, tomato, red onion, cucumber and parsley. The chicken, meanwhile, takes its cue from the confusingly named (and very popular) gemüsekebap. “Gemüsekebap in German means vegetable kebab, but it’s always chicken,” Halterman says with a chuckle. Kiez’s version comes with fried courgettes and aubergines, cucumber, tomato, diced white onion and parsley. A vegan option, still in R&D, will be available soon.
There’s a “secret” fermented element in the spice mix that finishes the kebabs, though Halterman doesn’t want to make a big deal of it. “We don’t want to make any of the kebabs unnecessarily complicated or pretentious,” he says. To complement them, there’s also a Berlin-style trio of sauces – garlic, herb and chilli – as well as fries.
The 30-seat space’s retro-futurist, industrial-style interiors are very Berlin, fitted with curved brushed-steel counters, sculptural speakers and walnut and brushed-concrete accents. “The point of the design is to tell people immediately that they’re not walking into a kebab shop they’ve known in London before,” says Halterman. There’s also a streetside hatch, terrace seating and an indoor-outdoor counter with stools on either side.
Kiez has teamed up with east London’s Bar with Shapes for a Name to design a cocktail menu that’ll be served at double speed. “We wanted it to be as fast and as casual as possible,” says Halterman. Their aim is to pour a cocktail in under 20 seconds, with £10 options including Negronis, Margaritas and Espresso Martinis, as well as ice-cold Martinis which arrive via a clever super-chiller tap. There’s also German and Austrian wine and beer, including one of Halterman’s favourites, Tegernseer, which is still relatively hard to find in the UK.
The gang is keen for Kiez to be the go-to for everything from a quick lunch to a post-drinks pit stop, or even just a drink. “In Berlin, [going to a kebab shop] is a whenever-you-want it kind of thing … and we’re trying to hopefully bring some of that to London. We want everyone from all walks of life and all parts of London here, to keep it light and fun and young and casual.”
Kiez Kebab
108 Golborne Road, W10 5RZ
Hours:
Wed midday–11.30pm
Thu to Sat midday–12.30am
Sun midday–11pm
