Yakamoz — Restaurant in Melbourne

🐟 Whole Baby Snapper 🍞 Turkish Bread, Oil 🍃 Stuffed Vine Leaves, Sour Cherries 🍆 Baba Ganoush 🧀 Saganaki, Honey 🍕 Beef Vegetable Pide 🥒 Zucchini Fritters, Crispy Manti, Green Beans 🍐 Pear Beetroot Salad 🍮 Woodfired Rice Pudding, Milk Baklava

Yakamoz is a Mediterranean Turkish restaurant located on Lygon St, Brunswick East. The name itself translates to describe when the moonlight meets the sea “sea sparkles”. ✨

Ali and Ogulcan, a lovely, passionate father and son duo started with a small caravan in a basement car park serving Istanbul street food. They later opened @halikarnasau (across the road, serving more traditional food and entertainment), @kebabrepublicmelbourne and have now started this next venture, Yakamoz together. 👬🏽

Head Chef Cagri Ergin was born and raised in Istanbul and brings his skills and experience to show a beautiful menu designed for sharing. Almost every dish is cooked or finished off in their woodfire oven. 🔥

Definitely start with some of their Baba Ganoush, fresh bread from the local bakery and Yaprak Sarma, stuffed vine leaves topped with sour cherries. The Zucchini Fritters, Crispy “Manti” were ok but the Garlic Beans had too much going on and were very soft. The Beef and Vegetable Pide was delicious, if they were open for lunch I would come for these! It event tasted delicious the next day in the airfryer.

Our favourite dish was their Woodfired Whole Baby Snapper, cooked beautifully in a sea of oil paired with a side salad. For $38 (MP) this was unbelievable value. We finished the dinner on a high with two unique variations of classics I know and love. A creamy Milk Baklava (milk replacing syrup) and a Woodfired Rice Pudding which gave a delicious charred top, retaining the cold rice underneath. 🤤

The food and staff are humble and they are keen to feed. I feel that the marketing and design of their menu, socials and website made me expect something a little more refined and wine bar-esque, however it still very much feels like a home cooked meal in a traditional restaurant. The team are still brainstorming final details and the overall interior...

If you're in Brunswick East and have a cheat day planned (or just a serious appetite), Yakamoz is your next must-visit spot. Open for about a year and a half, this buzzing eatery has quickly become a standout, and after our recent feast, it's easy to see why.

First, the service: absolutely top-notch. The staff was knowledgeable and on the ball, and despite a packed house, we felt well looked after the whole night. That alone sets the tone for a great experience.

We decided to indulge in the banquet with Ronny’s best man and his fiancée, and let me tell you, the food came out swinging! They know how to do a proper spread here, an absolute paradise for gym junkies looking to go all in.

We started with freshly baked bread and dips (tzatziki, muhammara, and hummus) and some beans to get things rolling, and each bite was a flavour bomb. Next came the fried halloumi, crispy manti, and cauliflower, all perfectly seasoned and satisfying. But the real stars were the Fremantle octopus and the lamb and chicken shish, tender, juicy, and brimming with that smokey chargrilled goodness.

And just when we thought we were hitting the finish line, in came the lamb cutlets and scotch fillet! Now, this was next-level indulgence, but we couldn't stop ourselves. To balance it all out (because, hey, balance is key), we ordered the wood-roasted potatoes and a fresh salad. Every dish was packed with flavour, and each bite left us craving more.

By the time dessert rolled around, we were stuffed to the brim, but who can say no to baklava and cheesecake? We pushed through, and it was totally worth it.

If we had one tiny critique, it’s that the dishes came out a little too fast for our liking, making the table feel a bit crowded. But honestly, that's nitpicking, when the food is this good, it’s hard to complain.

Overall, Yakamoz serves up food that warms the soul, with familiar Mediterranean flavours done just right. Highly recommended, but be warned: come hungry and be prepared to leave in a...

Yakamoz I had high hopes for Yakamoz, but my recent dinner left me feeling that the experience didn’t quite match the price point.

On arrival, there was no greeting and it took a while before menus were brought to the table. Service throughout the evening felt a little slow and disorganised, with dishes being “drip fed” to the table and long waits in between. Portions also came out in multiples of two, which made it awkward for our group of three (e.g., two prawns or four lamb chops). Having the option to adjust servings for group size would have been appreciated.

It’s clear that a lot of attention is going toward their Charrd burger operation on the side of the building — the line of people waiting for burgers was around the corner. Unfortunately, it feels like this might be taking focus away from the restaurant itself. The irony is that the burger is excellent (and the chips that come with it were our favourite dish of the night), but it can’t be ordered inside the restaurant. Being able to order it at the table would’ve instantly improved the experience.

As for the food: • Highlights: Octopus was great, pide was tasty, pasta was decent, and lamb chops (though over-charred) had good flavour. • Misses: Wings and lamb chops were a little too charred, pepper and feta dip lacked flavour, and portions were quite small. Halloumi was fine, but nothing stood out as memorable. • Drinks-wise, a can of Coke served without a glass or ice felt out of place for a restaurant setting.

Overall, it felt more like a premium sit-down kebab shop than a polished restaurant. With some adjustments to service, portion sizing, and focus, it could be much better. I wouldn’t return for the restaurant itself, but I’d happily line up for the...