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Kebapçı İskender has opened its first restaurant outside Türkiye at 30 Beauchamp Place in Knightsbridge, London.
The opening marks only the third restaurant operated by the İskenderoğlu family in almost 160 years, joining locations in Bursa and Istanbul.
The family restaurant traces its origins to Bursa’s Kayhan Çarşısı in 1867, when İskender Efendi developed a method of preparing lamb vertically in front of a charcoal fire.
The technique became associated with döner kebab, while the family continued to specialise in the dish that became known as İskender kebab.
Kebapçı İskender has remained under continuous family ownership across five generations and is today led by Yavuz İskenderoğlu and his sons, Oğuzhan and Kayhan İskender.
The original Bursa restaurant operates from İskender Efendi Konağı, a reconstructed 17th-century Ottoman mansion which also houses a museum documenting the family’s history.
Its second restaurant is located at Istanbul’s historic Akaretler Sıraevler, which was built in 1875.
The London restaurant is being led by brothers Oğuzhan İskenderoğlu and Kayhan İskender, fifth-generation members of the family.
Oğuzhan İskenderoğlu began his career as an apprentice within the family business, progressing through different stages of the craft before earning the peştemal, the sash traditionally associated with mastery within the Anatolian guild tradition.
He subsequently studied in Switzerland, London and New York, completing a degree in Marketing at the University of Greenwich and a Master’s degree in Integrated Marketing and Brand Management at New York University.
Kayhan İskender studied at Institut auf dem Rosenberg in Switzerland before completing a degree in Global Business Management and Sustainability at Regent’s University London.
He also undertook an apprenticeship within the family business and earned his peştemal in 2011. He now serves as Head of Finance and Co-General Manager.
Oğuzhan İskenderoğlu said: “For nearly 160 years, our family has never measured success by how many restaurants we could open, but by whether every plate honoured the one first served by İskender Efendi in Bursa. If we were ever to open outside Türkiye, it had to be somewhere that shared our respect for history, craftsmanship and continuity.
“We chose London because it is a city that understands those values. This is not the beginning of a new tradition. It is the continuation of one that has remained alive in our family for nearly two centuries.”
The Knightsbridge restaurant is located close to Harrods and serves the family’s signature İskender dish, following the recipe and preparation associated with its original Bursa restaurant.
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