Divan Mediterranean Grill

This place is past it’s prime I do believe. I have been here about two years ago and the food was really good. Recently tho when went the food wasn’t that great. The service was so slow but it wasn’t the waiter’s fault. He was clearly waiting on the kitchen since we were the only ones there.
The dishes were by and far surprisingly tasteless. And drowning in sauces as if that would help it. It so did not. There are way better Turkish places than this spot people.

SO this place is pretty much the best, awesome atmosphere awesome service and delicious food. IGNORE the Unilocal hate. these fools wouldnt know delicious turkish food if it was served on an ottoman… good joke, but seriously eat here.

Not sure if this «Divan» has any affiliation with the old «Divan» Turkish restaurant that was in Graduate Hospital, but the two are leagues apart. Very sad that the old Divan closed, as the food was the best Turkish food I’ve had, with a great ambiance to the space.
This Divan: not so much. Mediocre Turkish food at best. Space is ok.

Very delicious!
Everything we had was great!

The website says Divan ‘Turkish’ Grill — so I’m sticking with that!
— — — — — — -
It was 11PM on a weekend night and there was nothing in the fridge — so naturally, we hopped on GrubHub and ordered from Divan Turkish Grill, a South Philly BYO that delivers — literally. Despite ordering half an hour before their midnight closing time, they were able to get it delivered by midnight, which was amazing.
Falafel ($ 5.99)
Chickpeas, celery, carrots, Turkish spices, hummus
Of course, we had to get the falafel. The Turkish spices imparted savory flavors. The texture was there — nicely crisp outside, while maintaining moistness within. The hummus could have used a bit more pop with lemon though.
Doner and Chicken Combo ($ 14)
Ground lamb, chicken, grilled vegetables, rice, tartar sauce, pita
While not as good as the doner at Avli in New York, these grilled meats were pretty darn good. The lamb was fragrant, sweet, and tender. The chicken was moist and juicy, marinated with a bit of heat. The grilled peppers had a great char and were not incredibly hot. The long grain rice was well-​seasoned and subtly sweet.
The pita was still hot and seemed homemade. Perfect to house some of the tahini-​based ‘tartar’ sauce with some meat and veggies — it made for a great bite.
Sac Kavurma ($ 14.99)
Fried diced beef, grilled vegetables, rice, tartar sauce, pita
We also ordered the sac kavurma, which offered fried diced beef, supposedly cooked on a cast-​iron skillet. The beef has a bit of heat to it, but could have used a bit more seasoning and frankly, I expected more char from being on a skillet. The mix of veggies and onions were nice and was certainly a great filling for that homemade pita.
The beef also came with the Turkish rice, which I believe is cooked in butter, with some grains being toasted to impart the color change.
Overall, Divan Turkish Grill is a great option for BYO or late night delivery. I’d have to say that in Philly, Bitar’s is definitely my favorite for Middle Eastern cuisine thus far, but Divan Turkish Grill provides a satisfying bite as well.

I cannot rave about the food and service enough.
It’s BYOB with no corking fee, but I’m pretty sure I saw a bar in the back.
For the appetizer we split the spicy minced peppers, which is a cold dip and was a delicious way to start our meal.
For the entrée we got the falafel plate and the chicken chops. The entrees came with either a soup or salad. We got the red lentil soup which was slightly spicy and went well with the meal.
The price is very reasonable, a good inexpensive date night spot.
The atmosphere was very relaxed, and we sat there for a few hours eating and drinking our wine. Divan is an amazing restaurant, definitely a place to come back to.

My boyfriend and I had dinner here a few weeks back. We used a Living Social. I don’t know why so many others had problems but they accepted ours with no shadiness.
I ordered the vegetarian casserole and my boyfriend got the salmon and rice. The casserole was good but VERY greasy. My entrée came with a salad. They brought out a horrible iceberg lettuce and tomato salad, but I was able to swap it for a mixed green salad that was pretty delicious. My boyfriend liked his salmon but found it a bit dry. The rice was excellent and perfectly cooked.
The service was great and our waiter was very attentive. I would come here again but next time I’ll try the falafel or zucchini
pancake.

GREAT FOOD… GREAT SERVICE THANKS EDDIE!!! You are the best… DEFINATELY a place to return. We went for first time with a groupon offer but really prices with out groupon are very reasonable and the FLAVORS AND QUALITY OF THE FOOD are amazing! THE BEST FALAFEL I had try in Philly so far… The lamb and the chicken delicious and the Baklava is better than the one in Fulya. I have a Turkish inside me lol… Fulya for breakfast and brunch and now Divan for diner and all stay in the family…
I already sent my evaluation and comments to Zagat… Will be back soon and hope that Mr. Eddie will be our host again…
Thx, Wallington n Fernando

Came here first with a groupon and since have returned without one as their prices and portions are very reasonable. I have always loved philly BYOs and this is no exception. They have a huge selection of reasonably priced appetizers and pretty much unlimited pita bread, all delicious. Their entrees are also reasonably priced and I have found that you can easily split it with someone if you get an appetizer or two.
I would definitely try the Turkish coffee, it’s prepared in a different manner and is quite delicious!

Our first visit last night was wonderful. The service was spectacular, and the combined BYOB and bar service is a brilliant idea. Those who have experienced Turkish cuisine at its best will be impressed.
The hünkiâr was excellent, the Adana kabob was spiced just the way I like it, The manti were freshly cooked and delicious. I can’t say anything negative about the meal. We ate very well and enjoyed the experience thoroughly. THe baba ganoush was very good, but I wished they had patlican salat on the appetizer menu.
Our waiter was super-​attentive. One of us dropped a fork, and he had a clean fork on the table to replace it within 10 seconds!
We’ll definitely be back!

Delicious. We had a Groupon for $ 15 for $ 30. We read the reviews saying that the restaurant was charging $ 2 to redeem it, so we called to ask and the manager assured us that it wasn’t true. Fair enough. We asked for a reservation in an hour for 2.
So glad that we stopped in here. The falafel appetizer ($ 6) was homemade and tasty. It came with a side of hummus on a bed of lettuce and thinly sliced tomato. Fresh pita bread and olive oil came with it. The vegetable casserole ($ 14) had a nice flavor. Eggplant, mushrooms, zucchini, onions, baked into olive oil and a red sauce. It could have used more cheese in my opinion, but I’m a cheesy gal.
The Turkish rice stole the show. We actually pulled the waitress aside to ask her what made this rice so superior to any other rice… ever. She laughed, but we really weren’t kidding. It was soft and buttery/​cheesy, and broke off of the mound in chunks. Dipped in the sauce from the casserole it was pure heaven.
My friend had a meat dish that I cannot pronounce. She was quiet most of the meal, and had a pleased grin almost the whole time. I will take that to mean that her dinner was just as good as mine.
Service was prompt and friendly. Our waitress did not scoff at my buddy who refused to make up her mind on what she was going to order, and asked a bazillion questions about the food and the preparation. Hey, inquiring minds want to know!
Very pleased with the whole experience, and would highly recommend Divan Grill.

I bought a groupon for this restaurant on the fly as I was leaving work. When I came home I read the reviews stating that they charged $ 2 and an 18% gratuity for anyone using a groupon. This is mentioned nowhere on groupon or their website (which seems to be consistently down).
So, I thought I would go ahead and call to find out if that was indeed true. «Hello, I just purchased a groupon for your restaurant, but I read a couple of reviews on Unilocal stating that you charge folks $ 2 and an 18% gratuity just for using a groupon?» «It is for taxes,» says the woman on the line, «It is the same for everyone.» «That wasn’t my question,» I said. «So it’s true then?» «Yes.» «I’ll have to cancel that one, then. Thanks.»
I promptly called groupon support and cancelled that groupon. Don’t let this place get away with that swindle.

This is a nice little restaurant with lots of Mediterranean flair to go around. I just wish my stomach could handle it.
Boyfriend and I stopped in after a Phillies game for dinner thanks to Living Social. He ordered the lamb donor, I ordered the chicken shish kabob.
Within minutes (as in, surprisingly quickly in a confusing way), the food was on our table. They *do* have a pretty small menu, though, so perhaps they just have dishes ready in preparation for obvious orders? I don’t know.
Nonetheless, I didn’t feel well enough to stroll down South Street after, which was a bit of a bummer. However: The food itself was good. I’d maybe make this an end-​of-​the-​night stop (they have hookah) instead in the future.

Came here for a groupon, and would definitely go back!
Spacious and well-​decorated (some ostensibly Turkish decorations, without being over the top), the dining room was inviting. On a Tuesday night, there was just one waiter staffing the dining room, which though not full, had a fair number of occupied tables. He managed to work the room efficiently and in a friendly manner, while an older man I’d assume is an owner occasionally helped with water refills, etc.
Apps: spicy minced peppers served cold with bread: tasty and not overly hot for those who can’t stand too much heat. Feta cheese «cigars» served with tzaziki type sauce: absolutely delicious, you should definitely get these! The herbs (at least parsley, I think) really add to the flavor and the sauce was great as well.
Main: we shared the Yogurtlu Adana, which was another big winner. It’s adana kebab served over pita bread with a tomato sauce and topped with yogurt. The adana was so flavorful and had a nice char on the outside, and the sauce was also delicious. Definitely recommended if you want to try something other than the usual plain old kebabs.
Dessert: couldn’t resist it! We each had a delicious Turkish coffee (best with no sugar, I think) with kazadibi, a custardy type dessert that is browned on one side.
I’d happily come again to serve my next Turkish food craving.

EXPERIENCE WITH A GROUPON: BEWARE OF EXTRA CHARGES
If I were only rating the food it would be 3 stars:
Complementary flat bread was bah, I can buy better at Trader Joe’s but I’m not going to complain since it was free.
The appetizer (Stuffed grapes) was very good but kind of small. My husband hated it! He said it tasted like cold chef boyardee’s tortellinni but everyone to his own taste.
We ordered a falafel platter and a kofte platter to share. The falafels were alright, nothing special. The Kofte platter was pretty good.
Until then everything was average and 3 stars worthy.
But all the sudden everything changed when we showed our Groupon! You guys should have seen the waiter face! His attitud changed completely (TIP: don’t show your Groupon until the end so they don’t have the chance to spit on your food)
We got our bill but THE BILL DIDN’T SPECIFY THE CHARGES, JUST THE REMINING BALANCE, which was10 bucks. Taking into account that my Groupon was 30 dollars, it seemed a little bit too expensive for what we had had. I didn’t complain because my husband always tells me that I’m bitchy, so I shut my mouth, paid and left a tip. I’m telling you, that meal WASN’T worth 47 bucks.
When I got home I read some reviews and aparently THEY CHARGE YOU 2 dollars FOR USING YOUR GROUPON (Which I’ve never seen before) and they add 18% gratuity to your bill BUT THEY DON’T SPECIFY IT.
I guess it’s the way to trick you into tipping twice, like I did. Well, that’s the last tip they are getting from me!

***BEWARE: IF YOU GO TO DIVAN, CHECK THE BILL FOR EXTRA CHARGES.***
Went to Divan with a Groupon deal ($ 15 for $ 30) & had a horrible experience. Food was all right, but service experience was awful & they tried to bill us twice for «taxes».
When we arrived, we told our waiter we had a Groupon & all seemed fine. Complimentary pita was warm and fluffy, served with oil & balsamic vinegar. The entrees were all right, around 3 stars. We ordered baked eggplant with ground lamb and the lamb adana kebab. Eggplant dish was not very flavourful & the tomato sauce was a little bland, but it was okay. The adana kebab was not bad & was tastier than the eggplant dish. Both were served with rice & sauteed cabbage and carrots. For dessert, we had the kazandibi milk pudding, which was very nice.
Throughout dinner, service was abrupt and awkward. Waiter suddenly approached us toward the end of the meal (we hadn’t finished) to demand the Groupon, so I gave it to him. Maybe we were getting Groupon service… okay, whatever.
Things got worse when the bill came. On the receipt, the itemized listing, Philadelphia/​PA 8% sales tax, and the subtotal were all correct. They had added in 18% gratuity — this was unexpected, since it wasn’t mentioned anywhere on the Groupon or menu & we were a party of 2 — but we didn’t make an issue of it since we were planning to tip anyway.
BUT, at the bottom of the bill, someone had handwritten the Groupon value to be subtracted ($ 30.00) and then ADDED back in «Tax 2.00» to the bill. Huh? What’s the second tax? The Philly/​PA 8% sales tax was already listed & included in the subtotal. We asked the waiter & he explained that it was a «tax» for using the Groupon. That made no sense to us at all. He offered to have the manager speak with us. The manager explained that they had to pay this «tax» to Groupon, so they were charging it to us, and that the Groupon didn’t include tax or tip. I agreed that the Groupon doesn’t cover tax and tip, but pointed out that our 8% tax & the tip were already on the bill; this additional fee was neither of those things. If he had to pay some fee to Groupon, it had nothing to do with us. He insisted that we had to pay this «tax» because it wasn’t included in the Groupon. I asked to see the Groupon to reread the fine print. He claimed he didn’t have it. I told him that I’d just given the Groupon to them and he finally went to get it for us. We checked the Groupon and verified that nothing was mentioned about extra «taxes» or fees for using it in the restaurant.
While we were looking at it, a third staffmember came by our table to tell us we had to pay the «tax.» This was strange, because I had no idea who he was & hadn’t interacted with him before — maybe he just felt compelled to do his bit to pressure us to pay the bogus «tax»? Weird. I realize that $ 2 isn’t a lot of money, but I’m not cool with being charged some extra fee as a «tax» when it’s not a tax. Taxes are levied by governments to pay for public services. I doubt this $ 2 was earmarked for state services.
A few minutes later, they came & took the original receipt away (where they charged us two «taxes») and gave us another receipt that didn’t have the extra «tax». I guess they realized their double «tax» deal wasn’t going to work on us, so they decided to backtrack and give us a different bill. We paid it and left.
The whole thing left a pretty bad taste in my mouth. The food is just okay. Service in general was impatient and discomfiting. The extra «tax» charge was just bad, wrong, unethical, and uncool.
BEWARE: During our discussion of the bill, they told us that they charged everybody this additional «tax» — as if the fact that other people fell for a fake «tax» would magically make us want to be fooled also! Anyway, if it’s true that they try this on everyone, then I feel I should warn people as a public service:
***IF YOU GO TO DIVAN, CAREFULLY CHECK YOUR BILL FOR EXTRA CHARGES DISGUISED AS «TAXES».***
(That was free advice, by the way — I won’t even charge you a «tax» on it.)

Very interesting food. It wasn’t bad, just different for me. I had an eggplant dish with lamb which was good, but different. The eggplant was almost like a sweet mashed potatoes and the lamb (a bit dry) was in a tomato based sauce. It also came with rice. My boyfriend got little dumplings in some yogurt butter sauce which was a bit heavy and… different. The food is good, just not what my stomach is used it. I like the dipping sauce they give you with bread.
Definitely worth a try. Service is good. Place looks clean, neat, and cozy.

PROS: Gigantic portions, tasty flatbreads
CONS: ?
The complimentary bread and dip are awesome! Also, the appetizer portions are HUGE! If you love kebobs, falafels, and/​or other Mediterranean fare, you will enjoy this place! At the end, make sure to get the «bottom of the pot» dessert. It’s like a very smooth, silky, fresh pudding made in heaven!

The food here is great. The waiters are very friendly and very attentive! I would definitely recommend coming here. They always have promotions as well, so you might get a good deal from your meal if you do your research.
They are BYO which is great, and this is a great restaurant for large groups

Excellent Turkish restaurant with a very nice atmosphere, I think this would be a great place for a date or romantic dinner or whatever. Baked eggplant with ground lamb was fantastic! a huge platter of well seasoned food, served with a side of shredded cabbage/​onions/​carrots, a scoop of rice, and a pretty large feta cheese cucumber tomato onion salad which was great. Very tastefully decorated with all kinds of Turkish stuff, quite attractive interior. the ketefe dessert (which is kinda like shredded wheat stuffed with cheese) is amazing!!! Turkish coffee is a must with that. a bit hidden just off South Street, a quiet oasis well worth trekking to! oh and it is BYOB so that is a big plus too methinks.