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Turkish Restaurant to Open on 46th Street in Sunnyside

45-08 46th Street

Jan. 19, 2018 By Christian Murray

Two Sunnyside residents are opening a Turkish restaurant on 46th Street, adjacent to the Sunnyside arch.

Rifat Avci, the owner, and Yuksel Akdas, the manager, aim to open the restaurant at 45-08 46th Street in about four months. They plan to offer traditional Turkish food, such as kebabs, gyros, hummus, tabbouleh, Turkish bread, etc.

Akdas, who has lived on 40th Street for the past 15 years, was the cook at Mangal Kebab on Queens Boulevard for more than a decade. His cousin owned Mangal but sold the restaurant to a new owner a year ago. Adkas left Mangal about six months ago.

Yuskel Akdas

The new restaurant, to be called Nefis Kebab, will seat about 35 people and will be casual.

“It will be something between a formal restaurant and fast food,” Avci said, who has lived on 42nd Street for years.

This is Avci’s first restaurant, although he has worked at many in Manhattan.

Avci said he came up with the name Nefis, since in English it means delectable or yummy.

The restaurant takes over the space that had been occupied by First Central Savings Bank, which left in October 2016.

The space has to undergo a great deal of renovation. Avci anticipates that it will take about four months to get all the work done and get all the requisite permits and licenses.

Owner Rifat Avci

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28 Comments

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donald j trump

this trump economy is so hot they can open virtually duplicate turkish restaurants 35 feet apart! Like I said during the election, we will win so much that we’ll break records!

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Design gal

I hope the interior design is as warm and tasteful as the food ….ambiance is everything.

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SBSunnyside

It’s great that they are local residents with deep roots in Sunnyside. More reason to support them and help make them a success. If the food/value/venue isn’t good, the neighborhood will let them know (with empty seats in the restaurant).

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samantha

I love Turkish Food and Turkish Soap Operas! Welcome and we look forward to dining at your place! Such a wonderful addition to the neighborhood.

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Curlicue58

I stopped going to Mangal ever since you left. I could tell the food didn’t taste the same and I didn’t get that warm welcome when I came in. Very happy I know you’ll do well. Congrats!!

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Anonymous

Good luck in this taugh days
for restaurant business.
I hope you guys will survive in the neighborhood which is especially two Turkish place will be next to each other

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Schumers glasses almost fell off last nite

the great Peter Pan donuts of Greenpoint had a former employee open up a donut place within a 2 min walk of Peter Pan, I felt like this is pretty low and I could never walk in the other place. Sorry but this tells you something about these two guys.

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Sharifa

I can’t help but feel this is a little ,weel hard to know the right words. But yes, it’s quite close to the other Turkish restaurant. When that other store opened up exactly like Butcher Block (and former employee opened it) in same side of Blvd and just a few blocks away, I knew it would not last. Why not open it over at Skillman ave up in the 46-48 st area far away from Butcher Block? Why would all the customers who are possibly loyal to Butcher Block shop there..well, obviously they didn’t as they closed. This new place may have customers loyal to the new owners, or may simply like the food better. As I had heard that food was slightly different at Mangal. Who can say for sure? I guess time will tell, but in this difficult market of opening restaurants/ bakeries etc, we have seen many come and go so fast, it might prove a harder task to make a good business so close to a well established Turkish restaurant 1 block away!

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Mac

Its true. Similar businesses open near each other for a reason — they bring people in. That’s why you see jewelers near each other, furniture, any district. If having similar restaruants near each other caused them to fail, we’d have no Chinatown, Jackson Heights, Elmhurst, Pizza Hut, etc.

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Inocencia

Mangal has lost its original chef to this soon to be openi ng restaurant.
I used to love Mangal, but now that they don’t have the same chef the food has become mediocre!
So to say that it’s stupid to open another Turkish restaurant right next to Mangal doesn’t prove anything.
Wait till you have a taste of what truly delicious Turkish food is. Both owners of Nefis Kebab are EXCELLENT chefs.
Just ask the Turkish folks and they will tell you the difference?

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SuperWittySmitty

Mangal’s lamb gyro on homemade bread is one of the best sandwiches in Sunnyside.

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Stormy Daniels

Not to nice to open up 1 block away after your family sold the other place.
Hopefully both places do well enough to make it.

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Leonard

Yes, I was thinking the same thing. Usually there is atleast a standard 2 year no compete clause in the sales contract. I guess it was a handshake transaction

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