Aksu Ocakbaşı

An evening by the fire in Aksu

Antalya needed a real ocakbaşı. Külhane Ocakbaşı opened in Güzelyurt with that in mind: not a bigger version of a backyard barbecue, but a place where meat only hits the fire once you've ordered it, and the fire itself sits in the middle of the room.

Here, dinner isn't just served — it's watched. By the time your skewer hits the grill, meze is already on the table; the table fills while the meat is still cooking, and your plate arrives hot. That's the logic of ocakbaşı, and it doesn't reward rushing. Give it an hour.

Külhane isn't a lunch spot. The door opens at 4pm and stays open until 2am — closed on Mondays. If you're around Aksu or Güzelyurt looking for an evening that starts around dusk and runs late, that's exactly what this place is built for.

How ocakbaşı works here

Everything from the grill is cooked over coals, to order. Nothing is pre-cooked and held — so at busy times, your plate might take a few extra minutes. We don't see that as a flaw; it's part of how the format works.

On the grill: lamb skewers, beef skewers, Adana Kebap, Urfa Kebap, liver skewers, chicken skewers, chicken wings, and kelebek (a butterflied lamb chop). Every portion size and price is listed openly on the site — you'll know what you're paying before you sit down.See the menu.

Portions start at 160 grams; chicken wings come at 400g, chicken skewers at 350g, kelebek at 300g. If you want salad on the side, Gavurdağı and çoban salatası (shepherd's salad) come in single and large portions.

Alcohol is served. We don't list prices on the site — drink prices change often enough that a printed list would go stale within the month, so we'd rather give you the current price at the table.

The table starts with meze

In an ocakbaşı, the meat gets the attention, but meze builds the table. Külhane serves 8 types: haydari (garlicky strained yogurt), acılı ezme (spicy tomato-and-pepper dip), humus (hummus), patlıcan salatası (eggplant salad), atom (fiery red pepper dip), şakşuka (sautéed vegetables in tomato sauce), ot kavurması (sautéed wild greens), and Girit ezmesi (Cretan-style olive dip). All served in the same 200g portion at the same price, so you can pick without worrying which one costs more.

Our suggested order: two or three mezes first, then whatever comes off the grill. For a large group, keeping meze to roughly one dish per person balances the table.See our ocakbaşı guide.

Who's minding the fire

In an ocakbaşı, the quality of the meal comes down to who's managing the fire. At Külhane, Yasin Demir runs the grill — our ocakbaşı master. On the meze side and the other end of the fire,Zehra Taş works — both an ocakbaşı and meze master.

Because the grill sits right in the dining room, you can watch the cooking from your seat. Seeing exactly how your meat is turned is what sets ocakbaşı apart from any other kind of grill restaurant.

Getting here

Address: Güzelyurt, 26223 Cadde No 4/1, 07112 Aksu / Antalya

We're in the Antalya Airport area, just behind the IC Airport Hotel — about 800 metres from the hotel, a short transfer if you're staying nearby, and walkable in good weather.

We say this as a convenience, not a pitch: Külhane isn't an airport restaurant — it's Aksu's evening spot. But if you're after a proper dinner before a flight or after landing, it's one of the closest ocakbaşı options in the area.

Parking is available in front of the restaurant for anyone driving.

Car-side service is also available: order and get served without leaving your car. Contactless delivery to your vehicle is an option too.

For directions, use the map link.Open in Maps.

Hours and reservations

Weekend evenings and later hours are our busiest times; if you're coming with a large group, a heads-up in advance helps. To book, message us on WhatsApp with your preferred date, time, and party size — we'll confirm.

Planning a birthday, celebration, or group dinner? Call the same number. Because the grill works to order, knowing about a large table in advance makes service smoother for everyone.

Who this is for — and who it isn't

Let's be straightforward, because the wrong expectations make for a bad night for everyone.

Külhane is a good fit if you enjoy an evening built around the table, don't mind waiting while your meat cooks over the fire, like starting with meze, or are near the airport and want something better than hotel food.

Somewhere else might suit you better if you're after lunch (we're closed until 4pm), need to eat and leave in twenty minutes, or want a fully quiet, low-key setting — the room picks up as the night goes on.

How an evening unfolds

Early on (4–7pm), the fire is freshly lit, the room is calm, and orders come out faster. This is the easiest window for conversation.

After 8pm, tables fill up. The table builds more slowly and the grill can take a few extra minutes — but this is also when the place feels most like itself.

Toward midnight, things settle down, though the kitchen stays open. Closing is 2am — just let us know a little ahead for a last order.

Külhane's other location

Külhane has a second address in central Antalya, in Muratpaşa: live music, meyhane character, a different concept and a different operation entirely from this branch.See our Muratpaşa location.