A YORK restaurant owner has invited the public back to his restaurant after issues with the previous owner have started to negatively impact his business.
Akwan Irani, the owner of Turkish restaurant Yakamoz in Goodramgate, York city centre, has said that he wants the public to know that he is open for business and welcoming customers inside.
This follows news that the previous owner was fined £45,000 for employing an illegal worker – an incident which took place in 2025, prior to Akwan having any involvement in the restaurant.
'Afiyet Olsun' - a common Turkish phrase meaning 'enjoying your meal' and wishing good health to diners is on the specials board (Image: Alice Kavanagh)
Akwan says events before he took over the restauarnt are now affecting his business.
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He said: “The news about the previous owner has really affected us. We’ve had a lot of cancellations – we were really quiet yesterday for example and things have impacted us massively, so we want to invite people to come back.
“We didn’t think it would affect us that much, but it feels like I’ve been penalised for someone else’s wrongdoing. We have 12 workers here and we cannot continue this way.
The restaurant offers a range of Turkish dishes and drinks (Image: Alice Kavanagh)
“We’re completely under new management – I’ve bought the place fully and I don’t know if the old owner is even in the country anymore.
“Some of our staff have been uncomfortable coming into work, because they’ve been worried about what people might say and we want people to know that this is not us.
“Since I’ve taken over, we’ve been working really hard to build up Yakamoz for the future and create more jobs for people in the community here in York.
“The market is down everywhere – things are a bit slow at the moment. We’ve had a lot of customers call to ask if we’re still open, so we want to make it clear that we are here and we are continuing to serve the food that people know and love.”
First opening its doors in 2020, Yakamoz offers a range of Mediterranean and Turkish food options including hot and cold mezze, along with mixed grills, a range of vegetarian and vegan dishes, and traditional drinks - including Turkish coffee.
It also offers a £15 two course lunch menu, including kebabs,
Akwan added: “When we took over Yakamoz, it wasn’t too long ago, so we haven’t changed things much. We wanted to take time to get to know the business and our customers and see how things are, then take it from there.
Turkish art in the restaurant (Image: Alice Kavanagh)
“We do have a plan to change some design here in the restaurant and add to the menus in future, especially adding something new for kids, but we’ll always remain a Turkish restaurant as that’s what people enjoy.
“We will keep most of things as they are – it’s a well-known place in York and the food has a good reputation, which we’re proud of, and we have a lot of good regular customers.
“The grills are really well loved here, plus traditional Turkish dishes like Tas Kebabi that people tend to really enjoy.
“Even before I owned the restaurant, I used to eat here and enjoy it. It’s always been my favourite restaurant in the city. The food is amazing here – people love eating here and everyone who eats here always comes back.”
Yakamoz is open daily from midday to 2pm then again from 5pm until 10pm, with reservations available through its website.