Southside Fort Worth Turkish restaurant facing repairs after kitchen fire

A Turkish restaurant in the Near Southside will be under repair for months after a kitchen fire March 18, the property owner said Saturday.

The Flying Carpet Turkish Café, in a 1950 bungalow at 1223 Washington Ave., suffered smoke damage throughout the wood-paneled restaurant, Brent Hyder said.

Food was left on the stove and a police officer spotted smoke coming from the roof, Hyder said.

Chef Jebrail Demirtash was not at the restaurant. He had gone home in Turkey temporarily with his family after a series of February earthquakes, Hyder said.

The Flying Carpet Turkish Cafe in 2015.
The Flying Carpet Turkish Cafe in 2015.

“I think it will have to be closed for a few months while we get everything cleaned and put back,” Hyder said.

The 10-year-old restaurant originally opened as a combination Turkish cafe and rug shop in the small home off West Magnolia Avenue.

Demirtash, a native of Malatya, Turkey, moved here from New Jersey after family members landed at Pera Turkish Kitchen in north Dallas.

Malatya was struck by a 5.6 earthquake Feb. 27, three weeks after a regional earthquake that killed more than 50,000 people.