Skewered

One of London's great Turkish kebab houses from the 1960s on, Efes, in Great Titchfield Street, looks like it's getting quite a kick around - with builders hard at work.

A favourite for many from the BBC and ITN (when in Wells Street), the walls used to be adorned with signed and framed photos of many broadcasters, but they disappeared long before Yewtree came along. The decor was faux Ottoman; junior waiters wore uniforms more akin to those of circus tumblers - indeed one, famous for doing the difficult afternoon shift, had almost no neck, as if he had spent too long at the base of a human pyramid. The afternoon shift was difficult because pubs closed - so the main purpose of a visit was to keep topped up with bottles of red infuriator and big plates of grilled meat. No matter what you ordered, with a coffee and a glass of brandy at the end, the bill spookily always worked out at £25 a head.

Sometimes, sessions were enlivened by birthday parties, with large trays of fruit dotted with sparklers ferried in shoulder-high by a pair of waiters at the end of the meal.

I've no idea how Efes will re-emerge. It's the last of a trio of old eateries to survive - the Monte Bello (main courses with vegetables, but no choice of vegetables) and the Venice (choose your vegetables) are long gone. Nowadays Beeboids prefer the spartan sandwiches of a Swedish cafe or the corners of the Riding House Cafe.