A restaurant in Kingston has raised a remarkable £13,411 which will be donated to organisations helping to support families rocked by last week's devastating earthquake in Turkey.

The death toll from the earthquake that struck south-eastern Turkey near the Syrian border passed 35,000 yesterday, Turkey's disaster agency confirmed, whilst thousands remain missing.

Cappadocia, a popular Turkish restaurant in Kingston that has been open for over 20 years, was left distraught by the disaster with many of its staff and regulars directly affected.

The eatery announced last Tuesday (February 7) that its earnings from Thursday February 9 would be donated directly to charitable causes working in the affected areas and this morning revealed the sum that had been raised.

Cappadocia's Kingston restaurant raised an incredible £13,411 during the Thursday service whilst the Epsom branch brought in £8,337 bringing the chain's total donations to a stunning £21,749.

A remarkable £21,749 has been raised by both Cappadocia restaurant in Kingston and Epsom (Credit: Cappadocia)

A statement from the Kingston eatery said: "We have been extremely overwhelmed with all the support, donations and kind messages we have received since last Monday about the Turkey earthquake.

"It truly means the world to us!

"Whether it was a £1 donation or £100, big or small, or even just sharing our updates on social media, it does really make a huge difference in helping those affected.

"As you may know, some of our staff members are from the disaster areas, who's families and friends have been affected, so this really does mean a lot to them especially!"

Cappadocia continued: "Last Thursday (9th February 2023), we decided to donate the whole of our earning to the earthquake disaster. We are very proud to announce that in Kingston we raised £13,411.30 and in Epsom we raised £8,337.92. A combined whopping total of £21,749.22. This is truly incredible, we are so thankful and grateful.

"Thank you to everyone who came along to support our fundraising, for those that shared our updates on social media platforms and for everyone's messages of support. A special thank you also to those who couldn't make it, but donated directly to various charities.

"Finally, we would like to say a huge thank you to all our staff, for their hard work and especially working voluntarily last Thursday!"

Local businesses including Kingston Food Centre, The Bistro and Ham Food Centre teamed up with Cappadoica to support them in their efforts.

A Just Giving page set up by the Turkey Mozaik Foundation remains active which has reached over £1 million in donations so far. The page can be accessed here.