Please recommend restaurants in Istanbul
 

We will be in Istanbul for one week in March. Please post names/locations/prices of places where you enjoyed eating lunch and dinner.

I've mentioned a few restaurants in my trip report. Click on my name and you should be able to connect to that report.

what kind of food do you like?

volume, price, setting, creativity, tradition, meat, fish, veg, chicken, mediterranean, home cooking, kebabs, presentation, good wine, view, people watching, non-touristy, with music, ........?

You may want to get on the website www.chowhound.com. There are headings for the US regional areas and also international. I the heading you want is TURKEY-GREECE. Just click on that heading and look for your topic.There is a contributor named antman who seems to know quite a bit about Istanbul restaurants. I have not personally gone to any of his recommendations, but I intend to when I am in Istanbul in May.

Oh Bourdain just had a new Istanbul episode this week - I wonder if it's available on Travel Channel?

Hi Ignutah. We spent 3 weeks in Turkey last May. We ate at lots of nice places in Istanbul but two restaurants in particular stand out. One day we ate lunch at Cimberlitas in Ortakoy, not far from the centre of Istanbul. The manager suggested we grill half our sea bass and try the other half baked in a tomato and pepper based sauce. We're glad we accepted his recommendation ... it was sooo good. Unfortunately I didn't take note of the price but I remember thinking it was reasonably priced. The service was also great.

The other restaurant, the Albura, was recommended by Tom Brosnahan of Turkey Travel Planner. The Albura is a bistro which serves Turkish fusion cuisine. It's an easy walk from the Arasta Bazaar on Akbiyik Caddesi. We ordered 3 mezzes: hummus, a hot spinach salad with pistachios and pine nuts and a mushroom cheese dish ... all delicious. The main course of lamb stuffed with rice and pistaccios (an old Ottoman recipe I believe) was fantastic. For dessert we treated ourselves to a chocolate souffle with ice cream. We also shared a great bottle of Angorra wine. The meal came to 130 lira which we thought was more than reasonable. The food and service were excellent and it was a very pleasant and memorable way to end our last evening in Turkey. Hope this helps. Enjoy your holiday!

Oh, and one other thing, Ignutah, you will only get touristy restaurants at locations near the historic sites when you post on these threads.

you really have to post differently to get the local gourmet recommendations.

On a trip to Istanbul last May, my wife and I had good, inexpensive meals at Tamara, Buhara 93, at a cafe just outside the Arasta Bazaar, and at The Pudding Shop. All are in Sultanahmet, and the first three are close to the Blue Mosque.

Forgot to mention another site which you all might be familiar with- http://istanbuleats.com/ I love good food and I am so looking forward to the treats that Turkey holds!

otherchelebi---good question from Jan 22-Here goes!
volume: we prefer smaller amounts of food at one time
price: budget to moderate
setting: informal
creativity: Yes, but traditional foods fit the bill
tradition: see above
Meat, fish, chicken, veg, etc: Variety is the spice of life
Wine: not interested
View: what's on my plate is more important than what I see out the window, I actually prefer "atmosphere"-ie, locals eating in the place, setting should represent the locale
Music: if representative of the region's history
Non touristy: almost a requirement

Thanks for the information Ignutah.

If 'non touristy' is almost a requirement, you may need to travel a bit sometimes. i will try to suggest restaurants which have reasonably good public transportation access:

- Bursa Garaj, for excellent iskender kebap. serves almost nothing else, except lentil soup and maybe salad. also has excellent free pickles. Take Metro to Levent. Come out across from Metro City or Canyon mall. Walk on main street to your left in the further direction, till you come to light. Turn right. Cross street at the end (T junction), it is on your right.

- Set Kebap, for very good Urfa or Adana kebap, also made with chicken meat. Again the same Metro station, take immediate side street at the metro station across from Metro City. Go to end (T junction) turn right and then second left at lights on main Nisbetiye Street, against the traffic. It is on your left about 300 feet.

- Ismet Baba, fish restaurant (will only take cash) at Kuzguncuk. Take boat from Eminonu to Uskudar and bus or taxi to the next stop on the Bosphorus. It is to the right of the old ferryboat landing.

- Savoy balik, fish restaurant at Siraselviler street, Cihangir. Walk down Siraselviler from Taksim Square, past the big the two hospitals across from each other to a large parking lot on your left (400 meters or so) restaurant next to and back of the parking lot.

- Savoy Patisserie, at the corner of the street next to the parking lot above, excellent sweet and salty patissery choices, and breakfasts.

- Any fish restaurant at Nevizade Street, parallel to Istiklal, entrance through one of the streets across from Galatasaray Highschool with the imposing gate midway down Istiklal.

- Yildiz Restaurant, traditional Turkish hot plate and home cooking at Astoria Mall, close to Gayrettepe Metro Station (the one before Levent) Come out Buyukdere Caddesi, turn back towards direction you came, on your right.

- Husrev, traditional beans, Same Metro, make same turn but turn left at traffic lights before you come to Astoria Mall. Follow street, and underpass to the next set of lights, turn left after you cross, on your right, some 150 feet.

-Ali Baba, Meatballs, at Arnavutkoy, on the Bosphorus. Take bus or taxi after end of tram line at Kabatas.
Also has a fish restaurant nearby for very reasonable fish.
- Girandola, ice cream, not cheap, but the best icecream in istanbul, also at Arnavutkoy, further up from the Ali Baba restaurants, on the coast road.

- Kanaat Restaurant, at Uskudar, take ferry or motor from Eminonu, go directly across square and take the major road to your left after the mosque (not the coast road). It is across from you just past the curve of the road. Has excellent hot plate and home cooking specialties, and the biggest selection in all of Turkey.

Ciya Restaurant, at Kadikoy. take ferryboat from Eminonu, Cross the square, walk up the pedestrian only street, second or third street on your right. Has kebap restaurant which is OK, but also the traditional Southeast Syriani cooking with fruit sours which are very special.

Wow! Thank you very much. I will print this out and take it with me.
Kisses from America.

Ignatuh,

Adem Baba in Arnavutkoy for a fish lunch. on sundays dont miss the soup. the skewered and grilled sole is a favorite. full lunch 20-30/person.
Antiochia in Tunel/Beyoglu for Hatay cuisine. get the mixed meze plate and a durum. (full dinner with a beer 30tl/person).
Cukur Meyhanesi in Galatasaray. excellent everything. Get the celery in strained yogurt meze, liver and grilled sardines. (20-30/person with a raki)
Ozsut in Karakoy for kaymak (clotted cream) in honey for breakfast. get a glass of warm water buffalo milk on the side. heavenly. (5-10 tl/person)
these are places that i have tried from istanbuleats.com
the site was mentioned above. really good honest reviews.

Hi

Is there more than one Yildiz Restaurant? We ate in one at Sultanahmet. Well I think that was the name of it. The desk clerk at our hotel (Hanedan) recommended it. Here is a map - http://www.hanedanhotel.com/location.htm. Walk past the Hanedan maybe 300m down Adiye Sokak towards the seaside. It's on your left. Excellent Turkish cuisine in an atmospheric setting. Inexpensive too. Watch locals smoke their Narghiles and play backgammon.

Try Tarihi Sultanahmet Koftecisi 12 Divanyolu Caddesi 12/A Sultanahmet. Located at Sultanhmet Square. Great meatballs! Traditional food. Cheap!

Green Corner Cafe on Alemdar Caddesi. Opposite the exit of the cistern. Good Turkish options in a lovely garden setting at inexpensive prices. Great burger and fries too!

One of our favorites was Sofyali 9 in the hip Beyoglu neighborhood--traditional mezes (small plates) and very delicious and reasonably priced. Always crowded. Another good meal was at Hamdi near the main dock on the Sultanahmet side of the river. Their kebabs were very good, and it's a good place to try raki (the super popular anise-flavored liquor). More info and pics at http://patrinadoestheglobe.blogspot.com/

Definitely go to Galata House near the Galata Tower. It's not just the good food that won me over, it's the whole experience of eating in someone's home while they entertain you with music and stories of their lives in Istanbul. Amazing experience. Info: http://www.visitingeu.com/turkey/200...-istanbul.html

in response to Katrinab above: I agree with you on Sofyali 9. Always reliable for a good comfortable lively dinner. However, I strongly discourage anyone from setting foot in Hamdi. It is overpriced and very unreliable. I suspect they have grown comfortable from being mentioned in all of the guide books which i suspect take each other's recommendations rather than seeking out truly excellent, unique places. In place of Hamdi, I'd go to Zubeyir in Beyoglu. This is great kebab in a more local atmosphere.
And in response to amazingview, also above: Galata House near the tower might have its charm but the food is NOT good. This place claims to have Georgian food but, in fact, about ten years ago they had a Georgian women cooking in the kitchen who added a couple of Georgian recipes to the menu. then she left and they never changed the menu. the problem being that whoever is in the kitchen now doesnt know Georgian food from Texas BBQ. I'd keep away from there too. But, alas, there is not good Georgian food in Istanbul. The closest you'll find are Caucasian specialties at Ficcin just off of Istiklal Caddesi.
I am not trying to be a wet blanket on other posters. Just trying to keep the board better informed.

Hamdi has such a wonderful view and also very good service, that you can forgive them their average quality food. Although their Gavur Dag salad is quite good.

I also find Hamdi's kebabs more suitable to the newcomers' tastes, being low in transfats. True, a Turk from Adana or Antep would find them lacking, but an authentic Adana kebap would be considered too fatty by a western tourist.

We live in istanbul and ate at Hamdi, for the view, just yesterday, and it was definitely not overpriced. Today, we ate a hole in the wall meatball place, Filibe Koftecisi in Tahtakale, although very delicious did not even give us knives until we asked and also cost 37TL for two.

Here's the link to our short Iznik round trip, ending at Hamdi restaurant with photographs taken from Hamdi.

http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/sredi...fUQ&feat=email

Dear otherchelebi,
i respect your opinion on Hamdi and will return but I strongly disagree with your reasoning on why "newcomers" might prefer the place.
Many travelers have pretty sophisticated tastes and dining experiences. They come to Turkey to dig deep into the food culture not to try a "beginners" kebab.
It is just this sort of mentality which steers so many visitors away from the real "damak tadi" that they search for and into tired old tourist restaurants.
This is the mentality that visitors often encounter when they ask for a recommendation at a hotel. They say, "where can we find authentic Turkish cuisine?" and rather than answering the question, the concierge- with no knowledge of the customer- thinks, "I should recommend a famous tourist restaurant, that will be suitable for these foreign visitors."
This is extremely frustrating for most people looking for the real thing, fatty meat and all.
Istanbul is filled with ultra-authentic, very interesting, non-touristy, local places that are rarely talked about. Forums like this one are a great place to break into this topic.
So lets drop all preconceived notions about what is "suitable to newcomers' tastes" and talk about those hidden gems that are the real fruit of travel.
I bet you have some great recommendations for good local places who care less about decor/view and focus strictly on the food. I hope you'll share those with us all.

Dear Istanbulac, you are either trolling or have difficulty understanding my poor English. Please let me enjoy less authentic but less fatty and less cholestrol meats and mention them. If you also had any interest on the subject of food, you would have looked at my former posts on the subject.

othercelebi,
I realize my response to you must have felt like an assault. Rereading it, I see that it was. Sorry for that. But I think it is important to present places at face value without making assumptions about foreign tastes. As a foreigner and a food enthusiast, I'd prefer to visit the down and dirty real thing, perhaps a bit off of the tourist beaten path. It'd be good to know about an alternative like Hamdi but, personally, (as someone who has been to Hamdi several times and some great small salas kebab shacks) I'd be disappointed by the place if this was my introduction to the kebab. Just my two cents, lets leave it at that.
Have you ever tried Oz Adana Asmaalti in Bostanci? Whoa! There's a place that is keeping it very real. For a full immersion into Adana kebab culture I highly recommend it.

Can anyone identify this restaurants name? I was told a meal there was wonderful.
Standing outside Hotel Desaardet, with ones back to the Marmara sea, look up the hill. Up on the left (not sure of the distance, two blocks?), on a corner is a restaurant. You eat up on the second floor. It may have been a "home" style place. Wish I could remember more.
Anyone, otherchelbi?, have an idea of the name? Anyone second the opinion that the place is worth a visit?

Balikci Sabahattin?

Thin

Sorry guys, i know very little about Sultanahmet restaurants. I am sure that there are some decent ones, but they are for tourists and the people in the tourism industry who work in Sultanahmet, and provide their version of Turkish food.

Istanbul offers a high number of places to go day and night, since its population nears 15 million people from different parts of the country as well as the world. There are plenty of restaurants, bars, pubs, cafés, tea gardens, night clubs, discos, taverns all around the city. In the touristic sites you may find all kinds of those food and entertainment places gathered close to a square or along the alleys. Of course, during your visit, probably in a limited time schedule, you will never want to risk your health and money for random places. Turkish Cuisine shall offer you a very delicious gustatory variety that will reflect traditional tastes of different regions including Ottoman and Mediterranean backgrounds.
Below you will find a list of top ten places for food and entertainment:
http://www.sightsinistanbul.com/Life_in_Istanbul.php

istanbulac represents the typically snotty self-proclaimed "expert" which unfortuately goes around travel boards trying to browbeat people who aren't pure enough for his liking.

He thinks that travel is a religious experience where you should expose yourself to "non tourist" experiences, no matter how disgusting they are to you. If you try to eat reasonably healthy and don't like fatty food at home, it doesn't matter. You're suppossed to eat stuff that turns your stomach because it is the pure and right thing to do, according to him. Yeah, the locals might love 40% fat kabobs. But that's largely because they are used to it. For most American's its more likely to make them puke.

He doesn't understand that he is a extremist and a fanatic. Most people just travel to have a good time. They aren't on a holy pilgrammage. They want to eat food that they enjoy, even if, gasp, it is touristy and is not the swill in some local dive.

Don't listen to such people. If Hamdi has lean kebabs and a nice view, go for it if that's what you want. Don't let the fanatics make you feel impure and inadeqate, which is precisely what they are trying to do. It's all about them trying being smug and superior. Why else would he care what you eat and whether you go to a touristy place or not. He only cares because it's a chance for him to show of his superiority.

The only other restaurants in Sultanahmet where you can eat on a "second floor," that I can think of--

Rami, across from the Blue Mosque

Tamara Restaurant

Thin

Balikci Sabahattin has an upstairs, but I do not recall a view. My impression is that generally the tourists were kept to the garden under the awning or downstairs. We seemed to be the only non-Turks upstairs--see my trip report.

Sabahattin is a good place for meze and fish. I seem to recall a view of the Marmara Sea from the second floor.
Another good one that I prefer in Sultanahmet is Giritli (right behind Armada Hotel). This is also a fish restaurant but with a Cretan spin. Along with the old standards, they've got a few meze that you wont find anywhere else, but maybe Crete.
It has a second floor dining area but I am pretty sure it has no view. It does have an extremely beautiful courtyard dining area that is open in warm weather.

Here's my list of restaurants that we enjoyed during a short stay in Istanbul, March 2009:

Magnaura Café
Akbiyik Caddessi, No. 27 (Sultanahmet)
nice atmosphere; good service; reasonable prices
we enjoyed the mantii, small lamb ravioli with yogurt sauce.
We ate there twice, once outside and once inside. Both were good experiences.

Sultanahmet Fish House
www.SultanahmetFishHouse.com
Yes, it catered mostly to tourists, but the atmosphere was pleasant and the food was not bad. We had the fish special which I suspect was not really a special but the dish they pushed for tourists. We enjoyed it inspite of that. The dessert was delicious, hot halvah with ice cream.

Buhara Restaurant (Sultanahmet)
Nuruosmaniye Caddesi, No. 7
Unique dining experience (to us)
Good kebaps and mezzes; great service

Ciya Sofrasi (Kadikoy)
Located on the Asian side of Istanbul, a quick ferry ride
delicious "traditional Anatolian" food. We spoke no Turkish and they spoke very little English but were very hospitable and took very good care of us. They ordered for us and it was delicious.

I am copying all of your recommendations and will carry them with me to Istanbul.
Thanks everyone
PS If anyone else has a place to recommend, please add to this list

I am not sure if listed already, but Lacivert Restaurant has a magnificent view and a good menu. It's right under the Bridge no 2 (Bridge Fatih sultan mehmet) on the Anatolian side. It is more expensive than some other local restaurants, but I think it is well worth for one time nice dinner.

www.lacivertrestaurant.com

Istanbul is the best place to taste nearly all tastes from around Turkey. It is like the capital of dining. I have several favorite restaurants. I will try to list a few of them: For a great Waffle, you should visit Ab'bas in Bebek. One of the best places for a traditional pastry is Hunkar Borekcisi in Sariyer. My favorite Semolina Dessert is at Sur Ocakbasi in Fatih. You can search for these restaurants in Internet or you can visit this link for contact details: http://www.neyesek.co/#!istanbul-all/c15nc

Just returned from Istanbul a few weeks ago. Our favorite restaurant was our last night, here is the link. Not inexpensive, but the setting, atmosphere, food were all fabulous, romantic and a great way to end our trip. Don't know which side you are staying on, but this is on the europe side, and traveling between the europe/asia side can be hectic and a lengthy, lengthy trip depending on traffic time, getting over bridge etc. We were staying on this side, a short walk from this restaurant. http://www.sarnicrestaurant.com/en/index.jsp

Most of this thread is from 2010.