22 Best Restaurants in Turkey

A dazzling array of inventive seafood and vegetable mezes in the cold cabinet, for hot or cold consumption, makes for a hard choice but yields very tasty plates. The decor is of a beguiling old-school fish restaurant, photos of years of past clients and friends, raki bottles and fish posters which fit the view of fishing nets piled on the harbor path from the small fishing boats moored there. The single tempura prawn with chili sauce is superb. The mains are fried or grilled fresh fish, but check the fish in season, weight and price before ordering. Father and sons have built a respectful, popular following, amongst the many fish restaurants along the old port walkway.

At this waterfront restaurant, you should begin your meal with a selection of meze, like stuffed zucchini flowers, roasted eggplant with tulum cheese, and octopus salad. Then you can let the owner, Cengiz Bey, or his waiters help you select the best local fish for the grill. Whatever you choose, don't skip dessert: Gaziantep baklava or irmik helvası (traditional warm semolina halvah) served with ice cream.

This outdoor terrace overlooking the waterfront is an ideal spot in Dalyanköy for a splurgy seafood dinner. After meze of kabak çiçeği dolması (stuffed zucchini flowers) and deniz börülcesi (samphire), and a main of tuzda balık (fish baked in salt), try to find room for sakızlı muhallebi, creamy traditional milk pudding flavored with gum mastic.

Popular with locals and visitors alike, Giritli offers a prix-fixe multicourse dinner menu of well-prepared Cretan specialties that includes unlimited local alcoholic drinks (wine or rakı). At least 15 different cold mezze—such as sea bass ceviche, herb-covered cubes of feta cheese with walnuts and olives, and various uncommon wild greens—are followed by hot starters like fried calamari in olive oil; the main course is a choice among several grilled fish, followed by dessert.

Forget the printed menu and order from the meze case, where the wide range of tempting starters includes unusual mushrooms from the mountains out back, fresh seaweed dishes, and squid in garlic, oil, and lemon. Özcan's mains are predominantly seafood but there are also excellent kebabs and local lamb dishes. It's set on the wide esplanade that makes up Göcek's main public harbor.

This is a Turkish version of a New England fish shack, with nets and crab traps hanging from the ceiling in two venues across the street from one other. Families and other groups come here to enjoy simple, fresh, well-prepared fish for much less than what they would pay at some of the fancier seafood restaurants along the Bosphorus (it's cheaper in part because no alcohol is served).

Upgraded to a modern Türkbükü vibe in all white, but with a few fishnets on display, this second-generation laid-back fish restaurant on the waterfront delivers excellent seafood meals. Seating is either indoors or on the white tables filling the timber deck on the water under the signature string of lights. Start your meal with a selection of seafood or vegetable meze, then choose between the big splash on lobsters or King crab, or simply cooked sea bass. But save room for the house special dessert, helva sarma (phyllo-dough rolls filled with tahini paste, flavored with cinnamon, and served with ice cream and chocolate sauce).

There are many popular seafood restaurants along the Kordon waterfront in Alsancak, but this one, with indoor and outdoor seating areas and a relaxed feel, is especially busy. It features a good selection of appetizers, including the decadent sütlü karides (shrimp sautéed in butter, then topped with béchamel and mozzarella), as well as the usual seasonal seafood choices.

The most popular and probably the most expensive of the waterfront restaurants on Cunda serves a selection of mezes and prepared seafood that is a feast for the eyes as well as the stomach. Many options are original creations based on Greek and Turkish cuisine—squid in saffron sauce, sole in yogurt, akuvadis in whiskey sauce, and cured fish pastırma are among the unusual specialties. There's no menu, so ask to see the mezes and fish before ordering, and inquire about prices—be prepared to pay a lot.

This busy harborside fish restaurant is popular with Göcek locals and visitors alike, and is considered an institution of the town. In summer, the seating extends out toward the waterfront, under tropical trees and with romantic views of the water. Main dishes (kebabs, steak, seafood) are typical, but the pride of the menu is its wide selection of hot and cold meze. The homemade bread is delicious, and wild mountain mushrooms are served as a side dish in spring and fall.

Deniz means "sea" in Turkish, an appropriate name for this popular, pricey seafood eatery on the Kordon waterfront, whose tables spill out of the ground floor of the İzmir Palas Hotel. It's buzzing with local notables, travelers, and a swanky business crowd who come to splurge on exceptional fish and meze, including samphire with garlicky yogurt. And it can easily turn into a splurge in terms of price, depending on the number of courses chosen.

This charming spot just off fashionable Tunalı Hilmi Caddesi specializes in nicely prepared Aegean-style mezes and seafood dishes, such as Cretan-style cubed cheese with herbs or octopus with thyme. The design—painted wooden chairs, blue-and-white walls with seashore motifs, and maps of the region painted on the ceiling—transports you straight to the Aegean Islands. In summer, it's good to sit out on the vine-covered patio.

One of the several Ferdi Baba fish restaurants (the others are nearby in Port Alaçatı and in Alaçatı town), this spot serves classic meze and seafood dishes with beautiful waterfront. Special dishes include shrimps with eggplant puree, the local greens Sevketi Bostan with delicious fresh sea bass kebab, along with classic grilled fresh bream and calamari. It's pricey compared to others set off the main seafront, but that is the price of views.

There's no menu here at Fevzi Hoca, Trabzon's most serious seafood restaurant; you'll simply be shown the fish available and you choose how you want your order to be cooked. The restaurant is decorated with photos of famous Turks dining on the premises, a hint of just how popular it is. Non-fish eaters can order the delicious akçaabat köfte (meatballs).

Down a quiet, pretty alley just a two-minute stroll from the waterfront, the white, candlelit tables at this seafood restaurant quickly fill with hungry locals. Accompany a heaping plate of fried local calamari (probably the most generous in town) with a tasting plate of up to four vegetable meze with toasted bread, and, if you're still hungry, order grilled fish and (more) rakı.

Tables spill out of the small courtyard into the cobblestone alley at this fish and meze restaurant in central Alaçatı. Innovative house specialties include delicious dishes of octopus cooked with mushrooms, onions, and soy sauce; creamy potatoes and shrimps; and for dessert, a delicious apple baklava. The cozy fireplace lures diners indoors in the cooler seasons.

A favorite with locals and cruise ship visitors alike, this spot doesn't look much from the busy roadside but once seated the views over the port are winners, as are the highlights of the seafood menu: tandoori octopus, seafood salad, stuffed mussels, and an array of mezes.

Wonderfully prepared seafood is served with polish at this pleasant spot, as are the meat and pasta dishes. After midnight, there are often DJs at the garden bar. In wintertime, regulars cluster indoors around a cozy fireplace. Book in advance on weekends and in high season.

On the corner of Hamdibey and Değirmenlik streets, Sardalye is the place to go for fish if you are looking for quality food in a dramatically less fancy—and expensive—atmosphere than Canakkele's waterfront meyhanes. The simple menu consists of a rotation of fish options that are fried, grilled, or served in a sandwich. A seat at the bar is the perfect place to enjoy a meal and watch the action on the street, though if you're coming for lunch, be prepared to wait for a bit.

Tucked away on a quiet street in Balat, this sophisticated restaurant is best known for its creative take on local seafood, with impeccably plated dishes that draw on seasonal ingredients. The multi-floor building opens up to a rooftop with views over the neighborhood.

There are no obsequious waiters at Sultanahmet Fish House and no fancy dress code—just a friendly, cozy atmosphere with well-prepared seafood, including sardines, octopus, fish dishes such as mackerel in olive oil, and a few kebabs. The preparations go beyond the standard grilling and frying: sea bass with saffron, cooked in a terra-cotta casserole, is a particular standout.

Ankara may be landlocked, but Trilye serves such impressive fish and seafood dishes that you wouldn’t know it. Opened in 2002 by Turkish food writer Süreyya Üzmez, the stylish restaurant has an extensive menu of creative mezes—such as prawn in avocado sauce, or marinated artichoke hearts with sesame seeds—and well-prepared main courses. The hot appetizer of grilled octopus, brought to the table still smoking inside a glass, is a sight to behold—and taste. The rather expensive menu comes with prices of most seafood dishes listed by the kilo, so make sure you know what you’re ordering.