E5fd17d4be80c3469cb8d233794a4231

Istanbul Travel Guide powered by advice from Real Travelers

 Get Real Deal alerts »

Istanbul Travel Guide

Default_icon

Best Dining Bets

by Frommers Travel Guides
wiley
Content provided by Frommers
  • Noshing waterside at Eminonu: For 12 to 14 hours a day, the Tarihi Eminonu Balikcisi grills fresh fish quayside, wrapped in a roll and presented for a spectacular 3YTL ($2.60/#1.15) by a gracious man in traditional costume. Grab your sandwich and step aside; the condiments are to the right on the railing.

  • Develi: No visit to Istanbul is complete for me without a visit to Develi. Dine on their spicy lahmacun, icli kofte, raw cig kofte, and you'll be stuffed before the pistachio kebap arrives.

  • Melting Kanlica yogurt in your mouth: For more than 100 years, creamy rich yogurt has been a specialty of the tiny Bosphorus front village of Kanlica, on the upper Asian side. It's a hell of a haul for a cup of yogurt, but oh, what glorious spoonfuls they are.

  • Morning simit from a street vendor: I grew up on sesame bagels, so call me biased, but these doughy little morning delicacies really do hit the spot. Spread some cheese on one (or slather with butter and jam) and weep.

  • Eating your way through Ortakoy: This neighborhood is particularly vibrant on a summer evening, with the lights twinkling beneath the Bosphorus Bridge. The streets behind the mosque are a food fair of Turkish fast-food stalls selling such things as stuffed mussels (for the fearless) and potatoes to drown in your preferred toppings.

  • Dining at Asitane: Many restaurants bill themselves as "Ottoman," but few of them can actually boast of having translated the recipes from the kitchens of Topkapi.

  • Lunch at a lokanta: These unassuming eateries have some of the best home-style food around. Casseroles and stews such as moussaka or orman kebap (lamb stew with potatoes and carrots) are the types of labor-intensive dishes the tourist places can't be bothered to prepare.

  • Best Regional Cuisine: There are newcomers, and old reliables, but not even the several outposts of Develi, Balikpazari (Samatya Fish Market), Gumusyuzuk Sok. 7, Samatya (tel. 0212/529-0833), can compete with the quality of the food and of the setting of the branch in Samatya.

  • Best Chef: Swedish-born chef Mehmet Gurs is his own Istanbul restaurant franchise. His innovative, studied, and seductive cuisine takes several forms: at Lokanta and NuPera (NuTeras in summers) Mesrutiyet Cad. 149, Tepebasi (tel. 0212/245-6070), the settings and the menu are casual and international. At Mikla, Mesrutyiyet Cad. 167-185, Tepebasi (tel. 0212/293-5656), Gurs provides cutting edge art for the taste buds.

  • Best Ottoman Cuisine: While Turkish and Ottoman cuisine seem to have merged into indistinguishable categories, Asitane, Kariye Camii Sok. 18, Edirnekapi (tel. 0212/534-8414), looks to translations of Topkapi recipes. Ciragan Palace's venerated Tugra, Ciragan Palace Hotel Kempinski Istanbul, Ciragan Cad., Besiktas (tel. 0212/258-3377), takes these same historical recipes and reinterprets them for a modern audience.

  • Best Kebaps: For years a favorite of the local and expat business crowd, Borsa, Lutfi Kirdar Convention Center, Harbiye (tel. 0212/232-4201), continues to merit its crown with the expertly executed fundamentals of the Turkish kitchen.

  • Best Bistro Menu: As Istanbul's palate becomes more sophisticated, new dining spots appear with modern, healthy, and even intriguing flavors. House Cafe, Asmali Mescit 9/1, Tunel (tel. 0212/245-9515), Atiye Sok., Iskece Apt. 10/1, Tesvikiye (tel. 0212/ 259-2377), and Salhane Sok. 1, Ortakoy (tel. 0212/227-2699), takes the freshest essential basics of the Turkish cupboard and turns them into modern and healthy dishes. Sekiz, Azeteci Erol Dernek Sok. 1 (tel. 0212/249-8930), makes old Turkish recipes seem new again, and also offers spicy Asian and fusion alternatives.

  • Best Seafood: As a city surrounded by bountiful seas, Istanbul suffers from an embarrassment of riches of seafood. Where do Istanbullus go for their grouper? Depends. Gelik, Kennedy Street/Sahilyolu (tel. 0212/444-7999), is an institution located along the Marmara seafront and a favorite of middle-class local families. Poseidon, Cevdetpasa Cad. 58, Bebek (tel. 0212/263-3823), tends toward the card-carrying socialites, while Doga Balik, Akarsu Yokusu Cad. 44-46, Cihangir (tel. 0212/293-9143), capitalizes on masterful mezes and twinkling nighttime panoramas.

Istanbul Travel Experiences

Traveler Photos of Istanbul

The view of Istanbul from Topkapi Palace Blue mosque from the park The Bosphorus seen from the Black Sea side 5f7bec4ed2de85554a05882d62ddd6e2
 See all photos in Istanbul »

Hotels near Istanbul