Where to Eat in Istanbul: Restaurants, Meyhanes, Cafés and Bars by Type and Neighbourhood (2026)

Istanbul has a restaurant for every budget and mood, from historic lokantas that have fed the city for generations to Michelin-starred tasting menus on the Bosphorus. This page is the forum's index of the places we have written up: each name below links to its own guide with what it is known for, what to order and practical tips, and every guide ends with a thread where members share what they ate and paid.

New pages are added regularly, so if a place is listed without a link, its guide is coming soon.

How to use this list

• By budget: street food and lokantas are the cheapest good meals in the city; Michelin-starred restaurants are tasting-menu fine dining and need booking.
• By side of the city: Beyoğlu, Karaköy and Galata (European side) and Kadıköy and Moda (Asian side) have the densest choice. The Bosphorus villages — Kuruçeşme, Arnavutköy, Yeniköy, Tarabya — are where to go for a long lunch with a view.
• Before you go: opening hours and menus change; check each venue's own site, and book ahead for dinner at the popular places.

Michelin-starred restaurants

• TURK Fatih Tutak — Bomonti. A long, microseasonal tasting menu, the chef's table and the open kitchen.
• Araka — Yeniköy. Seasonal produce, bright sour and spicy flavours, a secluded rear terrace.
• Mikla — Tepebaşı. The rooftop setting, a largely Turkish wine list and a set vegan tasting menu.
• Neolokal — Karaköy. Reworked traditional recipes, local sourcing, a full vegetarian tasting menu and a terrace view.
• Araf — Kadıköy. Counter seating facing the chefs, offal dishes, small sharing plates.
• Arkestra — Etiler. Vegetable-focused cooking, cocktails, the Listening Room vinyl bar.
• Casa Lavanda — Şile. Home-grown produce, handmade pasta, a terrace over the garden, a large wine list.
• Nicole — Tomtom, Beyoğlu. Reworked regional Turkish recipes, Anatolian producers, old-city and Marmara views.

Restaurants and meyhanes

• Aheste — Asmalı Mescit. Updated meze, a mix of classic and vegetable-forward plates, and a tasting menu.
• 1924 İstanbul — Beyoğlu. Its history, an opulent room with panelling and mirrors, live piano and accordion music, and vodka.
• Aida – vino e cucina — Moda. Pasta, slow-braised meat, house-made bread and ice cream, tiramisu.
• Aila — Mecidiyeköy. Ingredients sourced from their home cities, a spice library and a strong rakı list.
• Alaf Kuruçeşme. A wood-fired oven, nomadic and regional influences, a roof-terrace cocktail bar and the Bosphorus view.
• Apartıman Yeniköy. Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cooking, orange wines, a lively bistro mood.
• Aqua — Beşiktaş. Bosphorus views from the water's edge, seafood, caviar and oysters.
• Asmalı Cavit — Beyoğlu. Classic meze, yaprak ciğer (fried liver), muska böreği, a regulars' atmosphere.
• Azur — Yeniköy. The fresh fish display, plancha-cooked fish, Bosphorus panorama.
• Borsa — Kandilli. The palace setting, Bosphorus terrace, classic dishes and katmer for dessert.
• Cuma — Çukurcuma. All-day menu, seasonal small plates, vegetarian options, front terrace.
• Efendy — Levent. Hummus, wood-fired lahmacun, kebabs from the stone oven, cocktails.
• Feriye — Ortaköy. Bosphorus views, a relaxed-chic garden setting, grilled lamb.
• Gallada — Karaköy. Fatih Tutak's menu, Bosphorus views, the Topside bar upstairs.
• Giritli — Cankurtaran. A set meze menu with drinks included, rakı and seafood in the old city.
• Herise İstanbul — Sarıyer. One set menu built on traditional Anatolian recipes, non-alcoholic pairings.
• Inari Omakase — Kuruçeşme. Nigiri, sashimi, tempura and teppanyaki at mid-range prices; a lively evening scene.
• Kıyı — Tarabya. Fresh fish chosen from the display, marina views, an art-filled dining room.
• Nazende Cadde — Caddebostan. A daily menu built around what the market has, offal dishes, pistachio baklava.
• Ocak — Hobyar, Fatih. One fixed menu, chickpeas in several courses, an atmospheric brick-and-marble room.
• Şans — 1. Levent, Beşiktaş. An elegant villa and garden, business dining, wine recommendations, especially Turkish reds.
• Seraf Vadi — Ayazağa, Sarıyer. Stuffed onion, içli köfte, lamb main courses, a tasting menu with wine pairing.
• Telezzüz — Kuzguncuk, Üsküdar. Seasonal vegan tasting menus, local sourcing, zero-waste cooking.
• Tershane Karaköy — Karaköy. Barbecued lamb, kebabs, an open kitchen and big-window views.
• The Barn — Silivri. Ingredients from the estate farm, zero-waste approach, estate wine, a terrace with resident dogs.
• The Red Balloon — Beyoğlu. Seasonal tasting menus, foraging and fermentation, signature cocktails.
• Tuğra — Beşiktaş. Palace-era recipes given modern plating, Bosphorus views, polished service.
• Lokanta Göktürk — Göktürk. Chef Muhsin Ertürk's take on traditional Anatolian recipes, seafood dishes, an open kitchen.

Lokantas and historic tables

• Çiya — Kadıköy. Dishes that are disappearing elsewhere, choosing from display counters, herb-heavy cooking.
• Hacı Abdullah — Beyoğlu. Its 1888 origins, hünkâr beğendi, kuzu tandır and house compotes.
• Karaköy Lokantası — Karaköy. Hünkâr beğendi at lunch, meze in the evening, turquoise-tiled dining room.
• Lokanta 1741 — Cağaloğlu. Contemporary takes on old Turkish recipes, a roof terrace, the hamam setting.
• Pandeli — Eminönü. Over a century of history, blue tiles, sea bass baked in paper, hünkâr beğendi.
• Yeni Lokanta — Beyoğlu. Vegetable-forward Turkish dishes, Anatolian ingredients, Turkish wine, tasting menus.

Kebab, grill and street food

• Ali Ocakbaşı Karaköy. Spiced lamb and beef from the grill, lavash crisped over the coals, traditional meze.
• Tavacı Recep Usta — Bostancı. Sac tava, lamb from the grill, stuffed ribs, a big, busy two-floor dining room.
• Dönerci Şahin Usta — Grand Bazaar. Beef döner cooked over charcoal, served in tırnak pide; long lunchtime queues.
• Tatar Salim — Kadıköy & Ataşehir. Döner made from beef and lamb with its own marinade, lentil soup, baked rice pudding.

Bakeries, desserts and coffee

• Karaköy Güllüoğlu – Nadir Güllü — Karaköy. Pistachio and walnut baklava from a Gaziantep baklava family.
• Ara Kafe — Beyoğlu. Ara Güler's photographs and its link to the photographer.
• Baca Bread Club — Kadıköy. Long-fermented sourdough, croissants and pastries made with heirloom flours.
• Cocodema — Karaköy. Seasonal cheesecakes, morning croissants, specialty matcha, a room full of plants.
• Dem Moda — Kadıköy. Tea-inspired cheesecakes, simit-based dishes, local art on the walls.
• FiLBooks — Karaköy. Photobooks, art and photography events, cake and coffee.
• Krea — Caddebostan. A coffee bar plus a discovery bar for tasting and comparing coffees.
• Meet Lab Coffee — Kadıköy. Single-origin filter coffees, nitro and cold brew, house-roasted beans.
• Minoa Pera — Beyoğlu. A late-19th-century building, a curving staircase lined with books, and a top ranking from 1000 Libraries.
• Mum's Cafe — Karaköy. Homemade jams (including milk jam), brunch, cakes and an open kitchen.
• Nørre — Çukurcuma. Danish-style breakfast, cinnamon rolls, daily patisserie and specialty coffee.
• Story Coffee & Roastery — Moda. House-roasted coffee, seasonal specialty lattes, pancakes and burritos.

Cocktail bars

• Alexandra — Arnavutköy. Signature cocktails, a multi-level historic building and Bosphorus views from the roof.
• Ernest's Bar — Pera. Spice- and botanical-led cocktails, rakı cocktails, Hemingway's favourite drinks and Negroni twists.
• Fahri Konsolos — Kadıköy. Experimental cocktails using ingredients from across Anatolia, and a short menu that changes regularly.
• Flekk — Tomtom, Beyoğlu. Signature cocktails with Scandinavian names, syrup-free drinks and DJ sets.
• Mathilda's — Kadıköy. Signature cocktails made with fresh, seasonal ingredients, a sustainability focus, and music running from disco and funk to house.
• Ruby — Ortaköy. Bosphorus views, a roof that opens in good weather, signature cocktails and late-night dancing.
• Tavern — Firuzağa, Beyoğlu. Inventive cocktails, early-evening dinner and late-night DJ sets.
• Zuma Istanbul — İstinye Park. Izakaya-style sharing dishes, sake and cocktails, and weekend DJs.

Wine bars

• Comedus — Asmalımescit, Beyoğlu. About 120 wines, around 30 of them by the glass, plus a deli counter for made-to-order platters.
• Foxy Nişantaşı — Harbiye. Turkish wines, including natural and pét-nat styles, and small plates by chef Maksut Aşkar.
• Pano Wine House — Beyoğlu. More than a century of history, Turkish wines from local grapes, and cheese and meze plates.
• Sensus — Galata. Wines from across Türkiye, tasting plates and a cellar-like setting by Galata Tower.

Food shops and delis

• Kurukahveci Mehmet Efendi — Eminönü. Freshly roasted and ground Turkish coffee, sold by weight and in its familiar packaging.
• Antre Gourmet — Cihangir. Artisan Anatolian cheeses, olive-oil meze, olives and preserves.
• Gözde Şarküteri — Kadıköy. Hundreds of meze made daily, Turkish cheeses, olives, pastırma.
• Özcan Turşuları — Kadıköy. Around 60 varieties of pickled vegetables and fruit, spicy pickle juice, four generations of the same family.

Related guides

• Food in Turkey: what to eat and the best food tours
• Michelin star restaurants in Istanbul and Turkey
• Best street food in Istanbul
• Istanbul food tours: how to choose one

Your recommendations

Missing a place you love? Reply with the name, the neighbourhood and what to order — the editorial team checks suggestions and adds new guides.

Last checked: November 2026. Venue details come from each venue's own guide page on this forum, which lists its sources.