Places in Istanbul

The turquoise-tiled Karaköy institution, lokanta by day, meyhane by night, Bib Gourmand 2026.

London pub ambiance with craft cocktails

The corridor's literary meyhane, keeping a guest-book tradition since 1967.

Kyoto-born specialty coffee chain's first Turkish flagship

Heritage seafood since 1952

Homemade liqueurs and inventive cocktails in Beyoğlu

Berlin-inspired industrial techno temple

Turkish streetwear luxury making global waves

Authentic Greek taverna with Bosphorus views and Thessaloniki flavors

Creative hub in classic-elegant Palazzo Corpi

Electronic music festivals on the Black Sea

Former Ottoman bank transformed into boutique luxury

408 wines from 72 producers on the Asian side

Michelin Bib Gourmand Italian in Kadıköy

Epitome of Istanbul meyhane culture

Legendary cultural hub and live music venue since 1999

All-day organic breakfast in a historic Erenkoy mansion

Sophisticated cocktails from the Paolina creators

All-day brunch haven with Bosphorus panoramas

Modern meyhane reviving classic tavern culture with stone oven mezes

TV chef Arda Turkmen's rooftop meyhane with Golden Horn views

Michelin Bib Gourmand seafood on the Asian side

Global fusion brasserie by Happy Group on Bağdat Caddesi

1881 Camondo legacy in a restored stone cellar

Historic 1914 wine house with garden oasis

Paris-bistro-in-Bomonti, Kojo Hospitality's French-Turkish fusion with a kitchen that gives the bar a reason to exist

Sea-view rooftop meyhane reworking Greek, Sephardic and Turkish meze with a real bar.

New Italian with stunning winter garden and wood-fired oven

Microphone-free fasıl ensemble in a restored 20-year house, the real version of what Sultanahmet sells tourists

Spanish tapas and curated DJ nights in the old Rua room

New-generation kebap rethinking ocakbasi culture

5x Turkey champion barman brings Paris to Suadiye

Istanbul's most authentic Mexican, Tanyeri-González family since 2005

Fresh pasta from an open kitchen, no shortcuts

Bosphorus-mouth fish-house where the strait opens to the Black Sea.

A three-storey mansion off Kadıköy's beaten track, meze-first, with a garden of old Turkish records.

Chef İsmail's Cunda-Greek fish house at the Kızıltoprak end of the Cadde, the corridor's rakı-balık default.

Koşuyolu's Aegean meyhane, a proper meze cabinet and a neighborhood that keeps it to itself.

Efkan Kara's Aegean taverna in a Şaşkınbakkal cul-de-sac, meze-first and unbothered by fashion.

Pouring under the Cumhuriyet name since 1923, a hundred mezes a day in the middle of Balık Pazarı.

Morgans Original in a restored warehouse

Craft cocktails in Caferağa's creative heart

All-day venue that flips into a cocktail bar with workshops and guest DJs after sunset.

Swissotel's see-and-be-seen rooftop with DJ sets

Late-2025 waterfront bar with a beachfront terrace

Cihangir rooftop institution since 1993 with a real Bosphorus view

1890 Greek-captain meyhane on the Golden Horn shore

Industrial-chic grill house with Bib Gourmand recognition

Over-water fish-meyhane on the Baltalimanı seam.

Café by day, a loose Arnavutköy bar with DJ nights by dark, the most informal room on the strip.

Michelin-noted bistro where even the inspectors mentioned the young hip crowd

Nordic-minimalist side-street bar with a seasonal menu and serious cocktail list.

Ex-Periferi chef's own kitchen: bold menu, intimate room

Bosphorus garden classic since 1997, brunch by day, full bar and cocktails after dark

Seasonal kitchen and an opinionated Turkish wine cellar on the quiet Mühürdar slope, adults-only, no menus in seven languages

Historic charm meets modern cocktails in Bebekoy

Turkish viticulture by the glass at the Tünel mouth, 85 boutique producers, no foreign-name flex

Old City's finest fish restaurant since 1927

Asmalımescit sixth-floor terrace with Golden Horn sunsets

Dry-aged specialty with dryage cabinets on display

Compact neighborhood cocktail bar behind the avenue

Burgazada's Rum meyhane legacy lands in Bostancı

Neighborhood bistro that turns into a late cocktail room, the kind of address Bebek residents list when asked for 'somewhere normal'.

Villa dining in the old Tribeca space, homemade-syrup cocktails, open-kitchen ambition

Cocktails + rakı/meze + live music on the Akaretler row-house strip

Gül Sultan mansion, Bosphorus, rakı, fish

Three floors of Anatolian wine in a candlelit Asmalımescit townhouse

Three-story Kadife Sokak townhouse with a garden pool and a stone lion

Chef Marcello Micci's Tuscan kitchen on Bağdat Caddesi with 120-person garden

Beyoğlu's serious 400-cap live room, international bookings (Sextile, Hugo Kant), no tribute bands

Tucked-in Sakız Gülü wine bar with a tight, evolving Turkish-focused list.

Gayrettepe English-pub-style brewpub, 8 house taps of real ales and lagers, the craft-beer brewery for Levent's after-work crowd

Thirty-five years of fasıl evenings by Bostancı station

Authentic Antioch heritage cuisine in atmospheric Cihangir setting

Warm hospitality and live music in historic Asmalimescit

Square-side Ortaköy classic since 1988, meze, rakı and a renovated upper terrace under the bridge

Emre Şen / Morini team's all-day Mediterranean at İstinye Park

Istanbul's pioneering Thai restaurant since 2006

Living-room-sized wine bar with charcuterie that punches above the General Yazgan address

Twenty-year-old Asmalı cocktail room with Tuesday Turkish-music nights and a regulars-only feel

Seasonal Italian since 1993 in a villa setting

Turkey's first female-chef-led ocakbaşı, Bosphorus-facing terrace, 8m fire

Legendary kebab institution with 1200-seat marina views since 1997

Onur Balk's award-winning mixology with global street food

Divan Group's gastropub in a historic Akaretler row-house

Fifty-plus years on Bağdat, the Anatolian side's classic pub

New-generation meyhane with Golden Horn views and 80s vibes

Watergarden havuz katında meyhane-pub melezi; küratörlü şarap, ekspert kokteyl.

Dancing and cocktails in fashionable Nişantaşı

Greek-Turkish seafood with Golden Horn views

Charming Greek-style seafood tavern near the marina

Authentic Adana kebab with unique lamb maki style

Sarıyer Çarşı fish-meyhane known for kalkan and meze depth.

Authentic Italian by MasterChef judge Danilo Zanna

Dimly lit Esat Işık room pairing classics-first cocktails with a short, serious kitchen

Reservation-only contemporary dining with cocktail focus

Maksut Askar and Levon Bagis pair Anatolian grapes with endangered regional plates.

Turkey's pioneering natural wine bar by Maksut Askar

Expertly crafted cocktail menu refreshed every ten days

Sophisticated luxury womenswear from Turkey

After-work cocktail room on Büyükdere for the Levent towers

Where creative design meets fantastic food in Topagaci

Topağacı neighborhood bar with a sharp cocktail list and a proper local crowd.

Chef Alp Çekici's reinterpretation of meyhane culture

Small Bebek room with 20+ wines by the glass, Bosphorus-edge tables, and the early-evening crowd that owns the neighborhood.

1871 Pera wine house in the Hazzopulo Pasajı arcade, intellectuals' canteen, not a museum

70-seat fish house at the Göksu estuary

Two-floor bistro-bar a few steps off Ortaköy pier, Bosphorus view, locals over tourists

Glass-enclosed rooftop at DoubleTree Moda

Small Teşvikiye cocktail room with a considered signature list.

Artisanal Bronx-inspired burgers with daily-ground beef

The city's flagship Bosphorus-side shisha-and-cocktail lounge, a Kuruçeşme nightlife fixture

Small family trattoria with Michelin 3-pearl mention

The Asian side's oldest real Italian, since 1990

Chef Utku's southern Italian in a Caddebostan villa garden

A hidden meyhane under a 70-year fig tree, Vedat Milor's pick

1951 iskele-side meyhane, Can Yücel and Nazım Hikmet's haunt

Bohemian backstreet cocktail den off Necatibey

Modern twist on traditional Turkish cuisine with daily-changing market menu

Marina-facing grill, seasoned Fenerbahçe regulars

All-day Mediterranean kitchen turning into a cocktail-led night spot

Cihangir garden-club where DJs push funk, disco, chill house past midnight

Modern meyhane in historic brewery walls with lentil 'ice cream' signature

Tepebaşı rooftop with Golden Horn view and ethno-house program

Nevizade's 1941 original, no singing, just rakı

Narrative-driven cocktail room on Moda Caddesi where each drink is a paragraph, not a prop

Pigalle ve MiniBar ekibinden izakaya esintili Japon tapas barı, vinil geceleri.

Chef-driven lokanta by day, modern meyhane by night on the Bosphorus

Old-style neighbourhood meyhane near Akaretler

Historic 200-year-old han with lokanta lunch and meyhane evenings

Gault&Millau Top 500 Bars list, bartender-driven Etiler outpost of the Alaçatı original

Kireçburnu waterline fish house, rakı nights the neighborhood still uses.

The former Babylon Kilyos, now curated music festival beach.

Art deco elegance in Karaköy's historic theatre

Reimagined '5 Cocktails & More', craft cocktails with sushi pairing

Intimate Fenerbahçe-park-side cocktail room tucked off Bağdat on Faruk Ayanoğlu, the quiet alternative to Suadiye

Chef Ömür Akkor's MoI flagship, Gault & Millau 2026 Best Anatolian Cuisine

23-year Nevizade meyhane named for a Can Yücel poem

House Cafe stable's tiny day-to-night cocktail room on Atiye Sokak

House Cafe's neighborhood-bar sibling, coffee by day, DJ nights Thu-Sat

Moda's most arty cocktail bar with mixology that takes itself seriously without being precious

New-generation Teşvikiye meyhane – contemporary meze, raki, serious pours.

The Moda sushi favourite on a quiet Erenköy side-street

White-tablecloth modern meyhane on a Kurtuluş back street, run by veteran Bülent Bey

Intimate Kadıköy gem with simple, delicious Turkish-Mediterranean fusion

Lobby-floor jazz room at The Marmara Pera, four nights a week of local and international sets.

Revived heritage brand with contemporary ambition, expanding to Bodrum

House-music rooftop facing Galata Tower

Jigger Istanbul's flagship, signature cocktails with Turkish bitters

Kalamis Marina views with creative cocktails and proper kitchen

Rooftop seafood house with Marmara view

Innovative Anatolian cuisine with wood-fired traditions

The Tarabya fish crescent local without the tourist markup.

Modern Anatolian meyhane with a strong drinks program

Tapas-style plates and a tight cocktail menu on one of Karaköy's busiest lanes.

1km of Black Sea beach with concerts and pools

Design-forward cocktail lounge by Cafe Cadde founders

1557 Mimar Sinan masterpiece at Suleymaniye complex

Faux-supermarket-fronted late room running consistent house and disco edits till 04:00

Modern lokanta named for Turkey's first female lawyer

Day restaurant, night cocktail bar on Nişantaşı's liveliest street

Turkey's original craft brewery in a three-story seaside Bebek mansion, Kölsch, Smoked Lager, and a full kitchen.

Golden-age cocktail tribute: expert mixologists, dinner-to-dance-floor at 10pm

Gastro-jazz lokanta run by jazz musician Eren Noyan with a proper stage

Old City panoramic views from boutique hotel rooftop

Modern Anatolian kitchen with serious cocktail bar and hidden Teşvikiye garden

Hand-built tiny Şair Nedim cocktail room, speakeasy live music Fridays, smoke inside

1920s meyhane where Yahya Kemal drank rakı

1901 former Franciscan nuns' residence transformed into cozy suites

Zorlu PSM's 120-seat jazz box, live programme, intimate room, cocktails with the set

Intimate Teşvikiye cocktail bar with a tight signature list and quiet confidence.

Dim, music-first Sofyalı cocktail room from the new wave, opens late, closes at 02:00

The cognoscenti's mixology lab, sustainable program, workshops, bottle takeout

Turkish fashion house's boutique hospitality

Asmalımescit's ever-new classic since 1977

Heritage meyhane family since 1977, Asian-side branch since 2018

Modern Anatolian cuisine by chef-owner Civan Er in Beyoğlu

Chef Kaan Kayhan's waterfront meyhane on the Yeniköy pier.

Candle-lit meyhane in a stone building beside the Armenian church.

Bosphorus-pier classic since 1949 under century-old plane trees.

French-inspired wine bar with Mediterranean flair

Tarabya marina fish-house with a working bar program.

New-gen meyhane inside 110-year-old Ragıp Paşa Mansion

Bahariye's beloved meyhane in a French-bistro-style room

Boutique wine and olive house on Emirgan's prettiest backstreet

Istanbul's pre-eminent 1980 classic bar – stained glass, live music, real regulars.

Walton Hotels Galata rooftop framing Galata Tower at sunset

Signature pistachio cocktails in less-crowded Göztepe

Iconic club-restaurant hybrid with wraparound views

The neighborhood's modern meze bar with creative interpretations

40 signature cocktails in a garden oasis on Bağdat Caddesi

Turkish DJs, live-jazz, and funk in classic-elegant Beyoğlu

Foraged mushrooms and Golden Horn sunsets since 1939

Venice-born Italian at Soho House Istanbul

Michelin Green Star restaurant pioneering sustainability with vertical farming

Local Turkish flavors meet creative mixology

The Asian side's answer to yeni nesil meyhane culture