A two-Michelin-star chef's guide to the best dining spots in Istanbul

Istanbul-born chef Fatih Tutak shares his favourite culinary experiences in his hometown, from Turkish barbecue at Ahmet Ustam Ocakbaşı to micro-seasonal menus at Nazende.

Straddling two continents, Istanbul has been shaped by millennia of Silk Road traders and the meeting of great religions. From the Byzantines to the Ottomans, each of the city's historical inhabitants have left behind impressive architecture, unique cultural traditions and a rich culinary legacy. 

"Turkish cuisine is an undiscovered diamond mine," says chef Fatih Tutak of two-Michelin-star Turk in Istanbul. "In the early '90s, Turkish food became very much [seen as] street food, especially in Europe. [There], you can make a very bad quality döner kebab and no one [knows]. Turkish food is not very easy to cook properly. It's complex. [In Istanbul] we have many different people from around Turkey and they cook their own cuisine. It's a melting pot."

At Turk, Tutak gives age-old Turkish recipes a cutting-edge spin. However, when he's not in the kitchen, he prefers something lower key. "As a chef I am very specific when I go to restaurants in Turkey, especially in Istanbul," he explains. "I try to always go very local and where the food is ultimately high quality, prepared with amazing ingredients."

A year-round destination with warm summers and cool winters, the city topped Euromonitor's list as the most visited city in the world in 2023, so there's never been a better time to dive into Istanbul's excellent culinary scene.

Here are Tutak's favourite dining spots in his hometown.

Visitors to Istanbul will likely notice the word "ocakbaşı" plastered on restaurant signage everywhere. It means "fireside" in Turkish, and is the name given to grill houses where a chef cooks kebabs on glowing hot coals. It is one of the most popular ways to dine in the city, and for Tutak, Ahmet Ustam Ocakbaşı is the best in the business. 

"This is where I go on my days off," he says. "[They have] an artisanal way of making kebabs; hand chopped, with different varieties of meat cuts. They do the best minced kebab and shish kebab, and also chicken wings and salad and grilled veggies and lavash (thin flatbread).

For Tutak, it's not just about the food but also the experience. "Chef Ahmet has been doing this job for almost 20 years. He is very passionate," he says. "You sit down in front of the grill and he is there cooking in front of you; like Japanese robatayaki. Also, you can drink rakı [a Turkish aniseed flavoured spirit] because the best way of enjoying the kebab, for me, is [with] rakı: the Turkish way."

Tutak's advice: "You should not leave without eating the Adana kebab," which he proclaims to be "the best in the city". Possibly Turkey's most popular variety of kebab, it's made from skewered mincemeat and seasoned with red pepper flakes for mild heat and named after the city of Adana in south-eastern Turkey, where it originates from.

Address: Maslak Mah. Dereboyu 2 Cad. No:8/1, Istanbul

Phone: +90 53 0175 6114

Instagram: @ahmetustamocakbasi

Pide can be found all over Turkey, but according to Tutak, this canoe-shaped dish – often referred to as "Turkish pizza" by tourists, much to the locals' chagrin – originates from the province of Trabzon on the northern reaches of the country's Black Sea coast. There are various versions and regional variations, but in its simplest form, yeasted dough is stuffed with different fillings like cheese and meat, then baked, resulting in a pillowy soft crust with golden edges covered in melted cheese.

Located in the central neighbourhood of Vefa, just a 10-minute walk from the famed 16th-Century Suleymaniye Mosque, is Karadeni̇z Pi̇de Kebap Salonu; Tutak's pick for the city's best pide. "This restaurant is very special because they are the third generation preparing pide. They are famous for [it]," he says.

Tutak appreciates the family-run restaurant's dedication to tradition. "They use a woodfired oven and make their own very nice fermented dough and use different kinds of stuffing. You can order cheese, minced meat, chopped beef, cheese and egg. It's very special," he says, adding: "my favourite is with minced beef."

Address: Hacı Kadın, Muhabir Sk. No:6, 34134 Fatih/İstanbul

Phone: +90 21 2519 0128

At the helm of Nazende, a Mediterranean restaurant just off upscale boulevard Bağdat Caddesi, is snowy-haired businessman-turned-chef, Uluç Sakary. "This is my favourite restaurant in Turkey," announces Tutak. "Uluç used to have a textiles business. He used to cook at home for his friends and then when [he turned] 50, he decided to become a chef and open a restaurant."

Nazende – which opened in 2019 – quickly garnered critical acclaim and is full most evenings. "He does his own shopping every morning. He goes to the fish and vegetable markets and makes his daily menu and just [cooks] whatever he wants, but it's out of this world," says Tutak. "The variety of meat dishes [is] amazing. [They have] amazing offal dishes on the grill such as lamb liver, sweetbread and kidney. They have seafood, they also have great starters, mezes and salads."

For diners visiting in April or May (goat season) Tutak recommends the woodfire oven-baked suckling goat, a meat eaten widely in Turkey. The restaurant is also lauded for its baby calamari and rice pilaf enriched with nuts and raisins.

Address: Caddebostan Plajyolu Sok. Sembol apt. No:13/A, Istanbul

Phone: +90 533 6170 268 

Instagram: @nazendecadde

Lokantas or "tradesmen restaurants" are where time-strapped locals head for well-priced and freshly prepared home-style dishes. They are found all over Turkey but Tutak's favourite in Istanbul is Köroğlu Et Lokantası. "When you enter the restaurant there are a lot of dishes already cooked; you select [what you want] and they send it to you," he says. "They open only for lunchtime, so you need to go around 12:30."

The menu is ample, but there are some dishes the restaurant is especially known for. "They cook amazing beans with rice called fasulye – a very typical local dish, which is braised beans from Ispir (in north-eastern Turkey) with butter and beef," says Tutak. "Also, the eggplant dishes are amazing. I would say confit beef is their signature. It is very traditional from the northern part of Turkey. You leave the beef for six hours [to] cook very slowly. Amazing. Served just with plain rice and fried potatoes; easy."

Address: Akşemsettin Caddesi No:4 Fatih/İSTANBUL, Istanbul

Phone: +90 212 531 23 05

Instagram: @koroglu_lokantasi_

One of Turkey's most famed exports, the döner kebab (seasoned meat cooked on a rotating spit then shaved off in layers) can be found in abundance all over Istanbul, from hole-in-the-wall joints purveyed by solo chefs armed with just a vertical rotating meat spit, to sit-down establishments with bowtie-wearing waiters.

Dönerci Engin, a five-minute walk from the Galata Tower, leans more towards the former, with the addition of a few tables outside. "[The chef] is from [my mother's] hometown Erzurum," says Tutak. "He prepares the doner with a mix of sliced beef and lamb and he has a special marinade using tomato, purple basil and onion and milled black pepper. The quality of the döner kebab is very thin, very juicy and really caramelised. Just the perfect doner."

There are only five items on the menu, which consist of doner meat served in various receptacles. Essentially "on a plate or inside bread," says Tutak. "I like it my way, with white rice and sliced onion and meat and that's it. No garnish, just rice." For bread eaters, he recommends the gobit pita: "It's like a balloon pita, wood-fired. He makes his own."

Address: Bereketzade, Okçu Musa Cd. No:3, 34421 Beyoğlu/İstanbul

Phone: +90 212 293 9787

The lively Asmalı Mescit neighbourhood in Istanbul's central Beyoğlu district is a crisscross of narrow streets filled with bustling bars and restaurants, particularly traditional tavernas. "[A] Turkish taverna is the place where you go for drinking and eating. They have them in Greece as well," explains the chef. "We call it meyhane; taverna is a Greek name. This is where people gather and enjoy meze, small dishes, seafood and alcoholic beverages, especially rakı."

The chef is a long-time fan of Asmali Cavit. "[It] is a beautiful place run by a family: the father, mother, son and daughter. Every day, they're on duty and [have been] running the place for almost 25 years," says Tutak. "It's in a touristy area but mostly local people go. It's mostly shared dishes, cooked with olive oil, and seafood appetisers: fried calamari, squid, grilled fish, mussels – and also cured seafood."

Seafood isn't the only thing on the menu. "The baby kofta grill is amazing," says Tutak. "The fried beef liver is also very nice. Also, Armenian mezes, like topik, a dish cooked with a lot of onions and chickpeas."

Address: Asmalımescit Caddesi No: 16/D Asmalimescit Mahallesi, Beyoglu, İstanbul 34430

Phone: +90 212 292 4950

Tutak compares Balikci Kahraman to the renowned Michelin-starred Elkano fish grill in Spain. "It's the Turkish version," he says.

In fish-loving Istanbul, Black Sea turbot is beloved for its flavoursome and meaty texture, thanks to cold water currents. "Balikci Kahraman is very famous for its turbot," says Tutak. "They cook it on a tandoor grill very slowly and season it with salt. They serve it with their signature tomato salad (with red onion, cucumber, green chilli and lashings of olive oil) and cornbread which is cooked in a pan."

The restaurant is located on the city's outskirts in the small fishing village of Sarıyer on the banks near where the Black Sea flows into the Bosphurus River. "The owner has two boats. He sends his fishermen to the sea every morning, they catch it and bring it to the restaurant. It's super fresh."

Diners will need to factor in the journey time. "It is about one hour from the city centre but worth it to travel there. I just took my Japanese sushi chef friends from Tokyo who loved it," says Tutak.

Website: https://www.balikcikahraman.com/

Address: Rumeli Kavağı, İskele Cad. No:15 Sarıyer, İstanbul

Phone: +90 212 242 98 99

Instagram: @balikcikahraman

BBC Travel's The SpeciaList is a series of guides to popular and emerging destinations around the world, as seen through the eyes of local experts and tastemakers.

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