Places to Eat
- Haci Abdullah (Taksim) Traditional and historical restaurant (Apparently the last Sultan’s personal favourite restaurant)
- Balikci Sabahattin (Sultanahmet). Traditional fish restaurant in a wooden Ottoman house.
- Refik Fish restaurant (Taksim, apparently famous) Sofyali sokak 10 Tunel
- Boncuk Armenian restaurant (Taksim)Nevizade Sokak 19
- Hamdi et Lokantasi (Eminonu)Good views overlooking to Golden Horn
- Develi Kebap(Koca Mustafapasa) take the subway train 4 stops from Sirkeci and get off at Koca Mustafapasa.
Quick Eats
- Turkish Fast Food: ‘Fish Bread’ (Eminonu)– normally 3-4 Turkish Lira on sale from stalls anywhere on the water front , very fresh and tasty fish sandwiches with salad – an Istanbul institution. http://www.turkeytravelplanner.com/details/Food/balik_ekmek.html.
- Tarihi Sultan Ahmet Koftecisi- Selim Usta (Sultanahmet) Historical Kebab restaurant serving Kofte and chips. Fast and cheap and very traditional in what otherwise is a tourist area.
- Assk Kafe - Good for Brunch (Besiktas) Muallim Naci cd. 64b Kurucesme (behind Macrocenter)
- House Café(Ortakoy) Iskele Square 42 Ortakoy
- Tarihi Suleymaniyeli Kuru Fasulyeci: (Suleymaniye) signature dish Fasulye (type of Bean dish) Prof Siddik Sami Onar Caddesi 11, Suleymaniye
Nightclubs
- Reina – very trendy Club-Restaurant beautiful location, right next to the Bosphorus under the big bridge, great views, London prices. Place to go to see the beautiful young Turks hang out...
- Angelique
- Black
- Crystal
- Jazz by Les Ottomans
And finally...........
The best Turkish Delight! Alright they’re all good, but rather than buy an overpriced random one in the Grand Bazaar, one of the best is the brand: Karakoy Gulluoglu or Ali Muhiddin Haci Bekir which is in Eminonu
Also for further ideas on places to go and things to do check out Timeout Istanbul
http://www.timeoutistanbul.com/english/