Turkish₺₺beyoğlu
Hayvore off Istiklal, the Black Sea steam-table cooking corn-bread anchovies and smoky bean stews for whoever knows the side street. Located in Beyoğlu.
Why locals love it: Locals fill it for the Black Sea menu, tourists walk past for the larger Istiklal places ten metres away.
Tip: Order the hamsi pilav and the muhlama; they only run while supplies last.
Seafood₺₺arnavutköy
Adem Baba on Beyaz Gül Caddesi, a 1992-founded Arnavutköy fish lokantası where the catch comes off Bosphorus boats moored outside and the family runs three.
Why locals love it: A no-alcohol Arnavutköy mom-and-pop fish lokantası, off the Bebek tourist drag and known mostly to upper-Bosphorus regulars.
Tip: Walk in for lunch on a weekday; no reservations, and the fried calamari and grilled day-catch go fastest.
Turkish₺₺fatih
Bahar Restaurant inside a Yağcı Han courtyard, an esnaf lokanta feeding bazaar working merchants from steam-table stewpots that empty by mid-afternoon.
Why locals love it: Buried in a small han off the Grand Bazaar's Nuruosmaniye gate, found only by the bazaar merchants who eat there daily.
Tip: Get there before 14:00 or the stewpots are empty.
Turkish₺₺beyoğlu
Antiochia on a Beyoğlu side street, an Antakya (Hatay) kitchen plating southeastern grills and Levant mezze from a tight Asmalımescit address.
Why locals love it: Tucked on a tight General Yazgan side-street in Asmalımescit, often walked past on the way to bigger meyhanes.
Tip: Order the cevizli biber, the kunefe and the cag kebab together.
Turkish₺₺beyoğlu
Mandabatmaz in Olivya Geçidi, a one-table Beyoğlu Turkish coffee bar running since 1967, the cup of foam so dense the buffalo doesn't sink. Family-friendly.
Why locals love it: Tucked inside the Olivya Passage off Istiklal, easy to miss for anyone not looking for the unmarked alley.
Tip: Order an orta-şekerli (medium-sweet) and stay for two; the kahveci will keep refilling water.
Turkish₺₺fatih
Siirt Şeref Büryan on İtfaiye Caddesi, a Kadınlar Pazarı corner pulling lamb büryan from a tandır pit oven that fires through the night, the Avcı family.
Why locals love it: Buried in Kadınlar Pazarı behind the Valens Aqueduct, the Fatih corner Kurdish migrants from Siirt have run since 1987 and few non-Turkish guidebooks reach.
Tip: Order büryan around 11:00 before the lunch crowd; the perde pilavı and a tas kebabı round out a full table.