Sofyalı 9 ★ 4.5
Sofyalı 9 in Beyoğlu, an Asmalımescit meyhane Michelin-listed for 20-plus years of rakı, hot and cold mezze and Greek-Turkish records on the speakers each night.
Signature: Topik, Stuffed sardines, Mücver
Refik on Sofyalı Sokak, a 1954-founded Asmalımescit meyhane keeping the rakı table going past midnight with mountain greens, lakerda and grilled lamb.
Signature dishes: Ot meze, Kuzu pirzola, Lakerda
Address: Asmalı Mescit Mah., Sofyalı Sokak No:10-12, 34430 Beyoğlu, İstanbul, Istanbul
Sofyalı 9 in Beyoğlu, an Asmalımescit meyhane Michelin-listed for 20-plus years of rakı, hot and cold mezze and Greek-Turkish records on the speakers each night.
Signature: Topik, Stuffed sardines, Mücver
Krependeki İmroz on Nevizade Sokak, a 1941 Beyoğlu meyhane built around fresh Aegean fish, mezze plates and the long rakı table that defines this strip.
Signature: Grilled bonito, Çiroz, Octopus salad
Asmalı Cavit on Asmalı Mescit Caddesi, a 1990s-opened Beyoğlu meyhane where proprietor Cavit Bey works the room nightly over a mezze list led by smoked eggplant.
Signature: Smoked eggplant mezze, Albanian liver, Köfte in tomato sauce
Sofyalı 9 in Beyoğlu, an Asmalımescit meyhane Michelin-listed for 20-plus years of rakı, hot and cold mezze and Greek-Turkish records on the speakers each night.
Signature: Topik, Stuffed sardines, Mücver
Krependeki İmroz on Nevizade Sokak, a 1941 Beyoğlu meyhane built around fresh Aegean fish, mezze plates and the long rakı table that defines this strip.
Signature: Grilled bonito, Çiroz, Octopus salad
Hidden in the hardware-market arcades of Perşembe Pazarı, Tarihi Karaköy Balıkçısı has grilled fish on skewers since 1923 to about a dozen seats inside the old Griffin Han.
Signature: Grilled fish skewer, Bonito tava, Sea bass
Lokanta 1741 beside the 300-year-old Cağaloğlu Hammam, a Michelin-listed modern Turkish dining room with a terrace overlooking the hammam domes and seasonal Anatolian plates.
Signature: Slow-cooked lamb, Aegean mezze, Saffron rice pudding
Asmalı Cavit on Asmalı Mescit Caddesi, a 1990s-opened Beyoğlu meyhane where proprietor Cavit Bey works the room nightly over a mezze list led by smoked eggplant.
Signature: Smoked eggplant mezze, Albanian liver, Köfte in tomato sauce
Çiya Kebap, the original 1987 sister to Çiya Sofrası on the opposite side of Güneşlibahçe in Kadıköy market, fires kebabs, lahmacun and pide from a single charcoal grill.
Signature: Pistachio kebap, Lahmacun, Pide