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Gülhane Şark Sofrası

4.8 (27 reviews)
Open 11:00 am - 1:30 AM (Next day)

Gülhane Şark Sofrası Photos

GÜLHANE ŞARK SOFRASI ATMOSPHERE

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Outside
Mie D.

After long time sightseeing at Topkapi Palace, we decided to have early dinner around the area. I checked Yelp because I didn't want to mischoice what I eat especially during the trip, (Thank you Yelp!!!!) then find this place. Walking down the street, and turn left side street, easy to find this place. It was getting cold, so we chose inside table(outside table you can enjoy shisha-hookah-), awwww, somebody made warm my seat! lol!! Turkey is very kind for animals, and little kitten was sleeping on the sofa. How cute. Restaurant staff asked us we have any allergy for cat just in case. Their service was nice. We ordered Kuzu Sis (Lamb Shish), Ali Nazik (classic kebab with aubergine, yoghurt, tomato, butter sauce), Dondurma (Home Ice Cream), and çhai tea(I was freezing & cold, but after we ate, they served Çhay to us). They asked us having some humus? and answered yes! They served us Humus and Acili Ezme (they didn't charge for these), Humus was very smooth and Acili Ezme was little spicy, but they're so tasty! Our meals were both yum!!! Dessert ice cream was also good!!! End of the dinner they served Çhai tea for us. We did enjoy our dinner! Anyway, during we enjoyed our dinner the staff came and took kitten for feeding dinner!

RUti & hamas
Arif R.

Service was excellent. Lamb shank was not done right meat wasn't tender flavorful . Fish dish was done properly very tasty. Romantic rainy day sitting up outside that was great environmen. They offered free apple tea for complement that a great service . Thanks

Spicy kebab
Nicole M.

This restaurant was perfect! Authentic and tasty food, great service and cool location off the main path. Service was great and the staff really looked after me with recommendations and sweet complimentary items as I am single woman traveling I felt very safe. I will be back the vibe was amazing.

My date  Isabella
Shannon R.

GO HERE! I made the unfortunate mistake of staying in Fatih, when I am such a foodie. It's been hard to find local good spots w/o going towards Galata Bridge. This is a GEM in fatih area. The service is IMPECCABLE. Essentially fine dining, they are vigilant and make sure you have what you need at all times. The owner had to debone my fish for me because I had no idea what I was doing. Anyway I've spent more on lesser places here... Seabass flaked right off the bone. Very well cooked and seasoned. Hummus was sublime. The soup was a bit coarse but I was happy that it was obviously fresh left instead of packaged soup. Very very good. They had a live singer, which heightened the mood :) and as always cats ‍

My family's favorite restaurant in Istanbul, and we ate at quite a few. My husband is a cook, and he said the food was the best Turkish food he has ever had. I don't eat beef or lamb, so I had a lot of chicken. This place made it the best--tender, juicy and the portions were generous. My 12-year-old son loved the lounging cats, and the apple tea. The staff were amazing, and the atmosphere was cozy and inviting. The owner made sure we were well taken care of. The location is central for visitors staying in Sultanahmet. Overall, it has a relaxed, inviting vibe and the food was excellent. Turkish hospitality at its best!

Michael G.

This cozy find was the perfect ending to the day. Everyone was so warm and accommodating, it felt like I was home for a home cooked meal! The food was fantastic! The Chicken Shish Kebab was perfectly grilled on the outside and so tender and juicy on the inside. The baklava was some of the best I've ever tasted. Homemade, sweet, and flavorful. This is a little slice of heaven in Sultanahmet!

Great food
Hope S.

Complimentary pita bread with hummus and tomato dip (not sure what it's called) and complimentary tea and baklava. Great service. Takes credit card. The servers spoke English, which was really helpful. We got the stuffed chicken and the lamb beef kebab in a cream sauce, omg this was all so good. 10/10 recommend. Seating was outside and very hot, for some reason they didn't have the fans going but I think with the fans on and maybe some misters it would have been a little more comfortable. I wish we were hungrier because we wanted to try more food.

My fav salad ... omg those tomatoes!!!
Susan S.

MOST AMAZING FOOD & HOSPITALITY!!! On our recent visit to Istanbul it was our very good fortune to be walking past the wonderful "GÜLHANE ŞARK SOFRASI" restaurant one afternoon when we were enticed by seeing the happy people sitting at the tables out front enjoying their tasty meals and libations. The accommodating waiter allowed us to sit Parisian cafe style so we could watch the passersby on this lovely street. After looking at the many menu offerings and feeling undecided due to some allergy concerns, the charming chef, Dagistan, came to our table to inquire about my food limitations and surprised me with a dish he made up just to please my tastes! A most delicious salmon dish. My partner was equally pleased with his yummy lamb. We ended up staying for quite some time, enjoying the delish food, good wine, and great music playing in the background. We returned later that night for dinner to further explore the amazing meal offerings. Needless to say, we ended up returning there every night for the rest of our stay that week in Istanbul. Our hosts, Dagistan, Moses and Ömer always welcomed us warmly as they did all their guests, and we felt like part of the family. Now, every time we go back to Istanbul, we can feel like we're going home again! Can't wait!

Complementary tea we got
Khaliun N.

The service and the food were absolutely amazing. The hostess was gracious and helpful; the food we got (eggplant kebab and vegetable platter) tasted very good, and we could tell time and effort had been put in to serve delicious food. The hostess even treated us to a complementary bread appetizers before our food arrived and Turkish tea after our meal. Absolute must in the area for tourists, regardless of what kind of food and experience you're looking for!

One of the staff under the entrance of this restaurant.

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10 months ago

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2 years ago

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2 years ago

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5 months ago

Great food, with warm service and a comfortable setting.Everything was very fredh and flavorful

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2 years ago

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2 years ago

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3 years ago

We loved this restaurant. Very nice atmosphere, wonderful music, and tasty food. Also, very good service. Definitely recommend it to try

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3 years ago

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4 years ago

Great kebabs, excellent service, complimentary tea and deserts; certainly this is the place to go if you're around

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7 years ago

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9 years ago

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Review Highlights - Gülhane Şark Sofrası

The proximity to Sultanahmet is the least of the reasons to eat at this restaurant.

Mentioned in 3 reviews

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Zübeyir Ocakbaşı - Grilled garluc, onions and pepper paste

Zübeyir Ocakbaşı

4.2(94 reviews)
2.9 kmŞehit Muhtar Mh., Şehit Muhtar, Hüseyinağa, Beyoğlu
₺₺

Istanbul was love not just because of the history and architecture but most importantly for its…read morefood. The sweets and savory both are on point. You can actually go to a hole in the wall and get the best kababs or baklava or halwas every eatery is a sheer joy. So this is one of the best places for a kababfest all over Yelp, YouTube influencers backing that and also the most recommended place on internet based reviews. We chose a non busy time it wasn't that packed. This restaurant is not compact but definitely crowded in the sense that tables are very close to one another. The staff is extremely polite, helpful and friendly. We ordered a little bit of everything including liver. Each item was bursting of flavor and the meat used was top notch quality. Price point isn't bad. Do google the menu with pricing and these change quite often in places like Turkey which is a tourist hub. We paid with credit card no issues. The food came out piping hot and within reasonable grilling time. Definitely recommend this place it's a haven for meat lovers I can't wait to go back this is a solid 5 on 5 for me.

Extremely terrible experience. The following behaviors of this restaurant made us feel that they…read moretreat customers differently, discriminate against us, and engage in forced consumption: The staff were slack in their work; we called them several times, but they pretended not to hear us. They brought the wrong dishes. We ordered one lamb and one kebab, but the first time they served two lamb dishes. After another staff member scolded the server, the server still giggled and didn't take it seriously. They did not serve us pre-meal bread. When we asked, the staff said it was because we didn't order a salad. However, other customers who also didn't order salad were served bread. Moreover, during the rest of our trip, all the restaurants we visited provided free pre-meal bread. The worst part! When we paid the bill and refused to pay the service charge for the above reasons, the staff forced a 10% service charge without our consent. This is forced consumption!!! We should have turned to the local law enforcement authorities, but doing so would have ruined our entire trip -- and that is exactly why they acted so blatantly. I believe that in any modern country, such behavior is against the law!!! We had a wonderful trip in Turkey, but actions like this disgrace your country!!!

Photos
Zübeyir Ocakbaşı
Zübeyir Ocakbaşı - Fresh baked Turkish bread

Fresh baked Turkish bread

Zübeyir Ocakbaşı - A truly great and fun evening, tons of delicious food.

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A truly great and fun evening, tons of delicious food.

Kapı Karaköy - Shish kebab with peppers, onions, tomatoes, and cilantro. A nice red wine to go with it.

Kapı Karaköy

4.4(8 reviews)
1.5 kmKemankeş Karamustafa Paşa Mh., Kemankeş Karamustafa Paşa
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We came here for dinner in our second night in Turkey, and thoroughly enjoyed it... we loved the…read morekunefe the most, and it was our favourite out of all the ones we had in Istanbul! The ambiance here is beautiful - hidden in a small alley on a road beside the Galata Tower, there are lights and music that fill up the narrow path here. Outside seating is super quaint, and the inside of the restaurant is nice too, decorated in a very traditional way. We started off with a shepherds salad because I was in desperate need of fibre after two days of straight protein and carbs . It was a simple Mediterranean style salad, with tomato, onions, cucumbers, and parsley. We then shared a chicken shish and, heavily influenced by the meal we had at Antiochia the day prior, a kebab durum. The durum was good - crispy and meaty - but I think we had the best at Antiochia. It lacked a bit of juice. The chicken shish was delicious though; it was tender, moist, and flavourful. The real star, however, was the kunefe. This dessert was by far the best of its kind we've had in Istanbul! It wasn't too sweet, the inside was creamy (and more mild than some other variations we tried), but it was the clotted cream on top and the pistachio crumble that elevated this to another level. The cream made the dish super buttery and fragrant, adding complexity. Would definitely come again just for the kunefe!

Good and personable service. Medieval decor created a beautiful and unusual atmosphere. The shish…read morekebab was stellar.

Photos
Kapı Karaköy
Kapı Karaköy - The spread

The spread

Kapı Karaköy - Dining area.

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Dining area.

Ali Ocakbaşı - Main course.

Ali Ocakbaşı

4.0(7 reviews)
2.9 kmGümüşsuyu, Gümüşsuyu Mh., Beşiktaş
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We were visiting from out of the country and this restaurant came highly recommended by someone…read moreattending the same conference as us. We checked the reviews and were excited--it looked like it was going to be an amazing experience. And at first, it was! We were seated on the patio with a great view, and the atmosphere seemed lovely. However, things quickly went downhill. There was a very large party inside--maybe 30+ people taking up the entire dining room--and it felt like the patio got forgotten. The bigger issue came from the table next to us, which had apparently become the designated **smoking area**. At first, I thought it was just staff taking a break, but then around **8 more people came out to smoke** right next to our table. The smoking itself wasn't the worst part--it's outside, and I get that--but they were all crowding around our table, standing with their backs literally **inches from our food**. It felt extremely rude and disruptive, and unfortunately, the staff couldn't do anything about it since there were no other tables available. To be fair, our server was **fantastic**--you could tell he was uncomfortable too, especially since the smokers had taken over what looked like his service station. He did his best under tough circumstances, and we appreciated that. Maybe we just caught it on a bad night, but I'd say if you're sensitive to smoke or looking for a more peaceful experience, **avoid the patio**.

January 2/2024: Our final meal in Istanbul with my Al…read more This was a very nice restaurant. The service was fast & polite with no issues. The view from the seating area was FANTASTIC. The food taste was delicious but they lost a star because the small size of the entree. This is a very authentic do over if you're in the area.

Photos
Ali Ocakbaşı - Seating area.

Seating area.

Ali Ocakbaşı - Appetizers arrangement.

Appetizers arrangement.

Ali Ocakbaşı - Patio view of Istanbul.

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Patio view of Istanbul.

Gülhane Şark Sofrası - turkish - Updated May 2026

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