One of my favorite places in the world. Its like I just walked out of Turkey and into the Alps…read more Food is perfect and service is top. No part of the meal was not excellent. I hate most restaurants that have anything to do with a hotel but this is an exception.

Nicole Istanbul was an absolutely memorable experience. The 10 course tasting menu was unique in…read morethat each dish was layered with native spices and seasonings that felt very intentional. I left full and satisfied but never uncomfortable, which is key for a truly well-executed tasting menu. The service was impeccable from start to finish, and the wine pairings were on point with every single course. If you are in Istanbul and looking for a romantic date night or an elevated solo dining experience, this is where you want to go!!!

We ended our trip in Istanbul at Nicole and I am so glad we did. We came during Ramadan on a…read moreweekday so it wasn't busy at all. We got one of the best seat next to the window overlooking both the Asian and European side of Istanbul. The ambiance is romantic and classy. We opted for the smaller course menu but the chef surprised us with 3 different courses. It was the perfect amount of food. We didn't want to do the wine pairing and just ordered 1 glass for each and it was enough to last us the whole experience. We came around 6:45pm so we could see daytime, sunset, and night time from the window seats. We left around 9:30pm so I would allocates about 3 hour for your experience. This was such a wonderful experience and well worth the splurge!

This was a great first vacation meal! We got hummus, grape…read moreleaves, an alexander kabob, a raki and a small bottled water. The Alexander kabob was fantastic! The sauce, bread and curd made a brilliant combo and there was also a slice of potato a chili and a tomato. This is the first time I have ever felt like yogurt added anything to a dish. It was so good. The raki was awesome. The waiter insisted I add some water to it and he definitely knew best, it was sharp. And then it turned white! It is an anise liquor, like a jaegermeister, and I was glad I tried it. We ate in the semi outside seating which is always such a highlight in Istanbul. Great ambience and the wait staff and host were really welcoming. They gave us complimentary tea and baklava when we asked for the check and that was also lovely.

The accommodations were wonderful, the service was excellent, and they did everything they could to…read moremake our night incredible. Everything was delicious, and the show was spectacular. Congratulations to the whole team! Cozatmosphere, with pleasant music. Everything was very clean.

I really like Georgian food and was excited to try this place having heard stories of the…read morefascinating history of the building and the quirky owners. In reality I found the atmosphere a little cold and the interior actually looks oddly like someone's living room, although that had it's own charm (there's a shower cubicle in the toilet). Food wise we tried the stuffed carrots, a dish I've never had before which was absolutely delicious, refreshing but flavourful and one of my favourite things I ate in Istanbul. Along this were stuffed vine leaves, a major hit with my friend because of the slightly sweet edge given by the inclusion of sultanas. I was disappointed by the khinkali (spelled hingali on the menu) which were small and the dumpling was harder than I'm used to. Bear in mind though that I've eaten hundreds of khinkali, most people would probably be fine with this version! The other dish we had, the tatar ashi, is the owner's mother's recipe and was indeed very tasty and comforting. She also played some old tunes on the piano which were very haunting and beautiful. Overall I perhaps wouldn't recommend this if you're only on a short trip to Istanbul but if you've got a bit longer/are a local and fancy something a bit different, definitely give it a go.

For a variety of reasons, this was one of my favorite dining experiences in Istanbul…read more First, the building itself has a story unto itself. At one point, the building served as a prison for the British Empire in the 1920's. It has since had other uses prior to becoming a restaurant, however it seems that it is most apt to highlight the fact that it is a former jail. Second, the restaurant was located in the neighborhood of our apartment, our home away from home while staying in Istanbul. While the food was excellent, I will always remember the warm hospitality of the owners. The owner started playing Russian folk songs on the piano as we were winding down our dinner. One of our dining companions, whose family is Russian, was immediately taken back to her childhood, as she sang these songs with her family. She joined the woman at the piano and continued to sing folk song after folk song. Afterwards, another friend of ours sat down at the piano and we had an impromptu concert. What started off as a woman playing the piano to provide some ambiance and background music turned out to be a wonderful experience of sharing music for all of us. It's been several years since I dined at the restaurant but what I do remember is the sounds and the excellent spiced cheese. If you are in the neighborhood, this is a worthy stop for a meal. Hopefully, you will be rewarded with as lovely of an evening as I was.

Will return. It's…read morenear our hotel, and I thought the lady/ladies making the pancakes upfront is cute, just like the Chinese ladies making dumpling at restaurants, everywhere. We made a mental note to return here before leaving. They don't disappoint: we've spinach (don't want to too many ingredients ...) which is super yummy. In the night, there was one lady and for lunch today there are two. The decor is very Turkish. Indoor tables only - they're a few inches from the tram. Tables have about three different hight: from yoga lotus pose to normal sit down. Service is good and food is decent - we also order a beef dish (their speciality) which is creamy and rather bland. Turkish people are charmers. When the staff served it, he joked "oh, your spaghetti ..." juvenile yes, charm is also yes. No a/c. A hostess is her full regalia ... I'm sweating in my tank top - 84 degrees. Tea is complimentary: thank you. One thing I noticed: a few European countries' shakers are used differently than US: use less holes for pepper ... a small joy of travel. One more good thing: the charmer went thought our bill, which is good ... given a few days ago we were given a wrong bill. No big deal but appreciate it.

Food poisoning!!!! Both me and my wife wound up getting food poisoning and having the worst GI…read moreevent that we have ever had. Stay away unless you want to wind up like me and be confined to your cruise stateroom for 2 days.

Great service and delicious food. Inside or outside seating is comfortable and the staff very…read morefriendly.

They charge 65 lira for a bottle of water!!!! The same bottle that you can buy in store for 5 lira!…read moreThis is daytime rubbery! The food is very average. The bread is not fresh and salad is bland. Take your money elsewhere. There's a restaurant across the street that's always packed. They clearly don't overcharge their customers! If you're looking for a good Turkish restaurant with reasonable pricing I strongly recommend looking elsewhere.

This was a good restaurant and I was not disappointed with my experience here…read more The food was very good and the service was friendly and attentive. They were very flexible since they allowed all 7 of us to use 7 different credit cards to pay for the group meal, which was very helpful. We ordered a couple of bottles of red wine and they arrived slightly chilled, which was perfect for those hot evenings in the summer. I'd recommend this restaurant if you're in the area.

We ended up in Bej after planning to stop by Lokanta Maya for dinner without a reservation (on a…read moreMonday night) and learning there were no tables available. Desperate to avoid the row of tourist traps along the water, we asked the staff at Lokanta Maya if they could point us in the direction of another good restaurant in the area, and that's how we found Bej. The ambiance here is upscale/ classy/ trendy, but not stuffy. There was a huge display of gorgeous fresh flowers greeting us when we walked in, and we managed to snag the only unreserved table in the place. The menu offered a good selection of food, all slightly interesting twists on classic meals. The three of us split a bottle of wine from a moderate sized wine list, and started off with a couple of appetizers. There was a slightly spicy chicken dish we ordered that was delicious. For a main course I ordered the baked goat cheese, which was described as being served with beets and arugula. Perhaps the description in Turkish was more accurate, but I was depending on the English version of the menu, being a foreigner and all. When my meal arrived it was actually mostly a large bowl or salad, with a largish sized baked goat cheese on top. The flavor was great, and it was warm and creamy. The beets were difficult to find, but were eventually discovered hiding at the bottom of my bowl. While it wasn't the most delicious flavor combination, it was still really good, and I enjoyed the meal. We finished things off with a selection of ice creams: Rose, lavender, and chocolate. This was the perfect ending to a meal, and the unique flavors were a definite treat for the taste buds. Don't skip the chocolate because it is typical though- it paired wonderfully with the other flavors and really made them even more enjoyable. Another cool discovery at this place is back behind the bar area, there is actually a little shop which is open during the day. It is filled with cool items (from paper, prints, home decor items) that all have a unique and slightly funky flair. Much better for potential souvenir shopping than your typical tourist traps.