Fish (Balik) market (pazar). A pocket side side street next to Istaklal Street. This is where…read morelocals traditionally bought the sea food delicacies and necessities. Now, some of places you would find any fish have souvenirs, other food items, Fluorescent lit cafés. I found this on a tour with a fantastic guide by the name of Katerina. Check out the Culinary Backstreets Tour of Istanbul.

I LOVE this spot. The views, the food, the service, the music .. I love it!…read more This is where I was first introduced to adjika, a tasty pepper sauce that is served with their table bread, which is also delicious. I had to grab some at a local market. I highly recommend the chicken kabobs, juicy and well seasoned. Also enjoyed the margaritas, stiff and not overly sweet. Staff is pleasant and attentive. The views are unmatched in the evening. Make your reservation in advance to secure your sunset table. The inside is nice and classy but I simply adore the open air views from the roof. The birds really set off the skyline and you can see several of the mosques around. Not SUPER expensive but it is in the higher end price wise compared to their surrounding competition -- 100% worth it in my book. I will definitely go again on my next visit. Glad I could introduce it to a friend this go round. The only thing I disliked about this place is the "dining dome" as I called it. A portion of the roof now offers seating in a large plastic dome. The dome is scratched up and obstructs the view of the city but does protect diners from the wind. I was not a fan of this dome. I'm sure it's something someone saw on the internet and implemented .. I hope they get rid of it, it's super unnecessary. Otherwise -- LOVE!

Beautiful views, nice restaurant, huge menu. Had some really good mezze and shared the turkish…read moreravioli that we hadn't seen elsewhere and were like dim sum. The views, food, and service make for an unforgettable experience.

Great place with delicious food and wonderful views! The entrance is a little difficult to find but…read moreafter entering what may appear to be a small office building door on the Main Street and climbing to the second floor, one is greeted with a spectacular view of the ocean and skyline. The food and service were great. We had octopus and a few jumbo shrimp as appetizers. We then had grilled sea bass as a main. The waiters were very helpful in giving suggestions and recommendations. They even gave us a few small dishes and desert to try on the house. The seafood was fresh and flavors great. Would really recommended to others and will definitely be coming again.

Good, not great. The waiter seemed put off by us, not very helpful when we asked for suggestions…read more The shrimp we ordered was served on a hot skillet which continued to cook the shrimp so by the time we ate it, it was overcooked. The crab appetizer was very good. The salad was filled with parsley that overpowered the whole salad. Also be prepared for smoke filled rooms. Only about five smokers but they were non stop and made dinner uncomfortable. The positive was the beautiful view!

If you ever visit Istanbul , you must visit reina which has different restaurants inside and…read morebecomes a night club at midnight. Amazing view , right on Bosphorus. And make sure that you choose blue topaz for amazing mezes and delicious seafood.

Excellent view of the water and bridge, upscale, food is great, ambient is fantastic! There are…read moreusually two seatings, one at 7:30-10:00pm, the other the after 10:00pm. People dress up for this place, good looking people around, there are groups as well as romantic partners. The appetizers are well presented and taste delicious, the grilled sea bass is perfect! The lightings and decorations are great, a lovely dock you can view the bridge and the lights of the bridge. Overall, it's a great experience of the evening going to the night...

Great place to get a cheap and tasty Balık Ekmek. The fish was very good inside for being so…read moresimple. The staff want you in and out very quickly. Be careful of small bones in your fish sandwich however, there was a lot. You order and they hand you the food almost immediately

I agree with the poster who wrote, "they don't really understand what the hype is all about" …read more.. Coming from a developed nation we are accustomed to eating moderately to great quality of fish, I understand from a local that seafood is really unaffordable to the regular citizens of Turikye, so I understand that a fast and affordable option is available. However, there is no seasonings on this fish, just slightly grilled, and there is a kinda-of-lemon dressing and salt and the table perches around their establishment looking over onto western side of the Bosporus Straight, dressed inside with sliced onion and some lettuce. The bread that enrobes the fish is a huge piece of hogie, sub bread really too much bread for fish -- and let me not start on the bones?! I ate the fish without the bread, just dressed with salt and every bite there were leat 3-5 bones and the fish had a lot of fat I left behind. Meh meh meh recommendation. I will commend their quickness to serve the food, and the massive amounts they crank out. I think this fish is a small spanish mackerel of some kind?

We absolutely loved our dinner experience- from the wine selection to the appetizers to our main…read moredish! Our lively waiter, Remzi gave us a background on all the fish, helped us choose the perfect preparation and fish so that we could try something we hadn't eaten before. We went with the John Dory, fried (lightly) and served with an amazing butter, soy and garlic sauce that was an amazing addition. Their dolmas reminded me of my grandmother, and the vintage Sauvignon Blanc was a perfect pairing for the meal. We even had a few guest appearances from the kittens.

We had a wonderful time on a temperate October evening. We sat in the tented area which was very…read morepleasant. The staff were very friendly and attentive. They were able to answer our questions about the menu. The eggplant appetizers which were tasty. We had the blue fish, which our tour guide had recommended earlier that day. It was a good choice for a tasty white fish. We requested the fig dessert but the fruit was already out of season. We opted for the dried apricot version, which I enjoyed though my partner found it too sweet.