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Ratings and reviews

RATINGS
Food
Service
Value
Atmosphere

Details

PRICE RANGE
£94 - £157
CUISINES
Mediterranean, European, Turkish, Contemporary
Special Diets
Vegetarian Friendly, Vegan Options
View all details
meals, features, about

MICHELIN Guide's Point of View

Neolokal bridges the gap between old and new. Respect for Turkish culinary traditions provides the foundation on which this restaurant is able to const...
Read more on MICHELIN Guide
One MICHELIN Star: High quality cooking, worth a stop!
Reviews (452)
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Traveller rating
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Reviewed 12 December 2023 via mobile

Neolokal's Tasting Menu is a gastronomic journey that seamlessly blends traditional Turkish flavors with modern culinary innovation. The experience begins with the enticing aroma of their SOURDOUGH bread, served with parsley-marbled butter and cep mushroom powder—a delightful start to the meal. The Amuse Bouches showcase...the chef's creativity, with standout dishes like SINKONTA, featuring olive oil-braised pumpkin and zucchini varieties, complemented by a pumpkin and mandarin sauce, onion, and vegetable foam. BONITO presents an olive oil-braised spotless black-eyed pea 'pilaki' with tarragon and fish sauce, delivering a harmonious fusion of flavors. The MOREL DUMPLING is a culinary masterpiece, combining mushroom sauce and emulsion with sautéed morel and isot oil. The BLUEFISH with CHARD, accompanied by a shrimp sheet and shrimp sauce, offers a delicate balance of textures and tastes. A refreshing interlude comes in the form of the SORREL SORBET, cleansing the palate for the next culinary delights. The main course features the SLOW COOKED LAMB, accompanied by a unique combination of meatball and 'kokoreç,' served with sweet bean 'piyaz.' The dish exemplifies Neolokal's commitment to incorporating traditional Turkish elements into their contemporary creations. For dessert, the REVANİ WITH ROSE is a sweet symphony, showcasing rose milk ice cream, rose delight, and coconut meringue—an elegant and fitting conclusion to the meal. To add an element of surprise, the Neolokal team presents an array of delightful desserts, rounding off the dining experience on a high note. The Tasting Menu at Neolokal is a testament to the culinary prowess of Chef Maksut Aşkar and his team. Each dish is a work of art, skillfully combining flavors, textures, and presentation. The restaurant's commitment to showcasing the diversity of Turkish cuisine, coupled with a touch of surprise in the desserts, makes dining at Neolokal a memorable and delightful experience This is more than a meal; it's a celebration of culinary ingenuity.More

Date of visit: December 2023
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Reviewed 4 December 2023

Great restaurant with wonderful food. Service is impeccable. Very creative coctails using local and seasonal ingredients. A must visit in Istanbul!

Date of visit: December 2023
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Reviewed 23 November 2023 via mobile

The quality service of the waiters. The taste of the food was worthy of this place. All the food was fresh and delicious. He deserves his money's worth😊

Date of visit: November 2023
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Reviewed 22 November 2023

We enter a beautiful building a few minutes from the Galata Tower. Going up to the first floor, there is a mezzanine. You enter directly into the restaurant, or rather a completely open space with a visible kitchen. There is no one at the entrance,...which gives you the feeling of being in a canteen. From the kitchen you go up a flight of stairs and only at the top is anyone there to greet you and escort you to your table. We asked for a nice table with a view and were satisfied. So far so good, they help us to sit down, take our coats and immediately present us with the menus, food, wines and cocktails. We had already chosen the menu, we had been asked to do so by email in the days before our arrival in Istanbul. We ask for two cocktails, very good and well made, but to accompany them they only bring us some salted gherkins and roasted hazelnuts. They could do much better! I choose the wine with the help of the maitre sommelier, who gives me good advice. There are plenty of waiters and maitre sommeliers, as well as guys with trays bringing food from downstairs to the room. All the staff were dressed formally, with an alternative twist of white trainers. The service is quite attentive (we are in a Michelin starred restaurant! let's not forget! ), but you feel like a number, not a guest. To underline this, the chef and co-owner, despite being in the room several times and interacting and sit with only one table ... completely forgetting about all the other guests seated there. He had no regard for the other diners in his restaurant. This is a serious omission in a Michelin Star restaurant. As we had a tasting menu, we did not feel taken on a culinary journey. Some dishes, refined in their presentation, bat all lacked something... a pity. Personally, I expected much more given the level of the restaurant. Overrated. Bad idea to use a tablet and headphones to explain a dish....Where is the Chef?? Note: if you run out of the little bread they give you at the beginning, they don't bring it . We appreciated the petit four they gave us at the end. Price: very very expensive for the experience we had. I don't intend to go againMore

Date of visit: November 2023
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Reviewed 3 November 2023 via mobile

Atmosphere and view were perfect. We had a specific waiter and help for our table which is always very nice. Service was professional and at the same time friendly. Presentation of the food and drinks was original. We even got a video to explain a...dish. The food had the quality of a star restaurant with all local ingredients. The pairing wines were too expensive. You take better one or two nice bottles of wineMore

Date of visit: November 2023
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Reviewed 31 October 2023

Ok trust me, i have been eating at many restaurants in the world top 50, in my hone town and around the world, but this restaurant is overrated. 500$ is wayyy to expensive for the food served. The service and the view were amazing but...honestly the food was a profound let down. Overcooked fish, wet pastry, dry meet, lack of seasoning and salt, overall not good at all. Only 5 service which was equivalent to a normal entree, we needed to buy pides on our way home, which, again, was better seasoned than the whole menu. Would never go there again, save your money and enjoy way more Turkish food else where…More

Date of visit: October 2023
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Reviewed 19 August 2023

Disappointed. We have eaten in many Michelin one star (and two star) restaurants in a number of countries and therefore expected a better level. Pricing - was middle to high for this level. Euro 305 without drinks for 6 course tasting menu, including automatic 12%...service charge for two people. Location - upper floor with a very good view for approx half the dinners. Staff - ok but not great. Polite and plenty of them but not switched on. Very basic presentation and explanation of dishes. Had to ask them to repeat explanations. One excellent point was a little booklet that gave background on each dish on the tasting menu. Although the ingredients didn’t alway seem to match what was actually on the plate. I would not complain about the service but equally it was not professional enough. For instance the first time we were asked if we were enjoying the meal was as we were paying the bill. Food - for us this is the key element and this is why we can only score them at 3 out of five. Presentation on the plate was very good. Variety of tastes, intensities and textures was not at the right standard. Vegetables in particular were disappointing - too many beans and nothing much else to balance it. Two main courses - black bass and shredded beef. The fish was blended into a purée consistency and lacking identifiable flavours while the beef was very rich without sufficient balancing flavours and texture. So overall the food was good, just not at the expected level. Staff were pleasant and lots of them but also not at the correct professional level. To put it in context we had an excellent meal the previous evening at 40% of the cost in a great setting, with a similar level of service.More

Date of visit: August 2023
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Reviewed 29 July 2023 via mobile

We had the tasting menu with accompanying wines and enjoyed every single course. Our waiter gave an explanation of each course and wine. The food was delicious and beautifully presented. A nice setting too.

Date of visit: July 2023
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Reviewed 19 July 2023 via mobile

While exploring Istanbul with the guidance of our tour guide, Furkan, we were fortunate enough to receive a recommendation to dine at Neolokal, a renowned restaurant boasting a coveted Michelin star. Without hesitation, we heeded his advice and were delighted with the outcome. Our taste...buds were treated to an array of delectable dishes that left us feeling both satisfied and impressed. To further enhance our culinary experience, we indulged in a glass of locally sourced wine, which perfectly complemented the flavors of our meal. To cap off our evening, we indulged in some delightful mamul cookies and sipped on some rich Turkish coffee - a sweet and satisfying end to a truly exceptional dining experience.More

Date of visit: July 2023
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Reviewed 19 July 2023

This was the fourth fine dining experience in Istanbul and by far and away the best. Superb tasting menu and wine flight. Excellent service and a stunning roof top location. If you like fine dining this is the place to come.

Date of visit: July 2023
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Reviewed 23 June 2023 via mobile

We were very pleased with the service, location and food quality. The preparations were unique and flavorful. It is a fine dining experience and worth it. The views are excellent too

Date of visit: June 2023
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Reviewed 21 June 2023

Tucked away in an old bank, now an arts center, with a view over the Golden Horn, Neolokal serves what you'd expect, newly conceived recipes, and local ingredients. They serve it with flair and friendly solicitude. It feels youthful and modern.

Date of visit: May 2023
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Reviewed 24 May 2023

We loved this place! Wonderfully creative food and drinks! The view is great, and the cocktails are spectacular! Our favorite fine dining in Istanbul!

Date of visit: May 2023
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Reviewed 19 May 2023 via mobile

To the negative reviewers on here : you missed the point. It’s got a Michelin green star for sustainability The name - obviously - points to what the chef had tried to achieve: a contemporary approach to sourcing Turkish ingredients and (if you bother to...ask any of the nice waiters) each dish is a remake of a Turkish “mothers meal” but from different regions of the country The result - trying to elevate rustic cooking with a focus on sustainability and local produce - obviously makes some small compromises in its search for authenticity. We eat out in top places in London all the time and we’re here on holiday The cocktails were fantastic, well balanced with plenty of theatrics. The sweet shrimp was a star dish but the crispy lamb in the “lamb 3 ways” course was supreme. There are amuse bouches, tremendous sourdough, palate cleansers etc Service is quick and well mannered and everyone speaks English. The views of the golden horn and the blue mosque across the river are great. It’s pricey for istanbul, of course it is. But it’s reasonable for a European city Michelin started 7 course taster menu. You’d pay the same in Portugal, Spain, Italy or the UK for this level of food. Great night out, ignore the naysayers!More

Date of visit: May 2023
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Reviewed 19 April 2023

It is a nice place with a great view and nice service. Fancy cocktails and good wine selection. As for the food, I expected something surprising, it was just tasty. Not special enough for me. Overpriced.

Date of visit: April 2023
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Questions & Answers
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Innah10
7 November 2022|
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Response from erimleb | Property representative |
By November 6 course tasting menu 2100 tl +%12 service charge
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kay_fitz
5 January 2020|
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Response from Alekso999 |
450 for 3 course tasting menu and 650 for 6 course tasting menu
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weliott
14 September 2019|
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Response from erimleb | Property representative |
They are well come , casual smart casual , depends on how you feel , we prefer no swimsuit :-)
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NEOLOKAL, Istanbul - Beyoglu - Menu, Prices & Restaurant Reviews - Tripadvisor

Frequently Asked Questions about Neolokal

Neolokal is rated accordingly in the following categories by Tripadvisor travellers:
  • Food: 4.5
  • Service: 4
  • Value: 4
  • Atmosphere: 4.5