Best Bars in Istanbul: 15 Rooftop, Cocktail and Neighborhood Spots

The best rooftop bar in Istanbul right now is 16 Roof, on the top floor of Swissôtel The Bosphorus, with Mikla Rooftop and its serious wine list at The Marmara Pera right behind it. Below the rooftops and sky lounges, the scene spreads wide: speakeasy-style cocktail rooms in Beyoğlu, a craft beer garden in Beşiktaş, an artsy restaurant-bar in Kadıköy, and one proper Irish pub. Here are the 15 best bars in Istanbul. If you’re still planning the eating half of the trip, start with our Istanbul food guide.

Bar	Area	What to order	Price level
Mikla Rooftop Bar	Asmalı Mescit, Beyoğlu	Naturally fermented and fruit wines	-
16 Roof	Beşiktaş (Swissôtel The Bosphorus)	Cocktails, classic or virgin	Special occasion
Monkey Istanbul	Şişhane, Beyoğlu	English Breakfast cocktail at sunset	-
Bina	Kadıköy	A drink alongside the vegan plates	-
Ziba	Tomtom, Beyoğlu	A martini after the laptop hours	-
Flekk	Tomtom, Beyoğlu	Cocktails built on Turkish ingredients	-
Craft Beer Lab	Beşiktaş	Craft beer from the gigantic menu	-
Geyik	Cihangir, Beyoğlu	Cocktails, with the free popcorn	-
Chicki Boom	Nispetiye, Beşiktaş	Cocktails in a small, lively room	-
Alaf Kuruçeşme	Kuruçeşme, Beşiktaş	Wood-fired Anatolian dishes	-
Alexandra Cocktail Bar	Arnavutköy	Wine, then a house cocktail	-
Salon Cuma	Firuzağa, Beyoğlu	Amour Fou or Chiara Extravaganza	-
Efendi Topağacı	Topağacı, Nişantaşı	The Serendipity	-
James Joyce Irish Pub	Beyoğlu	Irish beer or mulled wine	Mid-range
Moretenders’ Cocktail Crib	Asmalı Mescit, Beyoğlu	A custom cocktail and the Spicy Dragon	Special occasion

List of best bars in Istanbul

1. Mikla Rooftop Bar

A wine lover’s bar first. Mikla Rooftop sits on top of The Marmara Pera hotel with a list of excellent reds and whites from around the world, and the naturally fermented wines and fruit wines deserve a detour of their own. If grapes are not your thing, the cocktail list keeps to the same elegant theme.

The setting does half the work here. A picturesque pool, a DJ playing relaxed sets, and 360° views that take in Sultanahmet Mosque, the Golden Horn, and the Bosphorus. For dinner before your drink, book Mikla restaurant in the same building, one of the best restaurants in Istanbul.

Address: Asmalı Mescit, The Marmara Pera Hotel, Meşrutiyet Cd. No:15, 34430 Beyoğlu/İstanbul

2. 16 Roof

Our pick for the best rooftop bar in Istanbul. 16 Roof sits on the top floor of Swissôtel The Bosphorus, keeps a smart casual dress code, and pours for every taste in the group. The cocktails are the king of the menu. The wine section runs smaller than Mikla’s yet stays refined, and a real list of alcohol-free “virgin” cocktails covers whoever is getting everyone home safe.

The back pages go on and on: whiskey, gin, vodka, aperitifs, Turkish rakı, cognac, liqueurs, sherry. Even the friend who only drinks beer will find a small but interesting selection, plus hot drinks and soft drinks. Prices sit on the high side, so save it for a big night.

Address: Vişnezade, Acısu Sokaği No:19, 34357 Beşiktaş/İstanbul

3. Monkey Istanbul

If you leave Istanbul without watching the sunset from Monkey Istanbul, you missed an easy win. The bar is hip and creative, with picturesque views and a cocktail list built for trying something new: the Monkey Business, the Say Cheese, and an English Breakfast cocktail that tastes far better than the name suggests.

Wine drinkers should look elsewhere on this list. The crowd here is young, urban, and quick; tables go fast from the moment doors open, so arrive early.

Address: Nejat Eczacıbaşı Binası Şişhane, 34433 Beyoğlu

4. Bina

Bina is the Kadıköy entry, a restaurant-bar that blends a sense of history, minimalism, and comfort into one bohemian room. The vegan food options are good enough to plan an evening around, and art aficionados come for the events the bar hosts and the paintings on the walls.

The patrons run friendly. The service can be a weak point, so pack some patience and soak in the artsy ambiance instead. If you want dinner in the neighborhood first, our Kadıköy restaurants guide covers the streets around it.

Address: Caferağa, Kadife Sk. No:26, 34710 Kadıköy/İstanbul

5. Ziba

The streets around Ziba may remind you of London’s bohemian Soho or nonconformist Camden Town, with graffiti of aliens, zombies, and bugs by gifted artists on the surrounding walls. Inside, the bar holds all the classics for cocktails, beers, whiskeys, and non-alcoholic options, and the food menu is minimalistic and satisfying.

Ziba’s quiet strength is daytime. Coffees, milkshakes, teas, and frappes, free wifi, and desks big enough for a laptop make this the best bar on the list for catching up on work before a well-earned martini. If the Unicorn cocktail feels too playful, celebrate Talk Like a Pirate Day on September 19 with good old-fashioned grog. One practical note: take a table downstairs near the genderless bathrooms, because there are no toilets upstairs.

Address: Tomtom, Akansu Sk No:10, 34433 Galata Beyoğlu/Istanbul

6. Flekk

Flekk sits in Tomtom, the pocket of Beyoğlu between Galata and Taksim, only minutes uphill from Karaköy. The bar is known for Nordic-influenced cocktails built on Turkish ingredients and house-made liqueurs, poured in a warm room inside a historic building. If you like a menu where the bartenders have clearly been experimenting, this is your kind of place.

Doors open daily at 17:00 and the bar runs until 02:00, with DJs taking over on Friday and Saturday nights from 22:00 to 01:00. Go early in the week for a quieter drink, or at the weekend if you want the room at full hum.

Address: Tomtom Mahallesi, Beyoğlu/Istanbul

7. Craft Beer Lab

It’s all in the name. Soak in the warm sunshine in the beer garden, take in the trendy decor, or watch the game on one of the TVs. The beer menu can only be described as gigantic, and it kindly tells you where each beer originates along with the ABV. To know which local bottles to chase first, our guide to Turkish beers names 14 worth trying.

Don’t let the man-cave description fool you. A young crowd of women and men gathers here to relax with friends, and the teas, cocktails, non-alcoholic options, and food hold their own next to the beer. For beer in Istanbul, this is the benchmark, and without a doubt one of the best bars in Istanbul.

Address: Sinanpaşa, Şair Nedim Cd. No:4, 34353 Beşiktaş/Istanbul

8. Geyik

On busy nights half of Geyik’s crowd stands outside on the Cihangir sidewalk, drinks in hand. Inside, the bar is dim and atmospheric, the music funky, and the cocktail list strong enough that choosing is the hard part. The beer variety is thin, and nobody seems to mind.

Free popcorn and peanuts land on the bar, the helpful bartenders will explain any drink you’re curious about, and the room has a slightly western feel with an LGBT-friendly crowd. Call it what you want; this place is a symbol of the city’s nightlife.

Address: Cihangir, Akarsu Ykş. Sok. No:22, 34425 Beyoğlu/Istanbul

9. Chicki Boom

Chicki Boom is the small one. Beautiful music, delicious cocktails, and an intimate crowd fill a room that feels like an escape from everyday life, which is exactly the charm. It gets full quickly, so make your reservation early.

Address: Nispetiye Mahallesi, Nispetiye Caddesi, No: 13, Beşiktaş/Istanbul

10. Alaf Kuruçeşme

More of a restaurant than a bar, Alaf takes its Anatolian roots seriously. Chef Deniz Temel cooks from a wood-fired oven in Kuruçeşme, right on the Bosphorus, turning out dishes with Yörük and Kurdish influences. The restaurant is listed in the Michelin Guide and appears in the World’s 50 Best Discovery, so a table here is worth booking ahead.

If you are after something more casual, there is a relaxed sibling called Alaf 2 Tek. Bookings via alafkurucesme.com. For more tables by the water, see our guide to the best Bosphorus restaurants in Istanbul.

Address: Kuruçeşme, Beşiktaş/Istanbul

11. Alexandra Cocktail Bar

Alexandra is the rooftop for a Latin American mood. The views run over the busy Arnavutköy street below and out to the Bosphorus, and the tender pink lighting gives the terrace clear date-night energy. The cocktail list splits between classics and house inventions, and the wine list is the one that had us lingering longest.

Locals fill the terrace as readily as visitors do, and the kitchen serves international dishes if the night turns into dinner.

Address: Arnavutköy, Bebek Arnavutköy Cd No:50, 34345 Beşiktaş/Istanbul

12. Salon Cuma

Salon Cuma sits close to Orhan Pamuk’s Museum of Innocence, and the literary mood is no accident. Pronounced “juma,” the name translates literally as Salon Friday, and the living-room space channels the historic French literary salons through a traditional, woodsy room with a Turkish twist. You could believe the next generation of Istanbul’s writers is drinking at the next table.

The food menu is small and indulgent, reminiscent of the luxuries in Rossetti’s “Goblin Market.” If the regional wines aren’t to your taste, the signature cocktails will be. The Amour Fou blends black mulberry, Cointreau, and tequila; the Chiara Extravaganza shakes Plymouth gin, Campari, egg white, and orange. Neither should be missed.

Address: Firuzağa, Faik Paşa Cd. No:37, 34425 Beyoğlu/Istanbul

13. Efendi Topağacı

Efendi is a long, narrow, convivial room in Topağacı, on the Nişantaşı side of the city, and it fills up nightly with crowds from across Istanbul. The cocktail list is the work of bartender Uğur Tekebaş and leans sour and inventive. The Serendipity, built on tequila, passion fruit, lime, and fresh chili, has a horde of devoted fans.

Doors open at 18:00 and the bar pours until 02:00. Arrive on the early side if you want a seat, because the room is small and locals know it well.

Address: Topağacı, Nişantaşı, Istanbul

14. James Joyce Irish Pub

James Joyce has held its corner of Beyoğlu since 1996, a little taste of Britain and Ireland in the middle of Istanbul, and it earns the name. Homesick Brits and Harry Potter fans can order an English breakfast or a veggie burger with their pint, and the chalkboard specials swing from Irish stew to fajitas.

The taps pour Irish beers alongside ciders and bottles from Germany, Belgium, and the rest of the world. The wine list includes mulled wine, the classic cocktails are covered, and the bartenders will happily custom-make whatever you’re missing. Prices stay reasonable, the live music is fun, and you can play darts and pool between rounds. One of the best bars in Istanbul, and the easiest one to settle into.

Address: Hüseyinağa, Balo Sk. No:26, 34435 Beyoğlu/Istanbul

15. Moretenders’ Cocktail Crib & Sushi

Tucked into an unassuming passageway off Asmalı Mescit, Moretenders announces its modern, jazzy ambiance before you reach the door. The classic decor may remind you of the swanky bars in romantic Turkish soap operas, and that is a compliment.

This is the home of cocktails on this list. The English menu hints at the taste and feel of each drink and names the bartender who created it, every cocktail carries a fun name, and the team happily builds custom orders, page after page of exotic concoctions deep. The sushi grew central enough to enter the bar’s name: maki, sashimi, and nigiri, including a Spicy Dragon we keep meaning to order for the Japanese Seven Spice, eel and all. An upmarket night out, priced accordingly.

Address: Asmalı Mescit, Müeyyet Sk. No:5, 34430 Beyoğlu/Istanbul

Final words

Fifteen bars is more nightlife than one trip needs, so plan by neighborhood. Beyoğlu holds the densest cluster, from Asmalı Mescit to Cihangir. Beşiktaş has the rooftops, the beer garden, and the Bosphorus-side tables. Kadıköy covers the Asian side. The views over this city after dark are reason enough on their own.

One practical pairing: our Taksim evening food tour runs Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday from 18:00 and wraps up in three hours, right as these bars warm up. We keep groups to 10 guests at most, so dinner is handled and the night stays open.