Celebrity Turkish Chefs: 13 Best Chef Restaurants in Istanbul
Istanbul's 13 best chef-driven restaurants, from Musa Dağdeviren's Çiya to two-Michelin-star Turk Fatih Tutak, with what each chef is known for.
Istanbul’s chefs rarely get the international recognition their counterparts abroad enjoy, but the city’s chef-driven kitchens are among the most interesting in the country. Each chef below brings a distinct take on the cooking of Anatolia, from home-style lokanta classics to two-Michelin-star tasting menus. This guide is part of our Istanbul food guide.
| Chef | Restaurant | Known for | Good to know |
|---|---|---|---|
| Civan Er | Yeni Lokanta | Modern Turkish, sweet-and-sour plays | Also has a Soho, London branch |
| Musa Dağdeviren | Çiya Sofrası | Far-flung Anatolian recipes; kebabs and lahmacun | Featured on Netflix’s “Chef’s Table”; in Kadıköy |
| Müge Ergül | Sanayi 313 | Farm-to-table, seasonal, vegetarian-friendly | In the auto parts district, full of green plants |
| Mehmet Gürs | Mikla | Modern Anatolian; raw-milk cheese and saffron | Scenic city views from the dining room |
| Arda Türkmen | Mükellef | Flamboyant plates, fragrant spice blends | TV chef and cookbook author |
| Maksut Aşkar | Neolokal | Modern reworkings of Anatolian classics | Time Out “Chef of the Year” 2014 |
| Sezai Erdoğan | Tuğra (Çırağan Kempinski) | Ottoman palace recipes | Romantic room; built for anniversaries and proposals |
| Ercan Yamantürk | IST TOO (Shangri-La) | Turkish fused with Asian and European cuisines | 21 years of kitchen experience |
| (chef-driven) | Matbah (Ottoman Imperial) | 375 imperial-archive recipes; lamb shank | On Caferiye Sokak, beside Hagia Sophia |
| Serkan Aksoy | Nicole | Contemporary Anatolian tasting menu | One Michelin star (2022); dinner Tue-Sun, book ahead |
| Murat Deniz Temel | Alaf | Seasonal Anatolian cooking | Opened 2018 in Kuruçeşme, Beşiktaş side |
| Luigi Mariconda | Paps Italian | Naples family recipes; sourdough pizza | Wines and cocktails; Italian atmosphere |
| Fatih Tutak | Turk Fatih Tutak | Avant-garde Turkish tasting menu | Two Michelin stars; open Tue-Sat, limited hours |
Civan Er
Civan Er is the owner and executive chef of Yeni Lokanta.
The name translates as “New Restaurant,” which fits a chef known for modern cooking. Er’s success has carried him as far as a branch in Soho, London. The original Istanbul room leans on locally sourced produce and a chic mood. His plates work several flavors at once, combining sweet and sour, savory and sweet, with a precise hand on the palate.
Musa Dağdeviren
Musa Dağdeviren is the owner and executive chef of Çiya Sofrası.
Dağdeviren is one of the most fascinating chefs to come out of Turkey. Born to a family of farmers and bakers and the youngest of six siblings, he grew up at his mother’s side. He learned the classics from her, and his older brother’s second-hand bookstore gave him a lasting love of reading, philosophy, and the social sciences.
After traveling across Anatolia and beyond, Dağdeviren settled on his purpose: to build an ethnographic record of “artisan food,” part antique shop and part second-hand bookstore. He has spent two decades searching Turkey’s far-flung hamlets for traditional recipes and farm products being lost to modernization. He also turned underrated kebabs and lahmacun into a refined experience, with Bach, Chopin, and Vivaldi playing in the background.
The room feels like home, which makes sense for a chef described as a “people’s chef, historian, and cultural ambassador.” That reputation is part of why he was sought out for Netflix’s “Chef’s Table.” His Çiya Sofrası sits in the market streets of Kadıköy, the same side of the city you can read more about in our Kadıköy restaurants guide.
Müge Ergül
Müge Ergül is the executive chef of Sanayi 313.
If living in the moment were a kitchen philosophy, Ergül would be its guide. Sanayi 313, the well-known restaurant in Istanbul’s auto parts district, is full of green plants, a reflection of the chef’s farm-to-table approach. Her healthy, seasonal cooking makes a welcome change from the city’s high-dining rooms, and it gives vegetarians real options. The focus on reducing food waste makes the meal feel as good as it tastes.
Mehmet Gürs
Mehmet Gürs is the owner and executive chef of Mikla.
This is a kitchen of Anatolian raw-milk cheese and honey. Gürs has earned his place as one of Istanbul’s most recognizable chefs. His Finnish-Turkish roots may explain some of the pairings: octopus with pickled apples, pumpkin dessert with saffron ice cream, the traditional sütlaç with apple sorbet.
Each plate is composed with a refined eye, and the restaurant’s city views are part of the draw. If the lights of Istanbul at night do not stop you in your tracks, the cooking will.
Arda Türkmen
Arda Türkmen is the owner and executive chef of Mükellef.
The baby-faced look is easy to underestimate. Türkmen is known for his work as a TV chef judging amateur cooks, and he is a frequent choice for non-Turkish celebrities visiting the country. If you cannot get hold of his cookbook, his restaurant is the place to see the proof.
His plates read like small sculptures, but the real signature is his spice work, from coriander to nutmeg to star anise. He is willing to try new combinations, and his cooking style is as precise as it is generous.
Maksut Aşkar
Maksut Aşkar is the owner and executive chef of Neolokal.
Aşkar set out to bring a touch of modernity to the complex Anatolian kitchen, studying hospitality and tourism from high school through university. Neolokal blends “neo” (new) and “local,” and the cooking lovingly reworks his mother’s traditional flavors.
Aşkar won Time Out Istanbul’s “Chef of the Year” award in 2014. He also gives back to his community, teaching at Özyeğin University, staying active in Turkey’s Slow Food movement, and hosting collaboration dinners that promote Anatolian cooking.
Sezai Erdoğan
Sezai Erdoğan is the executive chef of Tuğra Restaurant at Çırağan Palace Kempinski.
The window views match the Ottoman-inspired décor. It is not only the interiors and the plates that nod to the empire; Erdoğan’s menu was built from the historic record to bring Turkey’s palace cooking back to the table.
It is a romantic room, well suited to anniversaries or a surprise proposal. Erdoğan keeps Turkish heritage at the center with his recipes. Tuğra also appears in our roundup of the best Bosphorus restaurants in Istanbul.
Ercan Yamantürk
Ercan Yamantürk is the executive chef of IST TOO at Shangri-La Bosphorus.
Yamantürk’s style fuses Turkish cooking with cuisines from farther afield. Silk Road countries like India and Japan meet a touch of European technique to produce flavors that would be hard to find elsewhere. Whether it is his 21 years of experience or simply an artistic streak, he updates older traditions while keeping a clear sense of discipline in each plate.
Matbah Ottoman Palace Cuisine
Matbah is the chef-driven kitchen of the Ottoman Hotel Imperial on Caferiye Sokak, directly beside Hagia Sophia.
The kitchen works from 375 recipes researched in imperial archives, which gives the menu a depth of history few restaurants this close to Hagia Sophia can claim. Reviewers consistently praise the lamb shank and the spinach-and-mince filo, and the attentive service draws nearly as much mention as the food.
The setting is elegantly Ottoman, and the terrace looks toward Hagia Sophia. For anyone working through the sights of Sultanahmet, it is one of the easiest serious meals to reach in the old city. It also sits among our picks for the best restaurants in Sultanahmet.
Serkan Aksoy
Serkan Aksoy is the executive chef of Nicole.
Aksoy has led the kitchen since late 2021, and under him Nicole’s cooking has settled into a contemporary Anatolian register. The recognition followed quickly: the restaurant holds a Michelin star, first awarded in 2022, and the team picked up a Michelin Service Award in 2025.
Nicole serves dinner from Tuesday to Sunday on the terrace of Tomtom Suites, so plan an evening visit and book ahead.
Deniz Temel
Murat Deniz Temel is the owner and executive chef of Alaf Restaurant.
Temel first stepped into a kitchen at 15. His cooking draws on people and dishes from many backgrounds, and he builds his menus by working through the seasons and the regions of Turkey one by one. The result is a personal, sensory kitchen.
He is one of the most respected chefs in Turkey, with a long history in Anatolian cooking. He opened Alaf in 2018 in Kuruçeşme, on the Beşiktaş side of the Bosphorus, and continues to cook there today. You will find more in the area in our Beşiktaş restaurants guide.
Luigi Mariconda
Luigi Mariconda is the executive chef of Paps Italian.
Plenty of places in Istanbul chase an Italian taste, and Paps Italian gets closer than most. Mariconda’s cooking is adapted to Turkish palates without losing what makes it Italian.
Hailing from Naples, he has brought his family recipes to the heart of Istanbul. The ingredients are sourced from around Turkey and cooked with traditional technique. Choosing between the sourdough pizzas and the salads is hard enough; choosing between the wines and the cocktails is harder. Once you decide, settle in and enjoy the Italian mood.
Fatih Tutak
Fatih Tutak is the owner and executive chef of Turk Fatih Tutak.
Last, and far from least. Tutak cooks with unrelenting energy. He spent years cooking around the world before turning back to his own roots, and that curiosity drives the menu at his restaurant.
His guiding idea, taught by his mother, is that food should reach the heart first. He pairs that with local, healthy ingredients from dedicated producers, and the work has been rewarded: Turk Fatih Tutak holds two Michelin stars, the first restaurant in Turkey to earn them. The restaurant opens for only a handful of hours between Tuesday and Saturday, so reserve well ahead.
Final words
These 13 kitchens show how wide Istanbul’s chef-driven cooking now runs, from a Kadıköy lokanta built on lost Anatolian recipes to the country’s only two-Michelin-star room. If you are planning a chef-led meal, any of them is worth the reservation. For more across the city, see our best restaurants in Istanbul and Turkish cuisine guides.
If you would rather taste the city street by street, we run small-group Istanbul food tours led by local guides who explain the culture and history behind each dish. Our Taste of Two Continents tour starts with breakfast near the Spice Market, then crosses by ferry to Kadıköy and Moda.
