Seraf Vadi

A True Insider’s Guide to Eating, Drinking, and Staying in Istanbul

"A high-design, north-of-center restaurant where a whole-wheat lahmacun crust was praised as simultaneously earthy and light under a succulent topping of minced grass-fed Thracian lamb; the menu also includes içli köfte (lamb-filled bulgur balls) that are usually deep-fried but here delicately poached and served with a rich housemade yogurt, plump mantı dumplings crisped over a wood fire, and flavorful dolmas of sun-dried eggplants and peppers. Aside from regional specialties, the offerings read like what Turks eat at home or at Formica-topped canteen tables, but transposed to a beautiful setting, refined by rigorous attention to detail and ingredient sourcing, and accompanied by a 240-label, mostly Turkish wine list, the dishes feel startlingly fresh. The project represents a decadeslong dream for Kurdish restaurateur Doğan Yıldırım, who traveled to eat “at the top fine-dining places of Europe,” he recalls, and started to wonder: “Why doesn’t our cuisine, with its rich blend of heritages — Armenian, Arab, Greek, Kurdish — deserve the same setting and treatment?” Finding an inspired collaborator in chef Sinem Özler, a passionate crusader for traditional Anatolian foodways, he opened the place in 2023, earning rave reviews and a devoted following; the author notes, “Whenever I’m in town, I eat here, sometimes once a week — each meal a delicious reminder of how much Istanbul’s restaurant scene has matured.”" - Anya von Bremzen