Kanaat Lokantası

This local lokanta offers a wide variety of traditional dishes, all neatly displayed in the showcase so you can easily pick what you want. The seating area is impressively spacious, with an open and bright interior that remains comfortable even during busy hours. It’s an excellent spot to enjoy authentic, everyday Turkish cuisine in a relaxed and welcoming atmosphere. Located in Üsküdar, just a short walk from the ferry terminal, it’s also very convenient for travelers and commuters. Highly recommended for anyone looking for a quick, delicious, and truly local meal.

Kanaat Lokantası – A True Taste of Turkish Tradition I visited Kanaat Lokantası based on a recommendation from a local friend, and the experience was fantastic. The restaurant was bustling with people, yet everything ran smoothly — our food arrived quickly after ordering. We tried iskender, a classic Turkish dish, and it was absolutely delicious: fresh, flavorful, and beautifully presented. The menu offers a wide variety of traditional options, and the prices are very reasonable, especially considering its prime location in the heart of Istanbul’s Asian side. The staff were friendly, attentive, and responsive, which made the experience even more enjoyable. I highly recommend Kanaat Lokantası to anyone looking to explore authentic Turkish cuisine in a welcoming and efficient setting.

I came here just to try the ekmek kadayifi dessert. Initially, I was told one price (230 TL), but in the end I paid a different amount (300 TL)-apparently because cream was added and the price changed. The dessert itself was okay, but I would have appreciated a bit more transparency when it comes to pricing. Also, a heads-up: the water on the table isn’t complimentary - you actually have to pay for it!

Kanaat Lokantası in Üsküdar is a classic esnaf lokantası – the tradesman’s restaurant where ready-made hot and cold dishes wait behind the glass, no delay, no fuss. It’s home-style cooking for people who value their time but won’t settle for 'alright'. Our table was a spread of paper-wrapped meat, lamb on the bone, rice pilaf, herbed yoghurt, artichoke hearts, and chickpeas braised with garlic and herbs – the last an unexpected highlight, beautifully balanced. Dessert sealed it: saffron pudding, Albanian-style crème brûlée, and baked rice pudding, mine by choice. It’s hearty, immediate, honest – a taste of Turkey at its most authentic.

A place mostly for locals, few people speak English. Local flavors, customs and a bit shocking but for good. It seemed a bit above the average in pricing for the value, but it doesn't mean it is a bad place. Food was great.

Great big place with an amazing array of delicious Turkish food. Their kofte with potatos was amazing. The potatoes were melt-in-your-mouth. The kofte was perfectly cooked also, not grilled and served with bread and rice. Everything was delicious and the place was spotless. Very good service, friendly staff and nice atmosphere.

Clean place, wide range of options, vegetarian too, desserts too. Everything I had was quickly delivered and delicious. They have an online English menu, too. Service was kind and friendly.

I used to go to this restaurant with my parents when I was a child (about 35 years ago). I recently paid a visit back again after all those years. The food is still good but prices are high for such dishes. I'm guessing it's fine to the tourists discovering Uskudar and it's becoming a very busy district. There are definitely other options with better taste for less price. I wouldn't visit Kanaat Restaurant again, thus, I can't recommend.

Tourists, take notes. This is the *ONLY* place in Istanbul that reached to greatness in *EVERYTHING* they serve. From salads to meat, from desserts to soups, everything. I'm not exaggerating. It's a very old restaurant, operating since 1933. Truly respects the Ottoman cuisine. Authentic, old Ottoman cuisine at its best. I particularly recommend a few main courses and desserts for newcomers. These are signature Turkish delicacies that you cannot really get better at random places. Ekmek kadayifi: Crumpets in thick syrup. It sounds weird and definitely much better than the definition. They serve it with butterfat on top. Asure: Another traditional delicacy. "Noah's pudding" because it contains all kinds of nuts & dried fruits inside some sort of a wheat pudding. Ozbek pilavi: Close to steak paella but much better. Kadinbudu kofte aka "women thighs" in Turkish: Fried meatballs with rice dipped with egg batter. This place is considered more like a museum than a restaurant. You come, observe the food made in different dimensions, sit, eat, look around the old building, leave. Lots of circulation. Enjoy!

This wonderful family restaurant is so great. We had the meze dishes - the various eggplants, the spinach, the grape leaves, the chicken, the cheeses and the mastic ice cream, and it was just super good - you just can't get this in the US or anywhere else except Turkey. Thank you to the concierge who recommended it because we would never have known. It's worth taking the ferry from Besiktas to Uskudar and going for it. Bring cash and your appetite! Highly recommended!

This place is a traditional 'esnaf lokantasi' which translates to a tradesman restaurant in one of the historic districts in Istanbul: Uskudar. There are around fifteen choices of entrees. They are all homestyle Turkish dishes. As well as cold appetizers and nice selection of deserts. However it is not like a typical restaurant where the waitress comes and you order the appetizers followed by the entrée. If you are looking for some delicious, well prepared traditional dishes in a traditional Turkish restaurant setting Kanaat Lokantasi should be a must go on your list.

Our first evening in Istanbul, we decide to take the boat to go to Asia (to Üsküdar) and had dinner in this wonderful place: tasty food offered in a very authentic place, not touristy at all. I really loved both the food and the atmosphere. It is totally worth taking the boat to come eat here (plus the boat by itself is very nice, even at night with all the lights of the city). You can eat very fast if you like as the service is super efficient but you can also take your time: it is entirely up to you. The big room is very lively. To choose the food, you can either use the English menu or directly go to the open kitchen and show what you want: easy. I had the lamb which was so, so tasty, really delicious. I have to confess that it was super greasy but my god, it was also so good that I forgave all the fat. I also had a plate of chickpeas, very well cooked: the sauce was very tasty again. In dessert, we had the Albanese creme brûlée, which did not seem so appealing when it arrives but which we ended up liking also! The whole meal was a success. So you can find here very traditional and simple food, very tasty and for very low prices: on of my favorite restaurant during our stay in Istanbul!!

Kanaat is a typical Turkish local restaurantlar in Asian side o İstanbul. Food is tasty. Desserts are tasty . Recommended.

It's no secret that Turks love and idolize this place because the food is traditional and well done, served in the same way your Turkish mum would have prepared it. As far as a lokanta goes, however, "meh, I've experienced better" is the best way to describe this place. I don't think paying these high prices for food that is essentially the same as any other lokanta-type place makes sense. Really, prices for even a vegetable dish start at double the normal rate and the meat dishes are even more outrageous. They are pretty delicious, but no more or less awesome than my boyfriend's cooking and that's saying a lot actually. The icing on the cake for this place for me was the lackluster service. I was with a guest from Belgium and I wanted her to experience some of that famous Turkish hospitality, but I can honestly say I've never seen waiters be less excited about two blonde foreigners in their establishment. On other days I'd be thrilled that no one was talking to me but on that day I really wanted to strike up a conversation with the staff. They were instead very grumpy and unfriendly, which made for a totally disappointing overall experience. Turks will recommend this place, and you will probably like it. But if you have been to other lokantas or eaten a home-cooked meal this place will seem a bit overrated I think. By the way, it does not accept credit cards.

A famous restaurant in Uskudar, the Asian side if Istanbul. If you are in the area, it is a must. The dishes are delicious and tasty. Authentic food, nice portions.

Beautiful presentation of traditional turkish food and the quality is competetive as well. Price is kinda bigh but stlection is rich. Plan to spend 50-60 TL/person for a meal.

Really greasy, I would not recommend. It's basically like the Turkish version of a truck stop.

Absolutely outstanding traditional Turkish food. Sample several dishes you will not be disappointed. For dessert try zerde. For main course try enginar it is artichoke.

Overrated. Used to have normal prices now their prices are almost as expensive as a Michelin Star restaurant. Very greasy food. They have few good deserts and good ice cream. That's all. I would recommend Karakoy Lokantasi instead (on the European side). Cash only.

Uskudar is visited by few foreign tourists, and consequently doesn't have a plethora of eating establishments where non Turkish speakers can order a meal without pointing out your desired repast from pictures or a display. Thankfully, Kanaat Locantasi has not only Turkish/English menus, but staff which makes good use of limited English language skills. Menu items, while somewhat pricy in comparison to smaller neighborhood establishments, are well presented and varied. While being no expert on Turkish cuisine, the delicious lamb chops and lamb kebabs were well presented as were the accompanying sides. Apparently, the locals agree as the dining area was at near capacity at dinner time. Service was efficient and pleasant. Foreign guests will feel welcome, but be advised that this establishment is CASH ONLY!

Food was a 3 star (bland tasting) but price was a 1 star. 20 liras per small plate item is very overpriced for this quality (unless they just charged me a different price for tourists). Baran restaurant in sultanhamet serves better quality food in a very center location in old town and only charges 10 liras per plate. the doner joints up and down the street are better choices.