We had a bit of trouble getting our table a Mikla. They didn’t take online reservations, so we emailed them a couple of weeks out from our trip to Istanbul, several follow-ups and we finally got confirmation for dinner on our last night.
We arrived at the restaurant early as we planned to have a drink at the bar and watch the sunset. Unfortunately, the bar didn’t open until 6 when the restaurant opened so we had a quick drink downstairs before heading up.
The view is incredible and the cocktails match. We’re given olives on ice to go with our drinks and it’s beautiful watching the sun go down while looking over arguably one of the best views in Istanbul.
Once at our table and before we’ve even ordered we’re given a little snack to start. With slightly warm hand towels as well. Spiced crispy bread, flaxseed bread and cucumber with Tulum cheese. All have interesting flavours and are delicious.
Since our dollar is working will with the lira at the moment, we opt for the full tasting menu with paired wines. All the wines are Turkish, and we’re excited to try some local wines.
First up is a Turkish sparkling and an amuse bouche, fish fritters with cress puree, fennel and apple salad. It’s yum and we’re both pleasantly surprised. The view in the dining room is also beautiful and if you had a table by the window it would have been even nicer.
Goat cheese, sheep cheese, olive oil and bread. The bread is warm, and the cheese is phenomenal, delectable, delicious and soothing. A+ bread course. When we told the waiter it was amazing he offered us more!
Our next Turkish wine is to go with the following two courses. The first is Zeytinyagli, olive oil braised quince, turmeric, sorrel. It’s a really interesting flavour combo which would go sensationally with pork however on its own is still very good.
The wine match is great too and the spacing between courses is just right. Balik Ekmek, hamsi, bread, lemon. Effectively fish on bread. I really like it, it’s like a sophisticated sardine on toast with mayonnaise.
The bathrooms are alright, no hand lotion and napkins not folded while I was gone. The food is totally making up for all of that though!
We’re given an extra course, dumplings with tomato sauce and buffalo milk. It’s delicious, home-style and yum. I love the sauce.
Lamb heart, morel mushroom, cress, pomegranate vinegar, sumac, burned butter, Malkara green lentil. Our wine got topped up for this one which is nice. Very good dish, not our favourite however still cleverly done.
We have chardonnay to go with our Monkfish, Eriste, buckwheat, Halhahi olives, tire potato, Capari, fig vinegar. It’s a fantastic dish, the flavours really complement each other and it’s very well balanced. You’ve got the sweetness from the monkfish, fattiness from the burnt butter, acidity and sourness from the caper berries, saltiness from the olives and starch from the potatoes which together balances divinely, and the pasta adds a fun textural element.
We have a Turkish red wine to go with Braised Lamb, wild cabbage, Giresun walnut, salted yoghurt, potato, Bergama Tulum cheese, cumin. The potato is fantastic, sauce incredible, yoghurt yum. A good dish.
Our napkins are folded before dessert and they have beautiful cutlery. We have a Turkish dessert Muscat to go with Pumpkin, saffron ice cream, “Surtme” sesame, Antep “Birdshit” pistachio, hemp seeds. I can see why this one works, however, it’s not quite for me. It’s a fitting dessert for Istanbul though.
Our final course is cheese and honey, Anatolian raw milk cheeses to be exact. The bread is super warm and it’s a great way to finish a delightful dinner. There’s a really nice selection of cheese too.
Our waiter Levent has been fantastic the entire evening, explaining things to us, repeating where necessary and overall just providing that World 50 Best service we’ve become accustomed to. We finish our evening with one final glass of that Turkish sparkling wine on the balcony overlooking Istanbul for the last time.
Overall Mikla has a lot going for it. We got to taste some different food and wine from Turkey and had fantastic service to match. We had a really nice evening out and thoroughly enjoyed every moment. I’d happily go back here.
Here’s our latest ranking:
- Blue Hill at Stone Barns
- Eleven Madison Park
- Tim Raue
- D.O.M
- White Rabbit
- Piazza Duomo and Reale
- Central
- Quintonil
- Asador Etxebarri
- Maido
- Le Calandre
- The Ledbury
- Alléno Paris au Pavillon Ledoyen
- Tegui
- Septime
- Mugaritz
- The Clove Club
- Saison
- Borago
- Mikla
- Alain Ducasse au Plaza Athénée
- Arzak
- Azurmendi
- Mirazur
- Lyle’s
- Le Bernardin
- Alinea
- Dinner by Heston
- Astrid y Gaston
- Cosme
- Pujol
- Arpege
- Restaurant Steirereck
Tasting the Worlds Best 
One thought on “Mikla”