Smart spending in Istanbul / notes of Lale about restaurants:

Having a day with us in Istanbul, we are usually covering classical highlights of the Old City (such as St. Sophia, Blue Mosque, Grand Bazaar, etc). Since there are lots to see, we need to be time-efficient in choosing locations for lunch.

Old City is filled with restaurants, however, only a few are equipped to serve classical tastes of Turkish Cuisine.
In times when not crowded, we do love Pudding Shop (www.puddingshop.com), in short walking distance from St. Sophia, offering daily cooked classical Ottoman dishes / lunch, per person, appx 15 Euros.

Or, next to Pudding Shop, there is Sultanahmet Koftecisi ( site in Turkish only - www.sultanahmetkoftesi.com); serving most delicious Turkish meatballs ever / lunch, per person, appx 10 Euros.

If we are in Grand Bazaar area during lunch time, to us, there is nothing better than Onur Restaurant (no web-site available), located in a narrow/side street, not yet in the list of guide-books, offering traditional kebabs and rice with mushrooms / lunch, per person, appx 15 Euros.

Having a few days with us in Istanbul, then, we cover many different sections of the city, giving us different alternatives for lunch locations.
In Taksim area for example; walking along Beyoglu; the pedestrian street, we love what Hacibaba Restaurant offers (www.hacibabarest.com)... classical kebabs & vegetables ! / lunch, per person, appx 15-20 Euros, not including drinks.

Or, if we are on the Asian side of Istanbul, there is Nakkas Kebab (site in Turkish only - www.nakkaskebap.com)... one of these local restaurants that ordering is unpolite... they serve whatever they have for the day; always so delicious / lunch, per person, appx 20-25 Euros, not including drinks.

And, for vegetarians, the richest selection ever... at Kanaat Restaurant; on the Asian side, located in a busy section of the city; Uskudar (no web-site available) / lunch, per person, appx 15 Euros.

Dinners in Istanbul...
this may be list of 50-60 different restaurants ! My top 4 are:

• Charming:
Sunset Grill (www.sunsetgrillbar.com)
Fantastic... great view, people & food / dinner, per person, 80+ Euros, not including drinks.

• Fusion:
360-Istanbul (www.360istanbul.com)
As in its name, offering 360 Degrees view of Istanbul. This is one of those restaurants that you pay for table, not the food. Still, delicious food & a great wine collection / dinner, per person, 80+ Euros.

• Classic:
Park Samdan (www.parksamdan.com)
setting the principles of upper scale local dining since 1982 / dinner, per person, 60-80 Euros, not including drinks.

• Seafood:
Angel Fish at Salacak (www.angelrestaurant.com)
60-70 different cold & hot starters... being served non-stop... till you say enough. When you order fish, this simply means dinner is over... a feast for two hours / dinner, per person, 70 Euros, not including drinks.

Enjoy !