9 Must-Try Italian Restaurants in Istanbul (2026 Guide)

Istanbul eats well, and it eats Italian better than most people expect. Somewhere between the Turkish love of a long table and the Italian love of a long lunch, the two cuisines just get along. Over the years I have worked my way through a lot of pasta in this city, and the nine places below are the ones I keep going back to. Some are grand hotel rooms, some are tiny family trattorias where the owner brings the burrata to your table himself. All of them are open and worth your time as of 2026.

If you are still mapping out where to eat in general, my broader Istanbul dining guide for first-timers pairs nicely with this list. But if it is fresh pasta and a proper Negroni you are after, read on.

What makes Italian food in Istanbul worth seeking out?

The short answer: the ingredients and the chefs. Turkey grows excellent tomatoes, has serious cheese culture, and sits a short flight from Italy, so the supply chain is honest. A good number of these kitchens are run by Italians or by Turkish chefs who trained in Italy, which keeps the cooking from drifting into vague “Mediterranean” territory. You get pasta cooked to a real al dente, pizza with a blistered crust, and tiramisu that is not drowning in cream.

Prices have moved a lot with the lira, so I will keep numbers loose. At the time of writing, a mid-range plate of pasta at a sit-down Italian spot runs somewhere around 350 to 600 lira (roughly 8 to 13 USD at about 46 TRY to the dollar), with the hotel restaurants and imported-wine lists pushing well past that. Booking ahead is smart at almost all of them, especially on weekends.

The 9 Italian restaurants I send people to

1. Glens Restaurant, Nisantasi

Glens sits inside Glens Palas in the boutique heart of Nisantasi, and the room leans into a glossy modern-Baroque look that feels more Milan than Istanbul. The menu is international with a strong Italian backbone: wood-fired pizzas with thin, properly charred crusts and a roster of handmade pastas. It is a dress-up-a-little kind of place rather than a casual weeknight spot, and the location means you can fold dinner into an afternoon of shopping. Harbiye Mahallesi, Abdi Ipekci Caddesi No:12, Nisantasi.

2. St. Regis Brasserie, Nisantasi

A few streets away, the St. Regis Brasserie does luxury-brasserie polish, and it has held a spot in the 2026 Michelin Guide for Istanbul. The cooking spans French, Turkish, and Italian, so it is less of a pure trattoria and more of a special-occasion address where the risotto and the pasta hold their own next to everything else. Come for an anniversary or a closing-the-deal lunch. Mim Kemal Oke Caddesi No:35, Nisantasi. Their site is stregisbrasserie.com.

3. Osteria Salvatore, Cengelkoy

This is my sentimental favorite on the list. Osteria Salvatore occupies a stone Ottoman building from the 1800s in Cengelkoy on the Asian side, a structure that was reportedly once used as an elephant barn, which is exactly the kind of detail Istanbul throws at you. The food is the real draw: handmade pasta, wood-fired pizza, and Mediterranean seafood, with a summer garden and a Bosphorus view that turns golden at sunset. Time your booking for early evening. Cengelkoy Mahallesi, Kuleli Caddesi No:45/1, Uskudar.

4. Da Mario, Etiler

Da Mario has been doing this since 1993, which in restaurant years makes it an institution. It calls itself the city’s first true Italian, and the kitchen has the receipts: the Italian government’s “Seal of Quality” certification and a place in the Gault and Millau Istanbul guide. The villa setting in Etiler is warm and slightly old-school in the best way. Order the fresh handmade pasta and a wood-fired pizza and you will understand why locals have been loyal for over thirty years. Dilhayat Sokak No:7, Etiler.

5. Il Cortile, Galata

Il Cortile is the one I describe to friends as a secret, even though it is steps from the Galata Tower. It hides inside a 19th-century former French school (Ecole St. Pierre) and opens onto one of the prettiest courtyards in the old Genoese quarter. The cooking nods to Genoa and northern Italy, all salads, pizzas, and pasta done with care. Reservations are by phone only, which tells you something about the unhurried vibe. After dinner you are perfectly placed to wander Galata, and my guide to the colorful back streets of Istanbul is a good companion for that. Bereketzade, Galata Kulesi Sokak No:14, Beyoglu.

6. Cecconi’s, Pera

Cecconi’s lives in the courtyard of the 19th-century Palazzo Corpi building, which is now Soho House Istanbul, and it is open to the public, not just members. The brand started in Venice, and that northern-Italian DNA shows in the handmade pasta, the seafood, and the cicchetti. Tables sit among olive trees in the garden, which makes the weekend brunch one of the more atmospheric meals in the soulful Karakoy and Beyoglu area. Dress up a little and book ahead. Mesrutiyet Caddesi No:56, Beyoglu.

7. Eataly, Besiktas

Eataly at Zorlu Center is less a single restaurant and more an Italian world under one roof: a market, several eateries, and cooking workshops. You can buy your own burrata and dried pasta, then sit down for a plate made with the same ingredients, with the rooftop Terrazza Italia doing modern takes on the classics. It is open long hours (roughly 10:00 to 23:00) and works equally well for a quick lunch between errands or a full dinner. Since it lives inside one of the city’s nicer malls, it slots neatly into a shopping-center day in Istanbul. Zorlu Center, Levazim, Besiktas.

8. Cotto Gastro, Suadiye

Over on the Asian side in leafy Suadiye, Cotto Gastro is the lively-dinner-with-friends option. The kitchen does Neapolitan-style high-heat pizzas plus crowd-pleasers like Lamb Tandoor Rigatoni, osso buco, and a Milanese chicken schnitzel, and finishes you off with tiramisu or cannoli. There is a garden, the cocktails are good, and it stays open late. If you are exploring that side of town, it fits right into a longer crawl through the best restaurants in Kadikoy. Suadiye, Kazim Ozalp Sokak, Kadikoy.

9. Il Boccalino, Fenerbahce

I have saved the small, personal one for last. Il Boccalino in Fenerbahce is a genuine family-run trattoria with a Michelin pearl mention, owned by a couple who clearly cook from love. The menu changes, the burrata is made daily, and standouts like the lemon-tinged cappelletti and the ricotta ravioli show real hands-on craft. It is intimate, it books out, and it is exactly where I would send you for a quiet, properly Italian dinner. Operator Cemil Topuzlu Caddesi No:35, Kadikoy.

How to choose between them

If you want a view, go to Osteria Salvatore. For old-school pedigree, Da Mario. For atmosphere and a hidden courtyard, Il Cortile. For a special occasion with hotel polish, Glens or St. Regis. And for a small, soulful, family-table evening, Il Boccalino is hard to beat. The Asian-side trio of Salvatore, Cotto Gastro, and Il Boccalino also make a strong case for crossing the Bosphorus, which is a lovely thing to do on a Bosphorus ferry at any time of day.

A few practical notes. Reserve for dinner, especially Thursday through Saturday. Many of these places have an imported-wine list, so a bottle can quickly outprice the food, and the house Italian or Turkish wines are usually a smarter call. Tipping around 10 percent is normal and appreciated. And if your Italian craving turns into a broader food mission, Istanbul has world-class everything, from the best breakfast spots on the Bosphorus to the kebab houses and meyhanes you will inevitably fall for.

Nine restaurants, two continents, one very good reason to keep your fork busy. Buon appetito.