Istanbul Cafe Guide: 9 Spots Worth Your Time

Picking a cafe in Istanbul is less about finding one and more about narrowing the field, because there are thousands and most of them are at least decent. So instead of a generic “top 10,” here is the short list I actually send to friends: nine places that each do one thing genuinely well, spread across both sides of the city. Some are century-old institutions, some are tucked into shopping centres, and a couple are really just an excuse to sit with a view and do nothing for an hour. You’ll find them in almost every one of the districts of Istanbul, and a slow morning at any of them counts as one of the more underrated things to do in Istanbul.

One honest note before we start: prices have moved a lot. At the time of writing in 2026, a milk-based coffee at a mid-range Istanbul cafe runs roughly 80 to 120 lira, and a glass of Turkish tea is a fraction of that. Tourist-heavy spots charge more, so check the menu before you sit down.

Baylan Patisserie, Kadıköy

If you only have time for one cafe on the Asian side, make it Baylan. This is the oldest surviving patisserie in Istanbul, founded in 1923, and the Kadıköy branch has been pulling in regulars since 1961. People come for the history, but they stay for one dessert in particular: the Kup Griye (coupe griye), invented here in 1954 by Harry Lenas, the founder’s son. It is a goblet of vanilla and caramel ice cream layered with a honey-almond cream, caramel sauce, whipped cream and crushed pistachios, and the recipe genuinely hasn’t changed in seventy years. The truffle cake and the chocolate work are excellent too, but the Kup Griye is the one to order. Pair a visit with a wander through the rest of Kadıköy on the Anatolian side, which is one of the best neighbourhoods in the city for aimless eating.

Dem, for tea lovers

Dem is the answer when someone in your group “doesn’t really drink coffee.” This is a proper tea house with a menu running to dozens of leaves: white, green, oolong, smoked, pu-erh, plus homemade iced teas and a long breakfast spread. You can sit with a classic Turkish black tea or branch out into a South African rooibos and stay all afternoon. The original opened in Karaköy and there’s also a calm Moda branch on the Asian side, so check which location suits your route on the day. If you want the full picture of the surrounding area first, here’s the district that locals call the soul of Istanbul, Karaköy.

Gülhane Sur Cafe, Sultanahmet

Right where Soğukçeşme Street meets Gülhane, on the slope below the old walls near Hagia Sophia, this is the cafe to fall into after a morning of sightseeing. The seating tumbles down in terraces, the lamps glow inside, and it’s open from early morning until about 2am. Order a tea, try the Turkish-style savoury pancakes (gözleme), and yes, this is one of the spots where nargile is part of the ritual. It sits a short stroll from the green calm of Gülhane Park, so do the park and the cafe as a single loop.

Hüsnü Ala Cafe, Fatih

You don’t come here for the food, and I’ll say that plainly. You come for the view. Tucked into the back streets near Süleymaniye Mosque, Hüsnü Ala looks out over the Golden Horn and the Galata Bridge, and at sunset it is one of the best free seats in the old city. Service can be slow and breakfast is just okay, so my honest advice is to keep it simple: a Turkish breakfast or just tea and nargile, and let the panorama do the rest. It’s open from around 9am until 2am. If a morning feast is more your thing, see my full roundup of the best breakfast places in Istanbul.

Beymen Brasserie, Nişantaşı

This is the polished one. Beymen Brasserie sits in the heart of Nişantaşı, Istanbul’s designer-shopping district, and the room (styled by interior designer Zeynep Fadıllıoğlu) does its best impression of a smart Paris brasserie. The menu leans French but wanders happily: onion soup, a proper Café de Paris steak, schnitzel, dry-aged beef, plus pizza and lighter plates. There are gluten-free and keto options too, which is still rarer than it should be in this part of town. Come for a long lunch, order a glass of wine, and watch Nişantaşı’s well-dressed regulars drift past the windows.

Mums Cafe, Karaköy

Finding genuinely good vegan food in a city built on kebab and meze can be a small ordeal, so Mums in Karaköy is a relief. It’s a bright, Scandinavian-feeling place with an open kitchen, sourdough sandwiches and a brunch that swings between sweet (pancakes, French toast) and savoury (eggs, tartines, shareable plates). Plenty of it is plant-based. Order the carrot cake with a pot of jasmine tea and you’ll see why it’s stayed busy for years. If you’re building a whole trip around plant-based eating, my guide to vegan restaurant options in Istanbul goes deeper.

Şimdi, Asmalımescit

Şimdi has a famously unmarked door on Asmalı Mescit Sokak near Tünel, which is half the charm: walk from İstiklal towards Tünel, turn onto the street, and look for the venue with no sign. Inside it’s warm and a little theatrical, somewhere between a cafe, a kitchen and a low-key social club. You can have an espresso with breakfast or settle in for the evening over wine, pizza, pide and pasta. The mushroom soup is a reliable order, the homemade cakes are worth saving room for, and the whole place captures the slightly bohemian feel of Beyoğlu. For caffeine purists, I’ve also mapped out the city’s third-wave scene in my Istanbul specialty coffee guide.

Smyrna, Cihangir

Smyrna was the first proper cafe in Cihangir and it’s still going strong more than two decades on, open from late morning until 2am. The decor is all interwar nostalgia, the crowd is local and creative, and the kitchen quietly nails the simple stuff: a good burger and fries, falafel, steak, sandwiches. There’s a real bar too, so it slides easily from afternoon coffee into evening cocktails and wine. It’s the kind of neighbourhood institution that defines its area, and if you want to understand that area, read up on Cihangir, one of Istanbul’s most charming neighbourhoods.

Zanzibar, Zorlu Center

Don’t let the name fool you, Zanzibar is Italian to the core. Inside Zorlu Center in Beşiktaş, it’s the spot to break up a shopping day with proper pasta, a beef émincé with porcini, or a crisp scrocchiarella pizza. There are solid plant-based plates for vegetarians and vegans too, so it manages to keep a mixed table happy, which is harder than it sounds. It’s open daily from around 10am to 10pm, making it an easy lunch or early-dinner stop when you’re already at the mall.

So which one should you pick?

If I had to choose, I’d send a first-timer to Baylan for the dessert and the history, then to Hüsnü Ala for the Golden Horn view at sunset. Tea drinkers should make for Dem, brunch people for Mums, and anyone wanting a long elegant lunch belongs at Beymen Brasserie. The beauty of Istanbul is that none of these is more than a short ferry or tram ride from the next, so you can string two or three together in a day. And when the coffee craving turns serious, the city has a whole separate world of it, which I cover in where to drink Turkish coffee in Istanbul.

Note: The photos in this post are illustrative stock images and not from the actual venues.