I stopped by on a Sunday night and it was very quiet, only one other couple dining in. We were seated right away and the staff was friendly and welcoming. The space could use some cosmetic updates, but everything was clean and the food was clearly made fresh, which mattered more to me. What we ordered:* Super Mix Grill* Falafel appetizer* Kunefe* Baklava The mix grill was the standout. The meats were tender, juicy, and full of flavor. The flavors were a little different from the Turkish food I'm used to from friends' family cooking, but still very enjoyable. The salad that came with the meal was okay, but not my favorite. Desserts were excellent, both the kunefe and baklava were absolutely worth ordering and a great way to end the meal. My husband said the desserts were a little sweet but they are supposed to be so I ignored him but be prepared for that. Overall, we enjoyed our experience and would definitely give it another try. This feels like a good spot for a low-key, no-wait dinner when you're craving Turkish food. read more

Istanbul Restaurant - Kunefe - Mediterranean Near Me - Cary, North Carolina

Delicious lamb kebab with rice salad, pickled pepper the tzatsiki sauce for lunch with the lentil soup, and donate bread Service is accurate and speedy. Ambiance is casual quiet and relaxed read more

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I finally got to try this place with my family. It was a very busy evening, but they gave us a really nice seating area to sit. Service was fast. Ambience was a family atmosphere and of course the food was really good. I ordered a platter with different kind of dips and pita bread which is of course seems like as if it was made in house because it was soft and delicious. My family ordered chicken Shawarma and two lamb platters, which was equally delicious. In my opinion. The platters came with a lot of bulgar wheat and cabbage salad, which was nice to balance the protein. On our way out we tried the dates and I have never eaten those kind of delicious dates ever before. Place do offer the buffet in the evening. All in all, it was a great place to sit and enjoy with delicious food. read more

We ordered the large family platter and got to try a little bit of everything. From lamb chops, to chicken and beef kebabs. It was all savory. We also finished with tea and baklava. The service is always exceptional when I come here. read more

Istanbul Restaurant - Kofta Kebab, Lamb Chops, rice, Turkish Salad (Çoban Salatası) - Mediterranean Near Me - Cary, North Carolina

It was my first and last time ordering here. I ordered on their website two Gyro wraps which literally had two thin pieces of meat. The meat was tasty, but c'mon! I received a message my order would be ready by 6:45-6:50, and I arrived at 6:50... did t leave until 7:20. I had to wait 30 minutes. read more

Istanbul Restaurant - What we ordered and what we got. Gyro wrap literally had two think pieces of meat. - Mediterranean Near Me - Cary, North Carolina

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Food was lovely the Adana Kabab is delicious Excellent flavored and well spiced kabab Service was very good. read more

Awful food. They put tons of rice and old salads And 5 small round pcs of kafta overcooked dried up. Worst kafta I ever had. I would never ever eat here again. I don't understand how they got over 4 star.... No wonder that place was empty nothing but unhappy looking employees. I should of took a picture of the food to put it here But I was so pissed I just dump that in the trash. read more

Visited with a friend who is a big fan of this place, and I was not disappointed. The menu, and particularly the way the wait staff can discuss the offerings in context of origins and regional difference suggests this is highly authentic. Not surprisingly, when I confessed to being a newbi and asked for a recommendation, they recommended the mixed grill, but went on the describe the variety in it, and how it covered much of what they do. The combo of beef, chicken, lamb, served with a salad was all really good. The decor is pleasant and the store very clean. The staff helpful and informative. Definitely worth a visit. Be warned, however: what looks like a sweet green pepper slice in the salad is WAY more exciting than that! read more

We haven't had Turkish food this good in the South - the "eggplant spread" (ie, the priest fainted) may be the best I've had across the board Excellent thin crust pide, homemade spreads (ppl used to processed hummus may not recognize the chunkier version of homemade), and delicious free bread Chef's kiss to this place read more

Everything was delicious; good quality food. The generous potion of bread was served warm. The lentil soup was very good. I also really enjoyed my spinach pide, which tasted like spanakopita. The service was fast and friendly. I tried to use the 10% off check in offer, but they told me they weren't offering that. I suggested they contact Yelp to get the discount removed. Overall, it was tasty and I'd come back again. read more

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We came here last minute to celebrate my nieces birthday. They were able to accommodate our party of 8. The food was delicious and fresh. I started with the stuffed grape leaves and then the chicken shish, I finished it with hot tea. I'm not from around here but I would definitely be back if it were close to me. read more

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Two of us came here for a late lunch. Located on Kildare Farm Road near Maynard Drive. It is a stand alone building so there's plenty of parking. The decor and music was nicely done middle eastern . It was both tables and booths . The menu is Middle East foods and has a wide variety. Chicken, beef, lamb and seafood are all here along with some good looking appetizers. We we seated and brought nice glasses of water, oil with spices and warm bread. Very nice! I got the kofta kabob and it came with a small salad and rice. When they have grilled on the menu you can believe it is truly grilled! The meat was cooked perfectly, not dried out like some places. Nice sized portions, but we were too late for the lunch menu which ends at 2:00. My friend got the burger and said it was wry good and came with fries. The burger had 2 patties of meat and was really grilled. A nice, clean place with very nice decor and good service. I will be back! read more

Istanbul Restaurant - a view of the front counter - Mediterranean Near Me - Cary, North Carolina

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I think this place is pretty decent. The chicken tasted pretty good, but I didn't really like the rice or the salad it came with, it wasn't bad, it was just meh, it kind of had a bitter taste to it. I think it was okay for the pricing, but the portion was pretty small honestly. I don't ever finish my plates when I go out tot eat, but i finished this plate and I wasn't even hungry. The service was decent. They are friendly but pretty slow with their service. Also the first cup of water I was given had a piece of parsley in it, and wasn't cleaned properly. Other than that it was nice that they gave us extra bread to take home. I think its a cute little place to grab a bite if you want decent food, not amazing food. EDIT: i just clicked the post review and there was A BUG ON THE WALL BEHIND ME . i dont know if this place is that clean ....... read more

Istanbul Restaurant - CHICKEN SHISH - Mediterranean Near Me - Cary, North Carolina

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Passed this place many times but never had the chance to stop by. Decided to try it for a late Sunday lunch. Dining room was very spacious, clean & busy. It took a while to place our order since they were obviously short staffed. Our server apologized multiple times to us for the wait although we were expecting it. The deliciously fresh complementary bread was served with herbed olive oil. Kashkaval was delicious & freshly baked like their bread. Lamb shish was flavorful and tender. Mixed grill was a generous portion of Adana kebab, chicken shish & kofta kebab. The chicken was the star of this dish! The only dish I wasn't a fan of was the Iskander kebab since it was completely drenched in a tomato sauce but the yogurt served with it was really good. Definitely will be back! read more

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I've been looking for good Turkish food for a while and this place is it! Amazing food and service!

Went there for my birthday, and had an awesome time! The food was awesome and the service was amazing. Probably my favorite place to go. Definitely will go again! read more

Gyro wrap was ok but it was literally just gyro strips in an uncooked flour tortilla with lettuce. Got the turkish coffee and it was 60% sludge and coffee grinds read more

LOVE coming here with the husband and kids! Food is always fresh and delicious. The vibe authentic and homey. The customer service so kind and respectful. 5 stars for our friends at Istanbul Restaurant! read more

This place is unbelievably amazing!! Talk about the best grilled meats in town! And my god their Turkish pizzas are fresh from the oven delish!! A must go to place! Y'all are missing out if you haven't tried them. The service was quick and efficient! They present you with their fresh bread with some olive oil tapenade and then the appetizers came out immediately after. It gave us the chance to enjoy every dish at the right time. These guys know how to cook! This is what we ordered: Appetizers | LENTIL SOUP CIGAR SHAPE BOREK COLD MIX Entrées | ISKENDER KEBAB SUPER MIX GRILL CHICKEN ADANA WRAP SOUJOUK PIZZA LAHMACUN TURKISH PIZZA Can't wait to come back! read more

Such a cute, homie, family owned/operated place. The vibes at the staff/family was very nice and welcoming. They sat us down as soon as we walked in. We got two of the super mixed grill, it was delicious . Too delicious that I forgot to take a picture. Then we concluded our stay with Turkish coffee and pudding that were just . Definitely coming back.. read more

Istanbul Restaurant - 51. CARAMELIZED PUDDING and Turkish coffee - Mediterranean Near Me - Cary, North Carolina

Having been to Turkey and eaten the food here, I can attest to the delicious food they are making here is authentic. The whole experience is very catering and caring! Will definitely come back! read more

Food is amazing and a great deal for lunch. Sarash ( I know I'm spelling incorrectly) but you were great! Thank you so much read more

Istanbul Restaurant - Mediterranean Near Me - Cary, North Carolina

BLUF: (delivery review) Doner meat was SO dry, go with the lamb chops or kebobs, those were tasty. The doner plate was bad. The meat was dry like it was pre-cut-and-sitting-under-a-heat-lamp-for-hours dry. No onions, black pepper, oregano. It was not served with grilled vegetables like the menu said, just a small salad. Rice was good. Stay away from the doner plate or if the menu says a dish includes doner meat. My jaw still aches. Perhaps it was a bad night, who knows. This plate blew hard. That being said, the supex mix grill was good. The lamb chops were tender and delicious. The andana meats and lamb shish were also tasty. No to this restaurant's doner!! I'll get their lamb chops again. read more

Istanbul Restaurant - 25. DONER PLATE - Mediterranean Near Me - Cary, North Carolina

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Delicioso. Meat filled me very quickly at an affordable price with fine service. One of the busboys is a cutie patootie.

If you haven't tried this gem of a restaurant, you are truly missing out. The service was impeccable along with the flavorful cuisine. As a traditional Turkish restaurant, they do not serve alcohol-however this does not change the fact that this establishment is truly exceptional. The owners are from NYC, when you visit this restaurant, you will the owners socializing and enjoying the company of the guests as well. read more

We love this place so much. They have the best Lahmajun in the entire state, everything from the taste to the texture of their dough is perfect. Now, who would ever think that when they want to order Pizza that shall instead order from a Turkish restaurant and not an Italian restaurant but from now on, that is exactly what I am going to do every time I want a pizza. Their spinach & feta pizza is better than any other Greek style pizza and at better value than any other restaurant in town. read more

My husband and I went there this week to celebrate our wedding anniversary. We eat pretty late and arrived at 8pm on Sunday evening. Their hours on the website show they are open until 9:30 on Sat and Sun. As soon as we walked in someone came out of the kitchen and told us that they had been very busy and they were not accepting any new customers with an hour and a half left for their "open" time. No explanation other than they had been too busy. The place had about 5 -8 people there with seats for probably up to 30-40 people. Needless to say I was rather surprised that they suddenly became "closed" for 2 people and they were technically "still open." I just think it was in bad taste. They may have had a large party prior to us getting there but I just don't understand why they would turn away 2 people when they didn't look they like had very many in the dining room. I won't be going there again and will go to their Turkish competitor instead. read more

Amazing food and some of the best service I've experienced. It's cash only for dine in, so make sure to bring cash!

I've ordered from and eaten at this restaurant before and thought the food was excellent; However, today I am very disappointed with my take out order. I ordered their Chicken Caesar salad and the chicken was raw in the middle. So gross! The salad itself was also pretty bland and underwhelming. Literally a bed of lettuce with some bell pepper rings and Parmesan cheese on top. Luckily I had some red onion and cherry tomatoes on hand to spice it up. The only redeeming part of the meal was the sesame bread that came on the side. I'll give Istanbul another try in the future, but I definitely won't be ordering this salad again. read more

Istanbul Restaurant - Raw chicken in my salad - Mediterranean Near Me - Cary, North Carolina

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Delicious, fresh and interesting. I see why they have such high ratings. Had an appetizer, Turkish apple tea (yum) and two entrees. read more

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We had business around the area so we searched around for something new and found Istanbul and we're very glad we did. We started with the Eggplant Salad (Babaganoush?) it was accompanied with pita. Yumm, this was good. Not too much garlic or too smoky. For main courses we had Lamb Shish and a Gyro wrap. The lamb was tender and very well seasoned. It came with a thin pita(?), salad, and rice. The rice was plain looking but excellent tasting as it must have been cooking in a nice broth. My Gyro was not to my style. I like them overstuffed with juicy meat. This was the healthy version; not bad but not me. It was served with some great coated French fries. I ordered a side of Tzatziki to slather on my Gyro. We finished our lunch with delicious Turkish coffee and order a rice pudding because we were betting it would be delicious. They didn't disappoint. There's a lot of construction going on around the restaurant but the food will definitely take you mind from It. read more

I loved this place and wished it was a bit closer to Wake Forest This is the kind of place that you don't mind driving a bit for. This was my first time trying Turkish food and I came away wanting more. The staff was friendly and the food came out to our table promptly. The sesame bread they brought to our table had that just-came-out-of-the-oven warm & soft feeling to it and it was so delicious! I tried both their Haydari (like a yougurt dip) and their Hummus and the Haydari was the clear winner. (Dip the sesame bread for an incredible pairing) The Turkish coffee and pear tea hit the spot. I tried the super mixed grill and every grilled meat was grilled to perfection and tasted amazing. I will definitely come back soon!!! read more

This is an updated review for Instanbul. Since the past 2 years this place has changed alot. I loved going to Istanbul and always recommended it to my friends. We mainly went there as my daughter lover the bulgar but recently they have discontinued serving bulgar - when we asked why, we were told that "some people have allergies" I understand that but a restaurant always needs to keep an option for their customers. They changed their dipping sauce to something probably made out of mayonnaise which is way too sweet for me. I liked the earlier dip which came with the platter, When i go there i do ask for that dip and they usually bring it "if" they have it. Earlier they brought tea for us and their service was outstanding. I am so sad to write this review because clearly they are just not the same anymore. The food still stays great though but the other stuff matters too! read more

Istanbul Restaurant - Mediterranean Near Me - Cary, North Carolina

Best kebabs, Naan were fresh, falafel was good We walked in and were told you have only ten minutes to order. But the manager was very humble and friendly. I'm read more

I'm really selective about Mediterranean and middle eastern restaurants because often the meats are dry and uninspiring. But this place is different. The food is amazing. We had the hot appetizer sampler, Turkish coffee, lamb shish plate, and kofta. Everything has so much flavor; meats were tender and juicy; nothing was overcooked, dry, or oily. 4 thumbs up! I can't wait to go back and try more things. read more

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I went here last week ago and I am pretty sure the food was reheated and the kebabs were cold for a wait time of almost 1+. I wonder if they were stalling back there but my experience was not as good as the reviews state it is. read more

First visit I had the lamb chunk pide, which I loved. My friends had the lentil soup and rice pudding. They loved that the rice pudding was not overly sweet. The bread and olive oil dipping sauce was also good. Second visit I had the bulgar beef ball, which was very flavorful with a little tomato sauce to accompany. I also tried the Turkish pizza, which I liked, but preferred the pide only because it was more "saucy". The staff is so warm and welcoming. Looking forward to my next visit. read more

Amazing. One of the best restaurants I've been to in Cary. The food was great, and the service was top notch. You have to try it! read more

Istanbul Restaurant - Mediterranean Near Me - Cary, North Carolina

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I really wanted to like this place and give it 5 stars. It's a small, family-run restaurant, and I know how hard that can be. To start, we were given some bread and olives in olive oil for dipping. The bread was soft and very enjoyable. We also both got the Sultan Sherbet, which is a very light and mildly sweet drink, and came free with a Yelp check-in! The food I ordered was good - I got the super mixed grill, which included chicken kebab, adana kebab, and I chose the lamb kebab. You can also order beef kebab instead of lamb. The meat was well-seasoned and tasty. The lamb kebab was rather tender and juicy - I was grateful it wasn't dry like many can be. The adana kebab was also flavorful and tender. It came with rice and some vegetables. My wife tried the vegetable pide, and unfortunately didn't like her dish at all. There was way too much salt, making the pide very hard to eat without having to drink lots of water or find something else to eat to balance it out. The bread of the pide was pretty soggy and didn't hold much structure after being soaked in oil from the dish. I wouldn't recommend getting this dish. The service was good, and even though things at time felt a little frazzled, I can understand that it's a family-run operation. They made up for any mishaps with a lot of friendly, attentive service - something I appreciate. They even finished our meal with some Turkish tea, which I liked. I think if it weren't for the overly-salty-and-soggy pide, I'd lean towards giving this restaurant 5 stars. It's obvious that they try very hard to provide a pleasant experience, and the dish I ordered was pretty good. I wouldn't be opposed to going again to give other things on the menu a try. read more

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I was looking for some good Mediterranean food and came across Istanbul Restaurant. The decor and ambience are great and make you feel like you are in a Turkish home. The entrees were good, but a little pricy for the portions we were given. read more

Istanbul Restaurant - Mediterranean Near Me - Cary, North Carolina