This bar was in stumbling distance from our apartment rental in Istanbul. In the area bustling…read morearound the Galata Tower, this bar is just off the main area. We found this bar to be a worthy stop on several nights during a week-long stay. I never ate at the establishment, it was normally the first stop as we headed out on our merry way for the evening. One of my favorite memories of this establishment was sitting upstairs on the rooftop deck, drinking an Efes beer, and enjoying the company of my four travel companions. The servers were exceptionally friendly, and the guys enjoyed practicing their English with us. This neighborhood was full of activity in the early evening both locals and tourists. If you are in the neighborhood, this is a worthwhile stop for a drink, particularly if you venture upstairs to the rooftop deck. You will be rewarded with a lovely view of the Galata Tower.

Went here twice during my week in Istanbul - once with a huge group (50+) that had the first floor…read morereserved, and the second time with a smaller group of about 8 people. Having the word 'tapas' in the name is slightly misleading. Menu is limited and not very dynamic. The only thing I can really remember for small bites were patatas bravas. The main courses were "pasta of the day" (just penne with tomato sauce and that's it), a chicken dish, paella and a couple of other things. Nothing enticed me so I had the bravas both times and they were ok, not bad or good, just something to eat. The group who shared the paella all seemed to like it quite a bit. Service during the big party was alright. Everybody ordered food at different times so it all came out at different times. We were able to order drinks up until a certain point in the evening, and then had to go down to the bar later on. We had the same waitress on the second evening. A very nice person for sure, but not a very good waitress. There's North American service, there's European service, and then there's Turkish service. And then there's this waitress. Absolutely no sense of time or thought about the table/customers. I have been to Europe many times and I appreciate not being checked on and being able to linger, but there's a point when service is non-existent. Not only did it take too long to take our orders after we got the menu (10-15 min), it took forever to bring the bill AFTER we asked for it. This is a very small restaurant. We asked for the cheque and proceeded to watch her hang out at the bar, walk outside, come back in, and stand around at the bar more. Over 15 minutes passed and she was no more than 10 feet from our table. I was tired so I eventually just figured out how much I owed and left it with the rest of the party so I have no idea how long it ended up taking for her to actually bring it. Location on a side street just off of Istikal. There are so many other restaurants in the area that the uninspiring menu combined with the poor service make me give a pass to any future visits.

Amazing restaurant with an amazing chef. I went with a…read moregroup of 5 people. We had a dietary restriction and chef Ismet was very accommodating. The food was delicious and the atmosphere was great. Thank you Ismet for a wonderful experience. I will always remember this night!

Visited Istanbul last month for a brief business visit and knowing Chef Ismet's reputation, we…read moredecided to book at both his restaurants. We could not be more satisfied in the food and service. Would recommend to everyone. The restaurant is inside a very modern shopping center that really creates a beautiful and welcoming atmosphere! The food totally worths the visit if you happen to be in Istanbul.

We were craving Italian and it was hard to decide between another nearby place, which seemed very…read morenice as well, but I had walked by this place a few times and it was always busy, which made me think, perhaps it tasted better. But it was hard to tell because a lot of people are outside, having drinks and smoking and chilling and eating pizza. We learned from previous meals that eating outside means you'll be exposed to smokers so we ate inside and NO smokers & much more quiet and the food was extremely delicious. So glad to have come here! Our servers were friendly and cordial and spoke excellent English. We had two carbonaras and one special pasta with the muscles and lemon, but it was creamy somehow it was so extra delicious, I had a Pinot Grigio with that and it was the perfect meal for the last day in Turkey. I highly recommend going to this place and also trying the Caprese salad here which they add pomegranate seeds too. The mozzarella was super fresh and bright with the pomegranate and fresh tomato and basil. We also added a Panna cotta at the end just for a sweet bite and that too was excellent, very friendly staff. Give Paps a try if u are missing pasta while traveling.

Hello. Tired of eating Turkish cuisine yet? If so, head on over to the new city via the tram, get…read moreoff at the stop for the tower and walk on over, about 10 minutes to Paps. It's all Italian! Paps is a tiny place..as in 10 tables, in the size of a shoebox. They have outside tables too. I strongly recommend reservations if it is after 6 pm to eat. We were fortunate that the weather was cold and despite it being 7 we walked right in. Pouring rain will do that. Onto the food. With my dietary restrictions I made sure to have a piece of paper translated into Turkish so there was no confusion. Do this if you have any restrictions. I went with their spaghetti with clams, which I had them remove the fish roe ahead of time. They did this. This dish is under their specials. It was good, but the clams were tiny and without a seafood fork to remove the meat, a challenge. A couple were closed..never eat those. Serving size was good. I ate only half. The spouse had the spinach fettuccine with sage butter and parmarsean cheese flakes. She said it was good, but very creamy. She ate most of it. The bread options are yuck. The best is the tiny breadsticks you would see back in the day. The spouse opened with a salad as an appetizer and liked it. I demurred. Pricing wasn't outrageous, and since I pay with a credit card, you will always get a far better exchange rate than what the restaurants will pitch.