Mikla (*) Istanbul, Turkey

On my short trip to Istanbul I had 3 restaurants I wanted to try. This was one of them and I have to say I wasn’t too impressed with the experience as a whole and Istanbul itself.

Mikla has 1 Michelin star and was ranked as the 44th best restaurant by the Worlds 50 Best List in 2018. La Liste has it in the top 1000 and gave it an 87.50 rating.

The restaurant was beautiful, on the top floor of an hotel with an amazing view of Istanbul. I was greeted by a rude hostess who wanted to argue with me about my attire, even though I called the restaurant ahead of time to ask them if what I was wearing was appropriate. I told them exactly what I was wearing and the same guy threw a fit so off to a bad start. I was seated and my waiters were decent. However they didn’t give me a smile and looked upset while explaining the dishes. They also told me I was eating the bread and butter too fast?????? So I didn’t feel the usual hospitality and great service you get in Istanbul which kind of ruined this experience, but let’s get into the good stuff.

Bread & Butter:

This was excellent, some of the best butter I have ever had and the whole wheat sourdough was very fresh. Olive oil wasn’t the best however.

Amuse Bouches:

Some OK bites but not too much flavor. The third one however with the beef was very good. The waiter told me to start with the fish cracker one which tasted very good with the sauce. The aftertaste however wasn’t too pleasant.

Zeytinyağli
Olive oil braised artichoke, Sorrel

Wasn’t impressed at all, flavorless artichokes and the orange sauce next to it barely had any taste. Waiter told me it was chicken stock but I couldn’t taste anything in this dish for some reason.

Dried Beef
Turmeric & Kohlrabi, Broad Bean Sprouds, Arugula Oil, White Bean Hummus, Antep Chili

This was excellent. Beef was amazing and melted in my mouth. The kohlrabi underneath it were sweet and crunchy, perfectly cooked. White bean hummus was meh, arugula oil was interesting and I wish they added some more chili.

Complementary Course:

Price of raw tuna, pickles radish, green apple and herbs, and the tiniest serving of caviar. The radish and green apples were great but the tuna didn’t have a good aftertaste and was fishy.

Octopus
Orange & Quince, Pine Nuts, Beet Root, Fish Roe, Gherkin Pickle

Probably one of the best octopus I’ve had but the rest of the plate did NOT fit with it. Weird and interesting flavor combinations and I couldn’t even taste the sauce. Bottarga was added on which was nice. Wish they complimented the octopus a lot better.

Monkfish
Malkara Lentil, Whole Wheat Erişte, Calamari, Mussel, Capers, Halhali Olives, Fig Vinegar

Kind of flavorless, the only thing memorable about the dish was the fig vinegar. Calamari was nice and tender, loved the addition of the capers and olives.

Braised Lamb
Walnut Paste, Firik Bulghur, Salted Yoghurt, Cumin

Lamb was super rich and tender which was great. Bulghur and yogurt were spectacular as well. Solid lamb dish.

Antep “Birds***” Pistachio
Menengiç, Pomegranate Sorbet, Baklava Phyllo

Yes that’s the actual name of the dish I have no idea as to why however. Dish was great though and I loved the combination of flovors.

Concluding Thoughts:

Mikla’s food was good, service wasn’t the best. Portions were nice and they gave me two small bites of dessert and some Turkish tea which I loved. If I were to go next time, I would skip the tasting menu and go with a la cart. Try to take a large group as well so they give you the nice tables facing the window. I unfortunately was a solo diner. If you don’t go with a family or can’t get in to other restaurants in Istanbul like Neolokal or Turk Fatih Tutak, then this will be nice.