Bellini — Restaurant in Beşiktaş

Now this is certainly going to upset a lot of Bellini fans and loyalists. Undoubtedly, the restaurant is located in a magical setting, in one of the most prestigious hotel properties in Istanbul, with an unmatched history to boast. This itself raises expectations of any guest, who looks forward to a great evening of good atmosphere, great service and top class food. And even more so if a restaurant prices itself at the top of the pyramid setting one back at least USD 150 per person. We were faced with a really difficult situation. With a table for 12 pax, and a fixed menu at 5 star pricing, what awaited was a restaurant with a corporate event just 50 metres away, packed with 500 Guests, loud music and really really noisy environment. To top it all, the windows and the door (facing this corporate event) had to be kept open since the air conditioning was poor and we were faced with a hobsons choice of a very hot restaurant or a very very noisy surrounding. It was impossible to have a conversation. It was almost impossible to enjoy a meal that we paid top dollar for and eagerly awaited. To add to our misery, the set menu food was poorly seasoned, and mostly left untouched by all. The hand rolled pasta was “molto al dente”. I probably don’t blame the chef, as realising the situation, he tried hard to make amends by offering some pizza and some foccacia, as a peace offering. But the day was not his, as both the dishes were hastily prepared and suffered the same consequence of the previous courses. I imagine, as the hotel management gave preference to the revenue being generated by a corporate event for 500 guests over a meal for 12 individuals, decided to have their best chefs sent to the corporate kitchen, and assign some trainees to the poor individuals like us. But this is pure conjecture since we had no explanation offered for the unmitigated disaster that was dinner. Our recommendation to the management of Ciragan palace Kempinski will be that they need to make a choice and this one is not hard at all. On the days they have a corporate jamboree or a wedding or whatever, they should refuse any reservations for a table in Bellini. That pittance of revenue they will forsake, they will earn in goodwill or perhaps not loosing goodwill of individual guests who paid out of their own pocket and not an expense account. The only saving grace I can see from the evening is that the staff was also considerate to our misfortune but there is only a limited leeway or authority they have. Perhaps a full refund of the meal would have earned the Kempinski some retribution for the poor choice they made. I sincerely hope they learn from this...

This restaurant is located in the old palace side of the Kempinski Ciragan, which in itself is already a plus to the whole experience. Dining here is part of a fuller thing, not just the culinary side. The view on the Bosphorus is unforgettable. Gastronomically we loved the mix/match concept of different kinds of pasta and sauces, then there are the specialties such as the lobster pasta which comes in one size. They also offer two sizes (70gr/140gr) at two respective prices for the other pasta. The pasta is also homemade and excellently cooked and served. Our friend had the tuna which was fresh but somewhat undercooked, which they immediately remedied. The bruschetta was nothing to write home about but the olive oil that was served apart was gorgeous. Unmissable is their tiramisu which is quite a generous portion but still somewhat overpriced. Even though we reserved well in advance we could not be promised outside seating on their terrace, which is particularly small. A table ultimately freed for dessert time and they moved us there. The interior of the restaurant is still superb. All staff were warm and accommodating but special thanks go to Gizem who served us warmly with a smile and with special attention to our allergies. All in all an enjoyable...

We took an early dinner here and had the entire restaurant staff to ourselves. The bread and local olive oil were perfect. We each got a half portion of their mix/match pasta cloves (pick your past, pick your sauce) as our primi - carbonara w/tagliatelle and seafood (clams, shrimp, white fish, squid) sauce with tagliatelle. Both were delightful with the pasta perfectly cooked and the sauces light but packed with the intended flavor. The secondi was eggplant parmigiana and chicken Melanie. The eggplant was local eggplant that did not disintegrate when cooked and was very generous with the cheese. The chicken was moist and tender. The homestyle tiramisu was a delightful as it was a single layer of the biscuit soaked in espresso and a single (thick) layer of cream topped with espresso chocolate. The service was super attentive and helpful. Also, the local red wine was quite...