Bosforo — Restaurant in San Diego

It breaks my heart to write this review. Being Turkish, I was really hoping to have a good Turkish restaurant opened in San Diego. But I was deeply disappointed. Food was overall lacking flavor. We started with the basic mezes: Antep ezme and atom. Antep ezme was the worst one I had in my life - it was more of a Mexican salsa without seasoning than the actual dish, and to top it off, it was served with half burned pide bread. İçli köfte was decent but small portioned, lahmacun was decent as well. The Bosforo kebab, while it was prepared well with minced beef (instead of ground meat) it had zero SALT so it had no flavor. And this type of kebab is either served with rice or lavash bread - this one was served with neither. So I don’t know what they expect people to eat it with. Kadayıf desert with ice cream was also a let down because kadayif was hard and served cold..

Unfortunately, service was quite lacking too. The waitress came by right away but then left for 10 mins to bring the sparkling water, then disappeared again for another 10 mins. I had to track and flag her down to put in the order. So we sat down with zero food on the table for 25-30mins. Any decent restaurant in the US or Turkey would bring some bread + butter/oliveoil and water within 10mins, these are just basics. We had to ask for knives twice for mains and dessert. Another waiter dropped an e-candle into the yogurt dish, then he just took the candle out and didn’t change the dish. Only thing that came fast and without being asked for was the bill, and it came in a little shot glass that you can’t fit your credit card in :)

Again I was really hoping to like this place and bring my friends over to try some Turkish food. But as is I would be embarrassed to bring anyone here. I do wish that they bring their act together both in food and service areas, otherwise they will have a rude awakening once the “new restaurant”...

Went here last night for my birthday.

The food was delicious, no notes there.

The service was really bad and I’m hoping this feedback is read by management so they can improve.

First, I had several short phone calls with the hostess about our large reservation, and it sounded like this was her first job or something. She was rude and apathetic. Set a strange tone before we even arrived.

When we did arrive, our server started strong by walking us through the menu and suggesting we order a bunch of mezes, which we happily did. And they were delicious. The drinks we ordered were great as well.

We were close to finishing those when our server came over and suddenly warned us that the kitchen was closing in a few minutes and we needed to order our entrees ASAP. It must have been around 8:30PM? Crazy early to do a last call and we should have been told that a little sooner.

A busser came over to clear some plates from our appetizer course but someone in our group mentioned we had ordered entrees and would we be getting a fresh plate? He said no, and handed the plate back to us which knocked over a drink and spilled everywhere. Accidents happen, but we had to tell our server and ask for another drink.

After we put orders I don’t think we saw our server again for 30 minutes. We saw him setting tables in the dining room but he never checked in on us. We tried flagging him down to no avail. My boyfriend had asked for a cake to be brought to me, and we had been sitting there finished with dirty plates for a while. Finally I went and asked another server where our guy was. He brought us my cake but our table was still covered in dirty dinner dishes. He comped the dessert but we still had an automatic 20% gratuity added to the bill! Overall it was a pretty poor dinner experience and I really hope they improve their service because the food...

After two recent visits to Bosforo, I’m so excited to share my experience. Let's start that this restaurant was so needed in San Diego! As a family who adores Turkish culture and cuisine, we were counting down the days until its grand opening. And let me tell you, it did not disappoint. I understand how challenging it can be to present Turkish flavors in a fine-dining setting while still honoring the bold, comforting tastes of street food that so many of us crave. But credit must be given to the chef and kitchen team who have masterfully created an experience that blends the refined elegance of the best Istanbul restaurants with the delicious family-owned specialty eateries. From the moment you walk in, you can see the effort and thought that went into this space. The wood-burning oven in the main dining area alone deserves five stars, and everything that comes out of it exceeds expectations. We tried the lahmacun, and the thin, crisp dough topped with seasoned minced meat instantly won our hearts. The kebabs were excellent, the meze were beautifully executed, and the flavors felt just right. I sat at the bar, where I met what might be San Diego’s friendliest bar team. They were incredibly knowledgeable, taking time to explain the menu, share stories, and recommend signature cocktails. On my first visit, I had Turkish raki, something not so easy to find in SD. On my second visit, I couldn’t resist trying the Turkish wine, which was truly exceptional. The owner, a wine expert himself, shared insights about the vintage and harvest, which added a special layer to the experience. We may be far from Turkey, but Bosforo has brought the essence of its food, culture, and atmosphere right into the heart of San Diego. We’ll be back...