Mikla

I’ll be honest. I haven’t been to Mikla. Not because I have anything against it. I just don’t enjoy fine-dining, especially the kind of fine-dining Mikla stands for that much. There is too much story behind every dish and the experience becomes tainted with the pseudointellectual aspects of foodthink.

Still, it’s important to note Mikla is one of the, if not the, restaurant that launched Turkish cuisine to the global forefront of modern gastronomy. The founding chef Mehmet Gürs and Mikla as an establishment have trained the now-starred generation of contemporary young chefs while giving birth to “New Anatolian cuisine”, the effort to modernise Turkey’s gastronomy.

I’ve only added this restaurant despite not having eaten there because it recently received a Michelin star, it was on the World’s 50 Best in 2015 and has been making the lists since. And also because I spent some time with Mehmet Gürs and he is a fun and spirited person to chat with. Do check out his new rakı brand Prototip.