Karakoy used to be a commercial area a long time ago and you can still see the oldest banks and office blocks while you are exploring the city. Not such a long time ago, Karakoy was like a ghost town and there was nothing at all. However, at this point Karakoy is so different than in the past and is one of the coolest neighbourhoods of Istanbul for sure. The weekends are so crazy busy here and you need to be an early bird if you want to find a place to sit!
That’s how I found Naif a few years ago on a very busy weekend: we didn’t have any reservation. We had breakfast and it was quite nice actually – something traditional and at the same time an enjoyable food presentation.
Ii think their lunch or dinner, though, is their strongest part. I don’t know how many times I’ve been to this place but every time I have very much enjoyed the food here. The menu all consists of Turkish food and all the supplies come from small towns in the Aegean part of Turkey. You should definitely start with their meze plates and with a traditional drink of raki.
Naif has 3 floors, and if you go on the roof there is a bar and you can enjoy the DJ performances there, if you want to burn your calories after dinner.