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| - Nope. Sorry. Wrong place. I was looking for a nice restaurant with competent staff serving good food. My mistake. I'll know next time.
Istanbul does not measure up. I went on a Sunday night with a group of about 13 or so and was disappointed in each of the big 3: service, ambiance, the meal.
Ambiance goes first, because here they really gave it a shot. They had a harp player that was really enjoyable until she left before dinner was over (she cut out only a little after 7:30, while many parties were still arriving). The decor at Istanbul is fairly typical, if not tacky in an unobtrusive way, but comparable to any mid-level Asian joint. They aggressively chilled the place to about 59 degrees by way of a Messerschmidt-powered AC unit.
Service was really bad. I saw no busboys, so all the duties fell upon our server, who just did not seem to be all there. He had a couple of other tables, and kept getting more, despite the fact that just our one table was clearly stretching his resources and further despite the fact that he had not been entrusted with a tray, so any time he brought something to the table, he only brought that one thing. Two waters, coming right up. Three? Hold on, give me a minute.
Our group did not all arrive at the same time, but he totally ignored us until the last member had taken her seat. The early birds had been parched for 20 minutes before he asked about drinks, including ice water. The "hot water" machine was not working, so no tea. Since a "machine" broke, there was no way for the kitchen to make tea or any hot beverage. Ok, whatever.
After he thought it would be okay to let us order drinks we waited about 10 minutes to get our complicated order of waters, an iced tea, a glass or two of wine and bottle beers. The waters were only occasionally refilled. Another 25+ minute wait and he asked us for dinner orders. These went off fairly well, but when communicating to my waiter (fluent English speaker), I couldn't help but get the idea he wasn't really sure wtf he was supposed to do next. What he did do next was ignore us and our water needs (I was really thirsty, OK?) while the matre 'd (wearing apparently his formal kelly green Hollister t-shirt) sat him more tables. Our food came out over about 20 minutes, which is a huge pet peeve of mine, but I do understand it is different when there is a large group.
I am all about the final analysis: I will put up with a lot if the food is good. The food did not save this one. The food was bad, which is worse than not good. They start you off with what seems to me to be fresh or recently baked focaccia bread, sans tomatoes. They serve it with olive oil and parm. It was not great bread, cheese, or oil, but it was the highlight of the meal. We ordered the spanakopita appetizer, which for $6 or $7 consisted of 4 small, slightly burnt triangles with 4 slices of tomato. The spanakopitas themselves were devoid of flavor. The tzatziki sauce accompanying was also perfectly flavorless. It is like they just forgot a step, twice. My entree was the Moussaka, which wasn't nearly as good as I've had at other Greek/Mediterranean restaurants (I am aware that there are many ways to make this dish, but the one Istanbul employs isn't one of the good ways). The lady had the Pastitsio, which is more or less a baked ziti with custard on top and eggplant and peppers throughout. Interesting idea, but the reality was less appetizing than it looked, which was bugly.
The best thing I can say about the food is that their portions on most entrees (but not a friend's falafel platter) are generous. Now I have shitty food in my fridge to take to work for lunch tomorrow. Awesome.
Lastly, the prices were really pretty high. I figure that a decent (not nice) dinner for 2, maybe an app and 2x glasses of wine or beer plus tip should be had in CU for $50, or maybe a few bucks more if the wine is expensive. This place is more expensive than that.
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