Cafeography
Istanbul · Kurtuluş & Feriköy

Cafés in Kurtuluş & Feriköy

Old Tatavla's side streets: a roaster on Bilezikçi Sokak, Eşref Efendi's cafés and a manual Faema behind Bomonti's brewery quarter.

Photo: Fatih Ekmen, Pexels License

Kurtuluş was Tatavla, Greek for "stables", until a fire on 13 April 1929 burned 207 houses and the rebuilt district took a name meaning "liberation".1 Most of its Greek residents left after the riots of 1955.1 Old street names went too: Tatavla Caddesi became Kurtuluş Caddesi and Rousso Sokağı became Türkbeyi, and the official neighborhood on the map is Bozkurt.2

A 2020 Cumhuriyet column described it as central yet a little remote, a city within a city where shopkeepers still act like neighbors.3 Coffee follows that pattern: small rooms on residential side streets, more of them toward Feriköy and Bomonti in the north, rather than the shopping streets of Nişantaşı next door.

Local tip: Start at Kafital Coffee and Cocktails on Bilezikçi Sokak, then walk to Eşref Efendi Sokak for lunch: the two streets are close together, and that's where the Cumhuriyet column sends you for restaurants.35

At a glance

74Cafés listed
4With opening hours
07:30Earliest opening
01:00Latest closing
  • Opens earliest: MOC - Ministry of Coffee, from 07:30 (Daily 07:30–00:30).
  • Closes latest: Norr Kaffe, until 01:00 (Mon–Fri 08:00–01:00 · Sat–Sun 08:30–01:00).
  • Most common features: bakery café (9%), wi-fi (5%), open late (4%).

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Coffee chains in Kurtuluş & Feriköy

Bozkurt Caddesi and the old shops

A 2024 walk through the neighborhood by Bülent Aydın stops a little to the right of Eser Pasajı's Bozkurt exit at Arden'in Yeri (Arden's place), for a coffee with Arden and his father Kevork.2 The same piece recalls the Haylayf pastry shop, attacked in the pogrom of 6–7 September 1955, on a site now covered by a hotel and part of Ergenekon Caddesi.2

Pastaneler (pastry shops) are still a large share of what's here. Akat Pastanesi and Bomonti Patisserie both sit on Sıra Cevizler Caddesi, north of the old center.

Eşref Efendi, Bilezikçi and Seymen

Eşref Efendi Sokak is the street to walk: the Cumhuriyet column places restaurants along it, and Yemek.com in 2024 recommended Moysistanbul at No. 62/B as a calm, stylish room with a well-balanced Americano, then ₺120.34 Kot Sıfır Mekan, a few doors along, runs 10:00–23:00 with Wi-Fi.

A short walk away, Kafital Coffee and Cocktails is the neighborhood's roaster. It sells single origins roasted in-house, such as Guatemala Antigua Finca Medina and Kenya Nyeri AA, from a workshop on Bilezikçi Sokak where it invites customers to try new arrivals first.5

On Seymen Sokak, Marika Kurtuluş started from a self-service bar: Time Out in 2016 liked its market-fresh salads and sandwiches, homemade granola and pancakes with seasonal fruit, and called it a favorite for working or reading.6

Feriköy and Bomonti

The cafés get newer toward Feriköy and Bomonti. Caffè Soske, on Arpa Suyu Sokak, pulls its espresso on a fully manual Faema E61 Legend with Santos grinders, using Kava Coffee beans.7 Norr Kaffe, on Feriköy Fırın Sokak, keeps the longest hours nearby, until 01:00 every day, with Wi-Fi and step-free access.

MOC - Ministry of Coffee opens from 07:30 to 00:30 in the same blocks, and Moonberry Coffee is on Ergenekon Caddesi.

Dolapdere's edge and the buses

On the Dolapdere side, lilu+co on Dolapdere Caddesi is coffee shop and pub in one, pouring its own roasts, six kinds of beer, Japanese whisky and tea from the Black Sea coast.8 Osmanbey is the nearest metro station.1 The Cumhuriyet column named two bus lines into the old city in 2020, 70KY from Kurtuluş Son Durak to Yenikapı and 70FE from Feriköy to Eminönü.3 The Baklahorani carnival, Tatavla's Clean Monday festival, was banned in 1943 and revived in 2010.1

Sources

  1. Kurtuluş, Wikipedia, accessed November 2026
  2. Kurtuluş'ta gezerken, bianet (Bülent Aydın, September 7, 2024), accessed November 2026
  3. Kurtuluş'u anlatayım size, Cumhuriyet (Alper İzbul, January 31, 2020), accessed November 2026
  4. Kurtuluş mekanları, Yemek.com (May 31, 2024), accessed November 2026
  5. Kafital Coffee Roastery, Kafital, accessed November 2026
  6. Marika, Time Out Istanbul (June 28, 2016), accessed November 2026
  7. Caffè Soske: Bomonti, Caffè Soske, accessed November 2026
  8. lilu+co, lilu+co, accessed November 2026
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In Kurtuluş & Feriköy, also browse: Specialty coffee Outdoor seating Wi-Fi Open late Bakery cafés

FAQ

Kurtuluş & Feriköy cafés: questions

Where can you find a coffee roaster in Kurtuluş, Istanbul?

Kafital Coffee and Cocktails on Bilezikçi Sokak sells single origins it roasts in-house, such as Guatemala Antigua Finca Medina and Kenya Nyeri AA, and invites customers to its workshop to try new arrivals. Caffè Soske in Bomonti pulls espresso on a manual Faema E61 Legend with Kava Coffee beans.

Why was Kurtuluş in Istanbul once called Tatavla?

Tatavla, Greek for "stables", was the district's name until a fire on 13 April 1929 burned 207 houses. The rebuilt area became Kurtuluş, meaning "liberation", and streets were renamed too: Tatavla Caddesi became Kurtuluş Caddesi. Most Greek residents left after the riots of 1955.

How do you get to the cafés of Kurtuluş and Feriköy in Istanbul?

Osmanbey is the nearest metro station. As of 2020, bus 70KY ran from Kurtuluş Son Durak to Yenikapı and 70FE from Feriköy to Eminönü. Norr Kaffe on Feriköy Fırın Sokak stays open until 01:00, and Moysistanbul and Kot Sıfır Mekan are on Eşref Efendi Sokak.

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