• CLOSED: Zencefil

  • (39)
    18

    Closed

  • White Vegetarian
Lacto
Ovo
Mediterranean
Middle Eastern
Turkish

The main entrees, soups, and salads change daily. Sample dishes are quiche with leeks, stuffed dry aubergine and green lasagna. Located near the vegetarian place called Parsifal. 2016 update menu is now all vegetarian. Reported closed, Jul 2020.


Venue map for Zencefil
© OpenStreetMap contributors

39 Reviews

First Review by Upliftance

Danon

Points +59

Vegan
20 Feb 2020

Opportunity for more

We were greeted by a gruff man who behaved as if we were intruding. He was rude and unwelcoming. Thankfully he didn’t serve us - a lovely, helpful younger waiter assisted us. We had Spinach pie (delicious but came with a saggy iceberg shredded mound of lettuce) and veg lasagna (also delicious but left in the microwave about 3 minutes too long - dangerously hot!!). Really good espresso and Turkish coffee. Avoid the ginger lemonade- not gingery, just sugary. A lovely space, terrible music, overlord management- feel sorry for the employees. It could be so much better. One visit was enough.

Pros: Vegan and veg options. , Strong espresso

Cons: Terrible owner attitude , Mediocre food, Terrible music

TomWoollard

Points +74

Vegan
21 Dec 2019

Everyone should visit this place!

Beautiful interior with buzzing atmosphere. Really delicious food. The waiter asked if I was vegan after ordering the Lentil Patties, then made sure all the other food & drink I received was also vegan. Loved it.

Pros: Loads of vegan options , Loads of vegetarian options

HansChillkowski

Points +54

Vegan
21 Sep 2019

Boring food with taste like nothing. Uninspired Staff.

... nuff said. If I could give just one star, I would do.

Marty49

Points +29

Mostly Veg
13 Sep 2019

Tasty offerings

Not all the waiting staff speak English. That is why the bilingual menu is posted in two locations. Visitors to foreign countries should be considerate of local waiters who most likely don't come from a privileged economic background. By the way, my waiter was friendly; I smiled and was patient with the language problem. The quiche I had was tasty and the background music was pleasantly low key.

Pros: Nicely presented menu.

Cons: None really.

Benette

Points +37

Mostly Veg
21 Aug 2019

Why Such Unfriendly Staff?

I walked in yesterday and asked if they had an English menu. The woman I asked there was so cold and so unfriendly that after I looked at the menu board, I immediately walked back out. I just felt too uncomfortable. What a shame.

Pros: none that I could see

Cons: cold and unfriendly staff.

Milan

Points +28

Vegan
28 Jun 2019

Great food and great place.

The food is delicious. Plenty of vegan and vegetarian options to choose from. Salads, soups, main courses and deserts. Healthy fresh juices available too. Staff is very friendly and the place is very easy to find. It's minutes away from taksim square.

Pros: Both Vegan and vegetarian options

Cons: None

balina

Points +32

Vegan
29 May 2019

Good food cozy place

İt is a cozy space with a beautiful yard under a big tree. Restaurant is clean and stylish. Seasonly changing the menu to serve fresh and seasonal food. Good amount of vegan and vegetarian choises. No meat at All. Nice deserts for tea time or a Coffee break.

Pros: Delicious, Varaity

iremeri

Points +82

Vegan
28 May 2019

Beautiful cafe

Lots of vegeterian options but a few vegan options, nice place

Kabulyogini

Points +24

Vegan
18 May 2019

Great place for a vegan brunch

We went for brunch on a Saturday morning. Menu on a board with one vegan and one vegetarian section. Simple but very fresh and delicious vegan options.

leishmania33

Points +46

Vegan
09 Mar 2019

Friendly relaxed zone

Cozy, Spacious and relaxed place with good choices for vegetarians, less for vegans.

Pros: Friendly , Relaxed

Cons: Less choice for vegans

a_voron

Points +226

Vegetarian
26 Feb 2019

Beautiful garden

Stylish vegetarian restaurant, designed as a greenhouse, and focused on European cuisine.
Vegetable lasagna was delicious.

Pros: Vegan and vegetarian menus, Nice design

ZeljkaGoesLightly

Points +27

Vegetarian
07 Nov 2018

Good food, good music, nice ambience

Cute and cozy place with really nice food, kind staff and cool atmosphere. The first time we went there, we got a quiche, some zucchini-mushroom dish and a salad. Everything was delicious, the salad was so fresh and with a super nice dressing. The second time, we got a veg lasagna and smoked bulgur with veggies - both of them yummy. the portions are large, the prices are reasonable, and all in all - this is a nice veg spot to check out!

Pros: good food, large portions, reasonable prices, great music, they also have a terrace

Cons: it was super busy the first time we went, you might have to wait a bit longer because of ^^

Haggai

Points +103

Vegan
12 Apr 2017

Worst meal in Istanbul

We went to Zencefil after several days in the city, hoping to find simple, good vegetarian food (for my wife) and vegan food (for myself).
Alas, it was the worst dinner we had in the city. We both had soup, which was uninspired, and that was the best part of the meal. I later got a dish of rice and artichoke, which had almost no artichoke in it, and had no seasoning nor taste.
My wife got a vegetable lasagna which was simply uncooked and cold. When she asked to replace it we were scolded (!), with the waitress saying "everybody else likes this dish" (there was no on in the place but us). They refused to take it back and we had to pay for the thing.
Which brings us to the price: completely unreasonable and high not only in Istanbul standards but also by any other.
In short: do not go there! Your average street stand will have better vegan/vegetarian options.

Pros: Nice internal decoration

Cons: Bad food, Terrible service, Too expensive

Radioladio

Points +32

Vegan
13 Jun 2016

Yummy and romantic

We loved this gem! Really tastey food, big portions and great atmosphere!
Would love to go back here any day!
Amazing!

Pros: Tastey, Healthy, Good quality meal

Cons: Non, Non, Non

Terra Katz

Points +34

Vegan
17 May 2016

Best meal i had in Istanbul

So refreshing to find this restaurant…. Best bread, wonderful salad and i chose their vegetarian Lasagna… Also had their Ginger Lemonade… Again, the best meal i had in Istanbul...

barisarslan

Points +58

Vegan
28 Dec 2015

Over and again over priced!

I'm agree with the other comments."Unfriendly Staff and Overpriced Food"

Denizka

Points +45

Vegan
18 Oct 2015

Not bad. Not the best option either.

Zencefil definetly wins at decor. It is beautiful. But some desks are located so close to each other, you feel like you are sitting together with other people...

Food... So there are not many vegan option, but many vegetarian. It also serves meat :(
If you are vegan, you won't get out hungry, don't worry.

What I didn't like was that the menu is so confusing.
There are no symbols for vegan or vegetarina or gf dishes. Also, the menu is not full, and waiters often offers other dishes that are written on the chalk board. The food is not super delicious, but interesting.

Bread is not vegan!!!

Prices are in between moderate and high. Portions are not small.

Pros: Decor

Cons: Serves meat, Confusing menu, Bread

Libra77

Points +2799

Vegan
09 Nov 2014

Disappointing food and service...

We were recommended Zencefil by our hotel as a good vegetarian restaurant. For some reason it did not come up on Happy Cow when I searched the local area, as having now seen some of the previous reviews I probably would've thought twice about going.

The restaurant is full of character and the outdoor seating area was lovely. Decorated nicely and had a charming and welcoming feel. Sadly though the staff soon ruin the ambience!

Staff are unhelpful, unfriendly, not knowledgable about their food or about vegan options. Overwhelming feeling that customers are a bit of a nuisance!

When asked about vegan options and having to explain what this meant, the waiter stated he would have to go to the kitchen. He eventually came back to the table to tell me I could have the lentil soup as it does not have flour in it. When my sister tried to explain flour isn't a problem he became comfrontational and said he knew that. Confusing. Vegan options aren't listed on the menu and although most of the menu is vegetarian there is not much of a description about what's in the food or what comes with it. There was one chicken dish on the menu when we visited.

I had the lentil patties and asked what this came with, he replied with a salad. When it arrived the lentil patties were stone cold, looked like they had been squashed in someone's hand and plonked on tiny bits off ripped off iceberg lettuce. The taste was bland and unimaginative. The cost was unreasonable for the standard and portion size. My sister had the lasagne which appeared to have been microwaved and again lacked any flavour.

Staff did not come and ask how the meal was, whether we wanted any more drinks and completely ignored us and others whilst having a conversation inside the restaurant. Even when we asked for the bill they appeared disinterested. They did not ask why so much food was left or offer a discount on the bill. We paid and promptly left.

Shame as it ruined our last night in what had otherwise been a fantastic stay in beautiful Istanbul. We had much better service and food in another restaurant the night before and they went out of their way to cater for us even though most of their menu wasn't suitable. Expected much more from a restaurant that had been billed as vegetarian, popular and apparently open for 20 years.

Pros: Lovely decor and outside courtyard

Cons: Miserable and unhelpful staff, Not aware of vegan options, Food unimaginative, bland, overpriced

denizthecat

Points +129

Vegan
28 Jun 2014

Used to be the best...

I used to go to Zencefil during my university years, when it was a very small place (across from where they are currently situated). It was one of the few homely feeling place with amazing food. However the quality of food has deteriorated over the years while their prices have gone up significantly.

It is a shame that they have at least one 'animal' dish on the menu and that they do not have many vegan options. (their bread is also not vegan) The staff often make you feel like you are 'bothering them' when you want something.

This was my favourite place on the planet for many years, but now I do not go there anymore. Last time I did a take-out and was so shocked with the price that I decided that cooking at home is by far a better option than going to Zencefil. Really sad though...really sad.

Pros: location; close to Taksim Square, veggie salad (if all options are vegan)

Cons: too expensive, staff is not friendly

juth

Points +20

Vegan
21 May 2014

Overrated and Overpriced

Went there after Parsifal had to turn us away. The interior is nice, but that is about it. The food was plain, cold and nothing special. The prices way too high (who wrote in their review that it was cheap?! - you clearly went to the wrong places...), also they have a cover charge for bread etc. which I couldn't have as vegan because it had milk in it, but they still priced me for it! I have eaten better at the small local restaurants that only cost a fraction of this one. The service was bad as well, they gave us the feeling that we should get out asap so they can close up. We talked to other guests later outside of the restaurant and they had the exact same thoughts about the food and the service. Not recommended. You eat better and cheaper at the normal restaurants who usually have many veg options.

Pros: Interior

Cons: Price + cover charge, quality of food, quality of service

Katharinenstrasse

Points +74

Mostly Veg
11 May 2014

Like it!

Excellent food in a nice atmosphere. Low prices. Nice staff. Couldn't ask for more!

Pros: Good food, Atmosphere, Staff

aps101

Points +341

Vegan
08 May 2014

Nice Almost All Veggie Spot

On a failed attempt to eat at Parsafil, I ended up here as it is just a block away. This place is almost all vegetarian (there was one chicken dish on the menu) and had a lot of vegan options. The staff is able to knowledgeably point out what is vegan. They aren't overly friendly, but I was surprised to see the review below complain about the service. I thought it was quite fine. The meal was good, I had no complaints about it. In the end after I finally ate at Parsafil, I would say I prefer this place for quality of food though not variety.

pippipunk

Points +141

Vegan
26 Apr 2014

Plain food and bad service

Zencefil was a disappointment.I had heard that it was Istanbul's oldest vegetarian restaurant with nice food and cozy atmosphere. But I actually thought it was very plain. The food seemed to be microwaved and it was not heated up enough. The taste of the three dishes we had was very plain. The staff was not friendly. I do not recommend this place.

Pros: vegetarian

Cons: plain, non-friendly, not inexpensive

srodriguezch

Points +27

Vegetarian
09 Apr 2014

nice vegetarian options

They have very good vegetarian options and a few chicken ones for meat eating friends. We had lunch here and the setting was very nice. The food wasn't excellent but it was good and a nice break from just eating bread and cheese on the streets

cicekbocek

Points +30

Vegetarian
25 Jan 2014

Unfriendly Staff, Overpriced Food

the last time, we went there with a group of 12 people. As always, the staff was arrogant. We had a small discussion about the tables outside. They said there are no enough space for other customers and wanted to move us inside but with a very rude attitude. Afterwards, we had a discussion and we left the shop.

Pros: Good Location

Cons: Arrogant Staff, Overpriced

ampallang

Points +365

Vegan
22 Oct 2013

hmmm

I ordered the lentil patties, they were similar to cig kofte with a little salad. super expensive for not much. None of the bread is vegan. my partner had pasta.
Nothing special if you are vegan and just a few dishes for vegetarians. Not worth the money.

Cons: limited choice, expensive

Eric_

Points +729

Vegetarian
07 Jan 2013

Overpriced

Okay food but not really worth the price.

Pros: Location

Cons: Price




This page has been viewed 10839 times.