I discovered Nevizade Street on my first night in Istanbul. It was actually the first thing I walked into after checking in my hotel and collecting myself from the events that just happened. I had a long delay for my arrival, being stranded in Galata and freaked out a bit of the police barricade. You can read it here: First Few Hours in Istanbul: Police Barricade, the Frenzy, Turkish Mezze and Meeting a Couple from New Zealand
Nevizade Street (Nevizade Sokak) is just located around the corner from my hotel in Beyoglu. It is very near to the Cicek Pasaji (Flower Passage) and is an offshoot street from Galatasaray Fish Market on Sahne Sokak. It is perhaps the most festive alley in Istanbul, with outdoor terraces of bars and restaurants side by side on the street called Turkish Meyhane’s. It is very busy here at night, especially on the weekends.
On my first night I had a little taste of the atmosphere here at one of the bars and ordered a glass of red wine. Turkey is a majority Muslim country but unlike other Muslim/Islam countries, it is open and very contemporary. You can order alcohol mostly anywhere in Istanbul.
I came back here on my last night to have a light dinner at Keyif. I was not in the mood to eat a normal evening meal and wanted to stay near my hotel. Actually, the real story is I wanted to eat my second Midye Dolma (Rice stuffed Mussels) which is a very popular street food in Beyoglu but I didn’t want to eat them standing on the corner of a street. So I came here at Nevizade instead.
I must say that this is definitely one of the best places to eat or have drinks on a late evening. A festive and entertaining street with lots of opportunity to people watch and chill. There is also a healthy mixture of locals and tourists here.
Nevizade Street quite reminds me of the Beenhouwerstraat | Rue des Bouchers in Brussels.
Here is Nevizade Street on the map in Beyoglu, Istanbul:
The best orientation point is the Istiklal Caddesi (Istiklal Avenue) south of Nevizade. This is the biggest and modern shopping avenue of Istanbul and is a pedestrian and tram only street.
Hundreds of thousands of people come here at Istiklal everyday and many of the shops are open past midnight. Read my previous post here: In Istanbul: Istiklal Street – The Crowd, Midnight Shopping and Being Picked Up by Men
Travel Period: May 2015
Destination: Beyoglu, Istanbul (Marmara), Turkey
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Happy Travels! Enjoy Life =)