The MICHELIN Guide Türkiye reveals its 2026 restaurant selection, marking a significant expansion of the country’s culinary map.

• One new Two MICHELIN Stars located in Izmir.

• Three restaurants earn their first MICHELIN Star.

• Three talents have been honored with MICHELIN Special Awards, in recognition of their excellence and commitment.

The MICHELIN Guide is pleased to reveal its 2026 restaurant selection for Türkiye. This year’s selection welcomes 54 new restaurants, including the first-ever entries from Cappadocia, a region whose deep sense of tradition, hospitality, and terroir made a strong impression on the inspectors. Istanbul, Izmir, Muğla, and now Cappadocia together offer a rich mosaic of more than 25 culinary styles, reflecting the diversity and identity of Turkish gastronomy.

It was also announced that starting next year the MICHELIN Guide will present, for the first time, a selection covering all of Türkiye, marking the country’s first national selection. More information will be shared in January 2026.

This new selection reflects the strength and maturity of Türkiye’s culinary identity. Across Istanbul, Izmir, Muğla, and now Cappadocia, our Inspectors observed chefs who honor tradition while embracing creativity, chefs who place their terroir at the center of their work, and chefs who commit to more responsible ways of cooking. The diversity, the talent, and the sincerity found throughout the country confirm a gastronomic scene that continues to grow in depth and confidence.

Gwendal Poullennec

International Director of the MICHELIN Guide

With this new expansion, inspectors were delighted to welcome 18 new establishments from Cappadocia to the 2026 selection. What struck inspectors most was the spirit of the region itself. Beyond the stunning landscapes and legendary Turkish hospitality, Cappadocia has a relaxed, inviting atmosphere that invites you to slow down and savor life’s simple pleasures. This sensibility comes through in the food as well. Honor, tradition, and terroir matter deeply. Many chefs remain faithful to recipes and techniques passed down through generations, serving dishes with flavors that have endured for centuries and continue to captivate diners today.

After earning their first Star during the inaugural selection for Izmir in 2024, Vino Locale ascends to Two Stars. Chef Ozan Kumbasar is celebrating a cuisine that blends Turkish terroir with subtle influences from Thailand, Japan, and beyond. Tucked away in a leafy corner just outside Izmir, Vino Locale feels like it truly belongs to its place. The Kumbasar couple truly focuses on making local and seasonal ingredients shine while the menu moves gracefully between land, sea, and vegetables, always blending character and identity. Seray Kumbasar’s service and wine pairings further elevate the experience, reflecting deep professionalism and warmth.

Vino Locale is the first restaurant to ever receive Two Stars in Izmir. It is also the second restaurant to reach this distinction in Türkiye, as it will share the Two Stars stage with TURK FATİH TUTAK.

Three restaurants join the One Star family this year, each expressing a distinctive vision rooted in product, place, and personal identity.

Revithia earns Cappadocia its first Star with a cuisine inspired by nearly forgotten recipes, revived through modern textures and deep flavor. Located within the UNESCO-recognized Kayakapı site, the restaurant honors regional traditions such as lamb cooked in milk, fermented grains and milk consumed as a soup called tarhana, and local condiments that shape Chef Duran Özdemir’s vibrant and expressive menu.

In Istanbul, Araf, led by Chefs Kenan Çetinkaya and Pınar Korgan Çetinkaya, receives its first Star for a tiny, characterful counter restaurant built around an open fire. It showcases a cuisine that prioritizes taste, product integrity, and technique. Their cooking is sincere and bold, revealing the depth of Turkish flavors in their purest form.

In Muğla as well, Mezra Yalıkavak, located in a beautiful establishment just outside the outskirts of Yalıkavak, is led by Chef Serhat Doğramacı. The chef delivers a menu anchored in protected Turkish products and ancestral cooking techniques. Set amid gardens, livestock, and a working farm, the restaurant blends wood fire, fermentation, grilling, and marinating with thoughtful, elegant compositions. Desserts, crafted by the chef’s wife, provide a standout finale to a captivating experience.

With these new additions, the total of One Star restaurants in Turkey reaches 15 exceptional tables.

The Bib Gourmand award, introduced by the Michelin Guide in 1997, recognizes selected restaurants offering excellent food at an affordable price. These establishments span a wide range of cuisines and invite diners to great food of all types of cuisine that remain accessible to every budget.

The selection now features a total of 39 Bib Gourmand, with 16 new entries across Istanbul, Izmir, Muğla, and Cappadocia, contributing to a strengthened national selection. Among them, Kemal’in Yeri Mülkiyeliler Birliği and Partal Kardeşler Balık Restorant showcase the best of Izmir’s local traditions and products.

Muğla also welcomes Mandalya and Mezegi as the region’s two new Bib Gourmands for their fresh and affordable cuisines that never disappoint.

Cappadocia enters the Guide with five new Bib Gourmands, including Babayan Evi, which also receives a Green Star for its generous traditional plates and deep respect for Cappadocia’s land and products. These new entries reflect a vibrant landscape where taste, generosity, and local products meet.

The Green Star aims to highlight restaurants whose commitments have impressed the inspection team through inspiring practices that help shape the gastronomy of tomorrow.
This year, five restaurants have been awarded the Green Star by the MICHELIN Guide inspection team for their innovative initiatives.

In 2026, four restaurants have been awarded:
• TURK FATİH TUTAK (Istanbul)
• Orfoz (Muğla)
• Teruar Urla (Izmir)
• Babayan Evi (Cappadocia)

These addresses embody a dynamic, authentic, and forward-thinking gastronomy.

For the 2026 selection, the MICHELIN Guide Türkiye also shines a light on three Special Awards that honor the people whose skill, dedication, and vision enrich the dining experience. These distinctions highlight the remarkable talents who help shape the country’s gastronomic identity and elevate it through their passion and expertise.

The MICHELIN Young Chef Award 2026 presented by Jumbo, goes to the talented young chef Duru Akgül behind Yakamengen III in Muğla. She is only 29 years old, but her cooking already shows a remarkable mix of technical skills, deep connection to her region, amplified by international experience earned while working abroad. Housed in a beautifully restored old oil mill in Yaka village, her menu celebrates seasonal ingredients from local farmers and fisheries. She is particularly passionate about overlooked species like blue crab and lionfish, which she then turns into dishes both thoughtful and delicious. Her signature blue crab salad, which she tops with crispy zucchini fritters and fragrant spices, perfectly captures her approach: generous, precise, and full of flavor.

The MICHELIN Sommelier Award 2026 was given to Ersin Topkara of Neolokal in Istanbul, a One Star and Green Star restaurant. His knowledge of Turkish wines runs deep, and his list is remarkable for its showcase of what Turkey’s wine regions can produce. Since his return to Neolokal, inspectors have once again been impressed by his flair for selecting wines that not only complement the food but also tell a story about the restaurant itself. His pairings are proof of a careful study, a sensitive palate, and a deeply felt commitment to spreading the culture of Turkish wine.

The MICHELIN Service Award 2026 presented by Olivana, goes to Ezgi Serdaroğlu at Teruar Urla in Izmir. She runs the dining room with an impressive combination of professionalism, instinct, and genuine warmth. She often refers to herself as the "orchestrator of the Teruar experience" and rightly so. She keeps everything in flow between the kitchen and dining room, in support of Chef Osman Serdaroğlu’s vision, while guiding her team with both precision and heart. Thanks to her watchful eyes, perfect timing, and sense of hospitality, every guest is taken care of from the very start of a meal until the very end.

Turkey’s culinary scene continues to impress and grow. With 38 new additions, this year’s expanded selection brings the total number of Selected establishments to 115. What stands out most is the warmth and authenticity that define Turkish hospitality. Every inspector returned asking when they could go back, drawn not just by the food but by the people, the atmosphere, and the genuine spirit of generosity that brings everyone together.

From Istanbul’s cosmopolitan energy to Izmir’s deep connection to terroir, from Bodrum’s evolving coastline to Cappadocia’s timeless traditions, the selection reflects a country with a rich and diverse culinary identity. More than 25 different types of cuisine are represented, yet tradition and respect remain constant threads. Whether led by young chefs claiming their place or seasoned talents honoring ancestral recipes, these restaurants share a strong philosophy and a commitment to the exceptional products their land provides. Turkey has firmly established itself on the gastronomic map, and inspectors have thoroughly enjoyed discovering and rediscovering what makes its food culture so remarkable.

• Two Stars: 2 restaurants (1 new)

• One Star: 15 restaurants (3 new)

• Bib Gourmand: 39 restaurants (16 new)

• Selected: 115 restaurants (38 new)

• Green Stars: 13 restaurants (4 new)

Alongside its restaurant selection, The MICHELIN Guide also features a list of hotels in Türkiye, all its regions, and around the world, forming a collection of truly unique accommodations. The MICHELIN Keys, introduced in 2024, are awarded to the most outstanding hotels in the Guide and are celebrated just as the world’s best restaurants, recognized with the famous Stars. All our hotels are defined by their design, architecture, service and character. The MICHELIN Key symbolizes truly exceptional experiences within our selection. All the hotels can be booked directly through the MICHELIN Guide website and app.

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