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.
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Last update on 28 Jul 2020 by fordph0714
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39 Reviews
First Review by Upliftance
Danon
Points +59
Opportunity for more - Edit
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.
Read morePros: Vegan and veg options. , Strong espresso
Cons: Terrible owner attitude , Mediocre food, Terrible music
Guest
TomWoollard
Points +74
Everyone should visit this place! - Edit
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.
Read morePros: Loads of vegan options , Loads of vegetarian options
Guest
HansChillkowski
Points +54
Boring food with taste like nothing. Uninspired Staff. - Edit
... nuff said. If I could give just one star, I would do.
Read moreGuest
Marty49
Points +29
Tasty offerings - Edit
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.
Read morePros: Nicely presented menu.
Cons: None really.
Guest
Benette
Points +37
Why Such Unfriendly Staff? - Edit
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.
Read morePros: none that I could see
Cons: cold and unfriendly staff.
Guest
Milan
Points +28
Great food and great place. - Edit
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.
Read morePros: Both Vegan and vegetarian options
Cons: None
Guest
balina
Points +32
Good food cozy place - Edit
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.
Read morePros: Delicious, Varaity
Guest
iremeri
Points +82
Beautiful cafe - Edit
Lots of vegeterian options but a few vegan options, nice place
Read moreGuest
Kabulyogini
Points +24
Great place for a vegan brunch - Edit
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.
Read moreGuest
leishmania33
Points +46
Friendly relaxed zone - Edit
Cozy, Spacious and relaxed place with good choices for vegetarians, less for vegans.
Read morePros: Friendly , Relaxed
Cons: Less choice for vegans
Guest
a_voron
Points +230
Beautiful garden - Edit
Stylish vegetarian restaurant, designed as a greenhouse, and focused on European cuisine.
Read moreVegetable lasagna was delicious.
Pros: Vegan and vegetarian menus, Nice design
Guest
ZeljkaGoesLightly
Points +27
Good food, good music, nice ambience - Edit
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!
Read morePros: 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 ^^
Guest
Haggai
Points +103
Worst meal in Istanbul - Edit
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).
Read moreAlas, 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
Guest
Radioladio
Points +32
Yummy and romantic - Edit
We loved this gem! Really tastey food, big portions and great atmosphere!
Read moreWould love to go back here any day!
Amazing!
Pros: Tastey, Healthy, Good quality meal
Cons: Non, Non, Non
Guest
Terra Katz
Points +34
Best meal i had in Istanbul - Edit
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...
Read moreGuest
barisarslan
Points +58
Over and again over priced! - Edit
I'm agree with the other comments."Unfriendly Staff and Overpriced Food"
Read moreGuest
Denizka
Points +45
Not bad. Not the best option either. - Edit
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...
Read moreFood... 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
Guest
Libra77
Points +3524
Disappointing food and service... - Edit
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.
Read moreThe 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
Guest
denizthecat
Points +134
Used to be the best... - Edit
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.
Read moreIt 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
Guest
juth
Points +20
Overrated and Overpriced - Edit
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.
Read morePros: Interior
Cons: Price + cover charge, quality of food, quality of service
Guest
Katharinenstrasse
Points +74
Like it! - Edit
Excellent food in a nice atmosphere. Low prices. Nice staff. Couldn't ask for more!
Read morePros: Good food, Atmosphere, Staff
Guest
aps101
Points +341
Nice Almost All Veggie Spot - Edit
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.
Read moreGuest
pippipunk
Points +185
Plain food and bad service - Edit
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.
Read morePros: vegetarian
Cons: plain, non-friendly, not inexpensive
Guest
srodriguezch
Points +27
nice vegetarian options - Edit
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
Read moreGuest
cicekbocek
Points +30
Unfriendly Staff, Overpriced Food - Edit
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.
Read morePros: Good Location
Cons: Arrogant Staff, Overpriced
Guest
ampallang
Points +365
hmmm - Edit
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.
Read moreNothing special if you are vegan and just a few dishes for vegetarians. Not worth the money.
Cons: limited choice, expensive
Guest
Eric_
Points +734
Overpriced - Edit
Okay food but not really worth the price.
Read morePros: Location
Cons: Price
Guest
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