Ortaköy

About Ortaköy

Mahalle (administrative quarter) in Beşiktaş, İstanbul–Europe, northwestern Turkey

Ortaköy, literally 'middle village', is a waterfront neighbourhood of Beşiktaş on the European shore of the Bosphorus, a former fishing village long since absorbed by the city. It sits directly beneath the first Bosphorus Bridge (the 15 July Martyrs Bridge), and the view of its small mosque on the water with the bridge soaring behind has become one of the signature images of Istanbul. The mosque, officially the Büyük Mecidiye Mosque, was built for Sultan Abdülmecid I in the mid-19th century in Ottoman baroque style, with tall windows that flood the prayer hall with light off the strait; it was restored and reopened in recent years. Around it a small square and lanes are lined with cafés, restaurants and stalls selling kumpir (baked potatoes with a choice of fillings) and waffles, for which the neighbourhood is famous, and a crafts market sets up at weekends. Ortaköy also keeps a historic synagogue and churches that recall its once mixed population, and institutions such as Kabataş Boys' High School and Galatasaray University. Above all it is a place to sit on the quay and watch ships pass under the bridge, and a natural stop on a Bosphorus shore walk from Beşiktaş towards Bebek.

Where:

Istanbul, Türkiye