I should probably start with a confession: this was my first vegan fine-dining experience.
I’ve always been curious about the idea. Eleven Madison Park has been sitting on my bucket list for quite some time, especially since it made the decision to move to an entirely plant-based menu. So when Turkey’s first plant-based fine-dining restaurant opened in my own city, there was really no excuse not to try it.
That restaurant is Telezzüz.
Opened in 2024 in the Abdülmecid Efendi Grove in Kuzguncuk, Telezzüz was brought to life with the support and vision of businessman and art collector Ömer Koç, under the Divan Group. Even before you get to the food, his presence can be felt in the space: works from his private art collection form part of the restaurant’s interiors.
And somehow, the concept makes a lot of sense in Istanbul.
Istanbul has never had a problem with vegetables.
They have always been central to the way we eat — from olive-oil dishes and meze to stuffed vegetables, herbs, beans and recipes that have existed for generations without anyone particularly feeling the need to call them “plant-based.”
Fine dining, however, has traditionally told a different story.
Telezzüz is changing that.
Under Executive Chef Bahtiyar Büyükduman, vegetables aren’t treated as substitutes for something missing. There is no attempt to convince you that a mushroom is actually meat or that you’re eating a vegan version of something you’d rather be having.
The vegetable is the point.
The menu changes with the seasons and draws heavily on local produce, while fermentation, preservation and zero-waste practices form part of the kitchen’s approach. Telezzüz even tends its own vegetable garden, bringing the idea of seasonality much closer to the restaurant itself.
What surprised me most, though, was how quickly I stopped thinking about the fact that the meal was vegan.
And perhaps that’s the biggest compliment I can give it.
You don’t need to be vegan to understand what Telezzüz is trying to do. I certainly am not. I went because I was curious about a type of fine dining I hadn’t experienced before — and because I wanted to see whether removing animal products would feel like a limitation.
It didn’t.
Instead, it made me pay more attention to ingredients I would normally consider supporting characters.
The restaurant’s philosophy extends beyond what’s on the plate. Seasonality, local sourcing and zero-waste practices are central to the concept, an approach that has earned Telezzüz a Michelin Green Star.
But I’d still resist describing it simply as a “sustainable restaurant.”
That makes it sound more worthy than enjoyable.
Telezzüz is interesting because it’s part of a broader change in how we think about fine dining. Restaurants such as Eleven Madison Park have already pushed that conversation onto the international stage. Now Istanbul has its own interpretation — one that feels connected to a city where vegetables have actually been part of the culinary vocabulary all along.
Will Telezzüz replace Eleven Madison Park on my bucket list?
No.
If anything, now I’m even more curious to experience both and see just how differently two kitchens can approach the same fundamental idea.
But I’m glad my first experience of vegan fine dining happened here, at home.
Go because you’re curious about where Istanbul’s dining scene is heading.
Go because you want to see what happens when vegetables are allowed to be the main event.
And go even if you’re not vegan.
Perhaps especially then.