Kokosh is the type of place where you can let your hair down in the evening as you’re tasting your meze, sipping rakı at your table (reserved in advance) and enjoying the live music. Having been around for 10 years, Kokosh is a venue that’s both familiar and new; it’s recently moved upstairs in its building in Asmalımescit and gotten a makeover. The new décor at Kokosh features vivid and lively colours; its flamboyant interior befits the name “kokoş,” which is Turkish slang for a frump who thinks she’s a fashionista. Here, everything is eyecatching, from the tablecloths and chairs to the curtains and waiters’ clothes.
The menu at Kokosh features 14 meze plates, three warm appetizers and entrée options that include chicken, meat and fish. Our favourite meze dishes were the meyhane cacık (cold soup made with yogurt, garlic, chopped cucumbers and often a sprinkle of mint); eggplant salad with yogurt, grilled red peppers with yogurt; lentil patties; and veggie chicken salad. As for warm appetizers, try the chard rolls stuffed with meat; slices of liver and veggiestuffed börek. The grilled sea bass makes for a flavourful entrée, and the meal ends with a fruit plate.
Of course, what makes Kokosh popular is its live music rather than its kitchen. Cumhur Demir and his orchestra, Cumhur Cemaat, have taken the stage at Kokosh on Fridays and Saturdays for the past five years; they are adored by regulars of the venue. On weekdays, you’ll get to hear live traditional Turkish music, fasıl (another form of Turkish music) and various local artists perform onstage.
A night of food, unlimited domestic beverages, music, song and dance all cost just 90 TL per person on weekdays and 120 TL on the weekends.