Mica is an authentic Italian restaurant set up where old Indigo Pub used to be in Tomtom, the heart of Taksim. Given its location, it’s got a necessarily ‘cosy’ vibe, helped by the good music selection of owner Renk Satır. After working as a manager in well-known establishments throughout Istanbul, Satır trained to be a chef at Mutfak Sanatları Akademisi, and her expertise certainly shines through in the menu. While Satır prepares some of the main courses like the lasagne (her favourite), the pizza oven is trusted in the hands of a true Italian, Marco. The olive oil, the cornerstone of Italian cooking, is brought from Cunda Island. The full-flavoured lasagne is cooked, rather stewed, in a wood-fired oven, which is also used to bake the eatery’s own bread, our favourite being the focaccia.
Starters include the Italian cheese plate (17 TL), carpaccio (16.50 TL) and spicy cream cheese served with thinly sliced dough. From the mains, the steak with lemon sauce (28 TL) is worth a try. There’s no forcing toppings on you when it comes to the pizza: you’re free to swap out whatever you don’t like on the 22 varieties of 34cm pizzas, from which we try the pizza prosciutto e mascarpone (23 TL). In addition to the classic Italian desserts tiramisu and panna cotta (9 TL), you’ll also find a tantalising chocolate pizza on the menu. Mica hosts disco-funk, vocal house, ’80s and ’90s themed parties on Saturday evenings – which is also the best time to try their martini cocktails.