Updated 11/13/2025
Bosforo, the new Turkish restaurant in Normal Heights (3201 Adams Avenue), came highly recommended, and I am always up for a heaping spoonful of something exotic. A visit to Bosforo’s website greeted me with the following statement.
“Inspired by the meyhanes of Türkiye. Shared plates, fire-kissed food, and unforgettable nights.”
There is a lot to unpack there; it all sounds good, but what the heck is a meyhane, and isn’t that a fun way to spell Turkey? I am sold, I am a sucker for any word that includes an umlaut or a tilde. 
For inquiring minds, a meyhane is a traditional Turkish restaurant or bar known for its social atmosphere, serving alcoholic drinks like raki (the national drink of Türkiye) alongside meze (small plates) and full meals, often accompanied by music and conversation. Meyhanes are a central part of Turkish dining culture, evolving from simple wine houses to full-fledged restaurants where people gather to socialize and share food.
All that sounded right up my alley, so I made reservations and away we went. I am too geeky not to wonder what Bosforo meant. “Bosforo,” or the Bosporus, is a narrow natural waterway in Türkiye that separates the European and Asian sides of the country, with the city of Istanbul situated on both sides. Ok, now I can’t wait. Istanbul was once Constantinople; there is a song in there somewhere, and vague memories of World History class. Was that Sandy Ferguson or Mr. Johnson? I will assign that homework to those readers who graduated from Coronado High School in the ’70s and ’80s.
Back to the wonderful experience we had at Bosforo. My date and I were coming in hot from a few happy-hour cocktails, a heated game of darts that I lost, and a win for me at pool at Seven Grand — a fun way to start any evening in that neck of the woods. We were primed and ready for an adventure. Bosforo didn’t disappoint. We ordered some exotic cocktails. I got the Anatilia, which is crafted with bourbon, balsamic, blackberry, lemon, and mint. My date, Georgia, went for the Silk Road made with gin, melon, lime, kefir, and basil. Both were refreshing and checked that something new and different box.
I instinctively decided on the Bosforo humus from the hot meze section of the menu: wood-fired humus, kayseri pastrami, pine nuts, and chili-burned butter. The bread it was served with was what they called wood-fired pide (a Turkish flatbread) with sesame and poppy seeds. All were delicious; my only regret was that the hummus portion was generous and the bread substantial. Hardly a small bite for two, and I wanted to try so many other things on the menu.
Also from the hot meze selection, we got the Karniyarik, oven-roasted Italian eggplant stuffed with spiced minced beef and vegetables. This meze was perfect — it was a flavor bomb of far east spices, and the portion size was just right for the two of us. I was determined not to leave any of that delicious hummus behind, so I ordered a side of the mixed Turkish-style pickled veggies, as I knew the acid would help break things up.
For our entree, we were too full to go for the Bosforo Mix Kebap (kebab) plate featuring the Bosforo kebap, the șiș kebap, and the chicken kebap, two lamb chops, and two köfte. Next time. Damn you, delicious but filling hummus. We settled on splitting the Bosforo Kebap, which the menu says they make only 50 of each evening. This kebap features hand-minced beef, antep, sumac onion, grilled veggies, and lavash. Antep may have jumped out at you; it did for me, and sent me straight to the internet to figure out what this refers to. Antep is a region in Türkiye now known as Gaziantep, which is the source of specific high-quality ingredients, such as Antep pistachios and Antep cheese. Which of these two made it into our kebap I may never know.
The menu was so varied that we actually had trouble choosing among all the fun things we saw. There is a gorgeous wood-fired pizza oven as you walk in the front door of Bosforo. The menu features eight traditional Italian-style pizzas and two Turkish-style pizzas — an odd ratio of Italian to Turkish, if you ask me, but no one asked me. The two Turkish pizzas looked fun, and they also offered wood-fired çukurova lahmacum. Lahmacun is a thin, crispy flatbread topped with a spiced mixture of minced meat, tomatoes, and onions. Çukurova refers to a fertile geographical region in Southern Türkiye. One of the Turkish-style pizzas, the El Turco, caught our eye with its unique combination of Turkish sucuk (spicy cured meat), di Napoli organic tomatoes, Turkish thyme, arugula, Turkish cheese, and fresh mozzarella. This pizza is on our list for our next visit.
What an experience Georgia and I had — we treated our taste buds to a Turkish holiday on a school night —and we were back home and in our PJs by 8:00, just in time to cue Taken 2 starring Liam Neeson, so we could visually take in Istanbul while digesting our Turkish meal. Until next time, “Nazar Değmesin,” may you not be touched by the evil eye.
Bosforo
3201 Adams Avenue
San Diego, CA 92116
Updated Nov. 11, 2025 with correct spelling of Türkiye.
