Bosphorus

Bummer – it looks like this place has gone down hill, and it is now closed. They opened about a year ago and their kebobs were amazing – the most authentic Turkish food in the area as told by a co-​worker.

It seems as though they changed their menu from being truly Turkish to Turkish-​inspired. At first, I was a little disappointed, as it seemed to be missing all the Turkish staples I enjoy. However, after our Paella, stuffed eggplant (only the large option was available) and scallops were brought to our table, we were very satisfied.
The presentation was beautiful and the food was quite good. I wished the scallops were a little larger, and the cauliflower rissoto was a bit strange (and cold), but overall, my scallops were good. The stuffed eggplant stole the show– filled with spiced couscous, roasted peppers, goat cheese, and all sorts of deliciousness. I’d highly suggest the stuffed eggplant for a group to share or a vegetarian to eat on their own.
Check their Facebook and Twitter — they often have specials and we saved 30% by mentioning their Twitter promotion.
Great addition to the Inman Square neighborhood, and if I lived in the neighborhood, I’d likely be there often.

i stopped in here with a friend one evening for dinner to check out the place because it seemed to have some good things on the menu. our first impression of the place was that it seemed pretty classy and were were really hopeful about the food. the place is pretty romantic and they have some unique decorations. i wasnt crazy about the things that looked like mosquito nets hanging above our head, but i appreciated the lighting and other décor.
the service was fine… nothing remarkable. unfortunately, i felt the same about the food. my friend and i had ordered the eggplant, scallops, and the salmon. i liked that we had the option of choosing small or large portions for almost anything on the menu. the scallops were the only thing worth commenting on – the rest of the meal wasnt very interesting. the scallops were delicious though and it was presented very artfully with a small square of risotto and fried onions. it was delicious and something i would consider getting again if i returned. the other items though werent so great, which definitely affected this review. the eggplant was difficult to eat and didnt have such great flavor. and the salmon was doused with the dressing from the salad that accompanied it, which made the whole dish a little acidic.
in general, this wasnt a bad experience, but i would reconsider returning if someone suggested it… especially with the other great dining options in the area.

Eh. My fiancé and I came in armed with a groupon. The cavernous, dark red space is impressive albeit almost empty on a Thursday night. The service was ok. Our waitress sporadically disappeared but when she was around, she was very helpful.
Everything is served in large and small plates here, but I recommend just getting a lot of small plates or a few large to split. My fiancé and I split the beef dumplings, beet salad and then I got the prawns entrée and he got the stuffed chicken entrée.
Everything was seasoned very well. The beet salad was absolutely delicious and the colors of the salad were gorgeous. Really good presentation. The beef dumplings were fine, although a little bland. They actually reminded me a lot of some greek pasta dishes I’ve had.
My «large» prawns entrée was actually really small. Four medium sized prawns with olive tapenade and a really light salad. The prawns were definitely overcooked making them a rather unpleasant texture. Everything else on the plate was good, but unsubstantial. My fiancé’s stuffed chicken was really interesting and unique… I liked his dish much more than mine, and it was definitely more filling.
All in all, the food was healthy and interesting, but not quite enough for the price.

4 stars for food /​4 stars for ambience /​2 stars for value /​1 star for service
Went here on a date and was charmed by the ambiance. This place is warm and sensual. We drooled over the menu and the list of Turkish wines and couldn’t wait to dig in. Unfortunately our server made this nearly impossible.
We each ordered a glass of wine, and our server took our food order. We ordered an appetizer (the beet salad) and our dinners (me: lamb chops, him: grape leaves, paella, and scallops). Five or ten minutes later someone brought out bread and a nice eggplant (maybe?) tapenade. But no wine.
Out comes our beet salad. But no wine. The salad is nice — light and fresh. We like the golden beets, the weird shaved cheese, and the grapefruity dressing.
Finally the wine comes!
We wait. And we wait some more. We watch dishes parade by us and we perk up every time a server moves in our direction. But alas, that food is not ours.
Finally someone brings out his scallops. Then a minute later his grape leaves. Then a minute later his paella.
But no lamb chops.
My date stares at his food longlingly. I insist that he eat. He offers to share, I protest. I wait. I give in. The food is wonderful, and not just because I am starving and would think the flesh of my own arm is wonderful. It’s really good!
The paella has tons of goodies in it – chicken, shrimp, lamb. The shrimp is a little dry and tough, but the seasoning is intense and I love it. The scallops are cooked perfectly and the truffled mushrooms are yummy. The cauliflower risotto is just cauliflower with some sauce on it… and too crunchy. I don’t know where they got «risotto.» But overall the dish is delicious. The grape leaves are better than ones I’ve had in the past (I’m not a big fan). They’re not bitter or tough, and the rice has a nice lemony flavor.
We order two more glasses of wine and our server goes behind the bar and pours them herself. She can tell we’re losing our patience.
After 15 minutes we ask where my lamb is. Our server rolls her eyes (apparently in frustration with the kitchen, not us) and brings it out with a mild apology.
It was worth the wait! The lamb was cooked perfectly, topped with some yummy salty sausage that I could have eaten pounds of, all nestled in couscous in cinnamon-​coriander broth. It was heaven.
Our bill came to $ 133. The quality of the food was excellent, but the service was inexcusably bad, so I consider Bosphorus way overpriced. We had a Groupon so it wasn’t too painful, but I don’t think I would go here again and pay full price. This makes me sad, because I’ve been craving those lamb chops ever since.
Bosphorus, based on your food you should be getting consistent 4 and 5 star reviews. Please read the feedback from your customers and get your act together!

Oh Bosphorus, where to start… This should probably be a one-​star review, but it was just so comically bad that it was practically dinner theatre, so the entertainment was worth at least another star. Also, due to mistakes we got two free small plates.
While waiting for our table we hit the bar and spent 10 minutes waiting for the bartender. He wasn’t busy, he was just plain missing. Sucks to be charged $ 6 for a draft that’s less than 12oz, but I was willing to let it slide.
There was one vacant table that we assumed was reserved, but this was not the case: we were given that table 30 minutes later. At the table, the four of us received: four plates, one set of silverware, no menus, and no waters. The waiter showed up 10 minutes later and asked if we were ready to order, hard to do that without a menu.
We eventually picked out a bunch of small plates, unfortunately one of the items we wanted was no longer available, so we had to substitute.
Enter the wine service. Now, a flashy wine service isn’t really my style, but it can be excused if you’re doing other things well. This was not the case. Twisting the cap off with flair, holding the bottle by the punt, and then spilling wine with each pour is not ok. Then our server whips out a napkin and I think that he’s going to clean up some of the wine he spilled. No, he’s going to tie a fancy knot around the top of the bottle, that takes a full awkward minute. I’m trying not to look at him or anyone else in my party for fear of bursting out in laughter.
30 minutes in, we get some bread and it’s not the tasty pita from a previous visit, just plain bread accompanied by a tiny bit of red pepper spread that was sufficient for one person, not four. The bread is cold, but we are starving. Soon after, we get our food, but still don’t have silverware.
And wait, did you say this is the artichoke salad? There’s nothing in it that resembles an artichoke. Wrong dish. Then we get the scallops, which are very nicely cooked, and the risotto is really tasty but strange. Why? It has no rice. Yes, no rice in a risotto.
Over 45 minutes after ordering, we’re told that one of the other dishes dish of scallops, we asked about another dish instead, but that dish was also not available. Somehow we ended up getting two more orders of the scallops, whatever.
Overall the food was pretty decent, if a little cold from having sat, but the overall experience was just an absurd disaster: we ordered or tried to order three dishes that were unavailable, received two dishes we did not order, never got water, and spent two and a half hours on a simple dinner. Thankfully we paid mostly with a BuyWithMe, otherwise we’d have been upset, not amused.
Bosphorus is a prime example of a restaurant that can cook good food, has beautiful décor, but clearly neglected to give any thought to service. There seemed to be no relationship between the kitchen and the front of the house, and the hostess had no idea what was going on.
The icing on the cake was that as we were walking to Bukowski, whose kitchen was thankfully still open, we were talking and laughing about what a ridiculous experience our meal was, and another couple ahead of us turned and asked «Did you just go to Bosphorus?»
Yes, by the absurdity of our story they knew where we had been.

Definitely not a 5 star place. I enjoyed the amuse at Istanbulu better — not a huge fan of the salsa/​bread. Would have appreciated a sampling of sauces like a yogurt, etc.
Loved the Sultan’s Chicken. I didn’t really enjoy my friend’s dishes as much. I’m a sucker for apricot sauce with chicken! It was poured over creamy potatoes and stuffed with yummy spinach :) Slivers of almonds and figs topped it off.
Would have appreciated more comfortable seating, and the place was HOT without air conditioning. Makes you wonder what temperature the kitchen is… Overall nice atmosphere — if you don’t face the door, it feels like you could be in another city! They were out of baklava :(
I’d say go here for a little «escape» from the daily grind.

Ever since spending a few weeks in Istanbul a couple of years ago I have been desperate to find a restaurant in the Boston area that serves delicious and *authentic* Turkish cuisine. After trying several «Turkish» restaurants only to be met with disappointment, and after speaking with a few Turkish friends in Boston about their similar quests, I had given up…
Then came along Bosphorus. They have all the requisite elements of any decent restaurant: mood lighting, interesting décor, really cool bathroom sinks… but what compelled me to review them was the fact that they nailed it with Turkish entrees! Unlike some of the reviewers I also found their appetizers delicious (of course I didn’t try all of them). The one dish I had been searching far and wide for is called «manti,» and it’s sort of a Turkish version of tortellini, stuffed with ground lamb and spices. Some restaurants I tried didn’t serve it and some served a bastardized version of it that was phenomenally disappointing. The manti dish at Bosphorus was truly authentic and almost as good as what I had in Istanbul.
I went there with some friends who had never had Turkish cuisine before and they enjoyed it too. I’ve since spoken with my Boston-​area Turkish friends, who have gone, and also had positive things to say. The staff was friendly and helpful and the service was fast. I’ll definitely be going back!

Loved the place.
Besides the main course I personally enjoyed the bread with the side orders. The appetizers I thought provided really good options for vegetarians and particularly liked the Yaprak Sarma and Borek.
The ambience/​atmostphere is really good and was definitely worth the Groupon price!

I eat out in Inman Square very frequently and think that East Cambridge offers some of the best restaurants in the Boston area. Unfortunately, Bosphorus does not make the cut.
The service was awkward, the wine/​beer selection was uninspired, and the food was mediocre at best. Everything was edible, but bland and not worth the price tag.
I’d hoped that this place would be a cheaper option than Oleana for Middle Eastern cuisine (a Tupelo to Hungry Mother, if you will), but the food isn’t worth going back for.

Love Inman Sq. and was thrilled to learn of Bosphorus springing up in this neighborhood… Was even more thrilled when BuyWithMe offered a discount! However, pretty disappointed overall.
The interior is very ethnic and chic and due to being new, was very clean. Service was okay, nothing extraordinary. Food was good, but overpriced for what you get. I would pay nearly as much for a stellar meal at Oleana, so why would I ever go here and pay full price when the quality and creativity does not even match. Made reservations for dinner Thursday, but was clearly not necessary.
Had the Meze platter, which is your standard hummus, eggplant, roasted red pepper dips served with plain pita. Again, nothing out of the ordinary. Sure, was good, but not wowed, I had the chicken shish kebab which was very good, but kind of plain for $ 22!
I wouldn’t return here, esp. given it’s prices. Sorry Bosphorus,. you had so much potential given the Turkish market isn’t really offered in Boston.

Walked into Bosphoros on a Saturday night around 8:30pm. It was pretty full and we didn’t have a reservation, but we were told we’d just have to wait about 5 minutes at the bar. The ambiance is nice — warm colors, great lighting behind the bar. After about 20 minutes, we checked back in with the hostess when we saw a few tables open up, and it turned out she’d forgotten about us. Not the biggest deal — she sat us right away.
My date and I decided to skip appetizers and focus on the entrees. I had the Iskender Kebab — «shaved grilled lamb & beef over diced pita bread, dressed with tomato sauce & garlic yogurt sauce served with grilled hot green peppers & tomatoes.» It was phenomenal. My one complaint would be the dish was a little cold when it came out — HUGE food faux pas. It might have been due to poor timing since my date’s meal was piping hot.
My date had the Bosphoros Bake, which basically looked like a calzone, stuffed with lamb and veggies. He thought it was fantastic with just the right amount of flakiness.
However, as others have said, it is definitely very pricey. For what it is, I think this place would fare much better with $ 12 – 17 entrees.

What?! 20 reviews already… Anyway, I really liked this place.
If you live in the Inman Sq area, you should go. The doner kebab was a little too salty for me, but the sauce that comes out with the pita bread, the warm meat/​grape leaves appetizer, and the vegetable entrée (with spinach/​rice) were hearty and healthy. I haven’t been to Helmand yet, but I think fans of the Helmand cuisine will like this (Turkish?) spot.
My only complaint: too many «cold» appetizers. In weather like this, I’m looking forward to something hot. Maybe I’ll change my mind in the spring/​summer (but I felt a bit limited by the current menu.)
I was too stuffed for dessert, but will send along an update if I get that far.
And I wish they served food past 10pm on weeknights. Got turned away the first time because the kitchen was closed. (There were still a lot of people inside having a good time though)

Yay for a new restaurant on my street with tons of veggies options!
I tried Bosphorus on Friday night and opted to sit at the bar, though we probably could have sat right down at a table. We had the veggie Meze platter — most of which was delicious — super-​cuminy hummus, delish yogurt/​cuke dip (they even gave us a refill), lentil cake thingys, and other deliciousness. The only thing we didn’t care for was the eggplant, which promised to be charbroiled but tasted kinda like nothing. Plenty of food on the Meze so we split the vegetarian pasta dish for the entrée. It was salty, warm, and yummy.
Overall, pretty darn good! No beer on tap, but I think they said they would have ti sometime soon. Will be back for sure.

To all the people who wrote non-​stellar reviews: Either this place has multiple chefs or you don’t know what good Turkish food is supposed to taste like…
Anyway, I have only been once… I had the iskender and it was the best iskender I ever had in the US actually. The meat was cut thin like it’s supposed to be. It didn’t smell like lamb and my meal didn’t come cold… So far so good.
The service was average in my opinion. The place was a little empty but they just opened… and people probably don’t know about it yet…
It was a bit on the pricy side… Still the best Turkish restaurant in town in terms of décor and food.

Beautiful place, excellent service, but terribly mediocre food.
The Greek salad was artfully presented, but lacked any discernible dressing. It was also exceptionally light on romaine. The Feta cheese was pleasantly cubed, but was not flavorful. ⁴⁄₁₀. $ 8
The baby eggplant appetizer looked about right, but the taste was off. A rancid bitterness permeated the flesh and the vegetable stuffing suffered from an alarming lack of flavor. ³⁄₁₀. $ 6
My gf and I opted for the mixed kebab main course which consisted of a lamb chop, two beef skewers and a chicken skewer. The meat was thoroughly cooked, but had very little flavor overall. The beef was especially underseasoned. Perhaps most off-​putting, the chicken was injected with a gooey cheese reminiscent of a Pizza-​Hut stuffed crust pizza. ²⁄₁₀ $ 24.
After picking at the kebab for a few minutes, the very attentive waitress came over and asked our opinion of the dish. I gave her my honest assessment, and she promptly and apologetically took it off the bill. Then, the very pleasant host asked if he could get the chef to make another dish on the house. We thanked him for his kindness, but neither of us could eat by that point. Service ¹⁰⁄₁₀.
Bottom line: In an area with an embarrassment of riches when it comes to dining, Bosphorus will need to improve greatly to survive. I sincerely hope they do.

You can’t force love.
I so wanted to love this place after reading about it and telling all my friends. Unfortunately, I only like it. Oh no Bosphorus… you’re in the FRIEND ZZZZONE!
This place is like a beautiful woman without much substance or personality. The setting and décor are beautiful… that coupled with some dim lighting and funky Middle Eastern tunes make for a very nice ambiance. Service was equally good and the menu was tastefully presented and enticing. Someone has to tell the management here though that the silly white paper signage on the window outside does this place no justice… I know its temporary, but come on! Hello? Ever hear of Kinkos?!? I did mention it to my server (she laughed politely).
Now the food (i.e., the substance):
– Mezze plate: this was good but nothing really outstanding. Just sort of standard mezze fare… nothing really prepared in a particularly good or memorable way. But a perfectly fine appetizer though if its what you are in the mood for (i.e., Hummos, yogurt and eggplant dips and the like)
– Imam bayaldi: good but lacked flavor. Again, can’t really find fault but this didn’t really leave much of an impression. Good Imam Bayildi usually does.
– Manti: This could have been the best thing I tried on the menu but it too had some flaws… the tomato sauce was a bit soupy and I would prefer fewer but larger ravioli pieces… after a while this started tasting (dare I say) a bit Boyardee.
– Doner Kebab: The most disappointing aspect of the meal and the yardstick by which I measure Turkish joints. I asked for a sandwich (which admittedly is off-​menu for dinner) and they accommodated the request. What I got was shaved meat slices and lettuce in a tough pita roll… not sure if this is how they serve it at lunch but the result was very underwhelming. No sauce??? No seasoning? I was pretty disappointed.
All in all, my heart was left broken but I still can say this is a decent place to eat and definitely worth trying. I will be back someday but I’m not in that much of a hurry.

The service was wonderful! 5 stars for service!
2.5 stars for the food. Some of their food was really good, others were just okay.
The borek was really good! Perfect amount of crispiness! Yum!
Also, when you sit down, they give you pita bread with a dipping sauce. The dipping sauce is really good. it has the perfect amount of spiciness.
My friends and I all had some sort of veggies on our plates. We all agreed that the vegetables tasted overcooked. Mushy.
The patlican ciftlik (eggplant) was okay.
Overall, 3.5 stars.

Yummy, yummy, yummy! Bosphorus is a welcome addition to the neighborhood and I can definitely see it being added to my regular rotation. I had the Bosphorus Bake (lamb cooked in tomato sauce and baked in phyllo dough), my friend had the Vegetable Casserole and we shared an order of Cacik (yogurt mixed with cucumbers and herbs) to start. The flavors were subtle and delicious. The portion size was perfect for me — enough to fill me up and yet not too much. I was very thankful for this because even if they had been bigger I would have wanted to clean my plate because the food was so good and that would have just lead to a stomachache!
They really care and are concerned with proper service and it shows. Even though they are pretty new and I’m sure are still working out the flow of everything this didn’t translate into any service related missteps.
Possibly my favorite part of dinner was my trip to the restroom. I don’t want to spoil the fun by sharing the details but I will say they came up with a unique solution to space constraints. I have a feeling some people might not like the set up at all but I think it’s bold and fun.
Really solid food and I can’t wait to go back for more because there is so much on the menu that I would like to try!

One of the best restaurants i’ve eaten out at in a long long time.
First off the place is beautiful! They did a fantastic job with a large space of making it feel smaller and more intimate.
The menu is large as well — they also do Lunch (yay!) and the general manager (Hakan) did a fantastic job of explaining the options and providing some personal input on what to order.
We ended up with the Maati (no idea how to spell this) it’s beef inside little pasta bundles, fantastic. The Chicken Shish and the stuff eggplant entrée… OH you must must get the stuffed mussels. Glorious.
Now on to dessert — glorious. I’m a huge baklava fan and this place did certainly deliver — there were three kinds, traditional (which was done very nicely — not too sweet) a more citrus-​y flavored one that looked like a little donut and the pistachio. Oh pistachio — how do i want that flavor in my mouth for the rest of the day… or week… or maybe even the month. It was fantastic.
Needless to say I will certainly be returning.