Owned and run by Onur Canbulat, Levan is a restaurant built on family land. With a garden adjacent to 15-year-old vineyards, white covers on the tables flapping in the breeze during the day, and the fairy lights shine in the evening, the place captivates you from the moment you arrive. Whether you’re gathering with friends or enjoying a romantic dinner, Levan is one of the candidates to be the background of pleasant moments remembered as “Oh, what a beautiful table it was!”
Reminiscent of scenes from the movies of world-famous director Ferzan Özpetek, Levan radiates warmth and familiarity in every detail, from the staff to the menu. If you are looking for a place with a friendly atmosphere where you feel comfortable and whose standards of taste are high, Levan is an excellent place. All the dishes are familiar, yet never monotonous: you can always feel the personal touch of the chefs. Sometimes, you’ll find a familiar dish with an unusual ingredient. Other times, a change in the presentation keeps excitement and the sense of discovery alive. While Canbulat ensures his customers a personal touch, he avoids intimidation.
The restaurant has been an integral part of Urla for years, even one of the first gastronomic values in the region. Moving to its current location in 2019, Levan is perfectly designed to be comfortable for year-round locals and summer and winter visitors. The restaurant’s interior is also full of family heirloom, warm and serene colors, and details that instantly put customers at ease. The menu undoubtedly accompanies this seasonal effect, but the dishes at Levan are not only seasonal, they change almost weekly! The menu is listed on a large blackboard, so that you can taste the various dishes using artichokes, şevketibostan (St. Benedict's thistle, a local green), lamb, or beetroot, depending on the season.
In Levan, they have a true passion for dough, so have some specialties too... Even the restaurant’s name, derived from the spelling of “levain,” meaning “starter dough,” is a testimony to this passion. Levan has a special pizza day every Sunday: they feature delicious pizzas made with seasonal ingredients alongside seasonal cold starters and salads. Sundays at Levan are great for families with children.
Being located next to vineyards, Levan offers wines from various vineyards along the Urla’s Vineyard Road. Onur Canbulat and his team enjoy recommending local wines to accompany regional dishes and talking to guests about all sorts of local ingredients. Canbulat says, “Whether guests come from America or Russia, there is something for everyone in the region’s cuisine. It makes me happy to understand what people like or are curious about, make suggestions, discuss anything related to gastronomy, and answer their questions.” He sincerely enjoys introducing guests to Urla’s gastronomic and oenological riches, and the warm atmosphere of his restaurant perhaps mirrors this aspect of Canbulat himself.
When it comes to Michelin starred restaurants, Teruar Urla has a unique place in the region. Part of the seven-room boutique hotel managed by Ezgi Serdaroğlu, the restaurant is situated on a simple but impressive plot of land and Chef Osman Serdaroğlu is meticulously curating the richness of Urla’s cuisine and wines here. With the view overlooking vineyards and olive groves, the restaurant’s large patio and terraces provide a wonderful outdoor dining experience during the spring, summer, and autumn. It’s worth mentioning that the restaurant’s simple yet romantic atmosphere is no coincidence. This place, designed with a stone house concept that fully reflects the region’s architecture, was the starting point of the couple’s dreams and the restaurant’s first dinner was Ezgi-Osman Serdaroğlu’s wedding reception. We can say that this restaurant is destined to host peaceful and beautiful gatherings forever…
80% of the ingredients used in the kitchen are sourced within a 60 km radius, but sometimes chef needs some specific flavors -as onion and garlic of Tokat or honey from the Black Sea region. The chef’s menu is characterized by dishes that combine local ingredients with international culinary techniques, especially Italian ones. Interpreting fresh pasta with seasonal local flavors, the chef’s Italian-styled touches are not surprising, considering that he trained at ALMA in Parma, worked for over two years at Gennaro Esposito’s two Michelin-starred restaurant, and then at Pino Cuttaia’s two-star Ristorante La Madia. Like other chefs from Urla who have made a name for themselves in the gastronomic area, Osman Serdaroğlu is open to global techniques but always chooses local, seasonal, fresh, and exceptionally high-quality ingredients.
Teruar Urla perfectly utilizes a variety of local herbs, fresh vegetables, and seafood. From octopus to cuttlefish, from crustaceans to fish, many of the region’s seafood are used for pasta dishes or stand alone for a perfect experience: The fact that the chef knows how to process Karaburun’s delicious tuna makes a real difference. Also, the chef has a passion for cheese, thus menu includes cheese-oriented strong options both in summer and winter.
Osman Serdaroğlu grew up in İzmir and knows the region well, so he understands local wines profoundly. This appreciation is evident in the restaurant: Teruar Urla has an extensive wine pairing range that offers something special for each tasting menu. Turkish Raki is not served at the restaurant for emphasizing the regional wines, but the chef uses it as a local ingredient and gives it a place in desserts.
The last detail that complements the simple but captivating atmosphere of Teruar Urla is the forms of the plates. The chef designs the ceramics and porcelains used in the restaurant himself, dreaming up forms for each dish and even crafting new designs as the menu changes. He knows that what is impressive is not extravagance but detail and care. As a chef, Osman Serdaroğlu makes sure to apply and enrich the perspective they collaboratively created with Ezgi Serdaroğlu in the kitchen, as his part. With this beautiful harmony, Teruar Urla invites you to enjoy its Michelin-starred dishes in the serene ambiance of the garden that surrounds you as soon as you arrive…
Header : Levan, Exterior © Onur Canbulat/Levan
