W Istanbul unveiled its latest nightlife and culinary experience. The newly opened OKKA serves Turkish classics, created by Master Chef Tolga Atalay in a contemporary bistro setting. Dishes include pomegranate marinated chicken, rose petal crème brûleé, fried semolina stuffed with lamb, as well as mezze specialties and 25 variations of kebab. OKKA also offers the widest collection of locally produced wines in Istanbul, and Turkey’s only self-pour Raki service.
In a typical W take on tradition fused with technology, OKKA features the world’s first three-dimensional holographic belly dancer — a futuristic image that contrasts with the restaurant’s burnished leather wallpaper, alabaster marble bar, etched smoked mirror inlays and azure columns.
Minyon, which opened in 2011, offers stylishly casual dining in the hands of Chef Emre Capa, one of the rising culinary stars on Istanbul’s contemporary dining scene. The popular bar and restaurant is known for its creative international cuisine, complemented by live DJ performances and surprising street art by emerging local artists. Clued-in locals look forward to the buzzing yet intimate parties at Minyon on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday nights.
In four years, Starwood Hotels and Resorts has grown its global luxury room count by 75 percent. In 2012, more than 60 percent of Starwood’s new hotels will be in the luxury and upper-upscale segment. In Europe, Middle East and Africa, Starwood continues to expand its W Hotels brand into some of the world’s most exciting and vibrant destinations, and the recent opening of W Paris — Opéra marks the sixth W hotel in the region. Starwood will open two additional W Hotels in Europe next year with the new W Milan and the brand’s first ski resort, W Verbier in Switzerland.
Starwood currently operates seven hotels throughout Turkey, including four in Istanbul — the newly opened Le Méridien Istanbul Etiler, W Istanbul, Sheraton Istanbul Maslak Hotel and Sheraton Istanbul Atakoy Hotel, as well as Sheraton Ankara Hotel & Convention Centre, Sheraton Cesme Hotel Resort & Spa, and The Lugal, a Luxury Collection hotel. The company is set to open three new hotels in Turkey in the next few years — Sheraton Adana Hotel, Sheraton Bursa Hotel, and Aloft Bursa.
