The Best Seafood Near Esca, by the Record
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The refrigerated display counter at the front tells you everything before you sit down: this is a no-frills seafood restaurant on the Izmir waterfront, where the charcoal grill runs hot all day. Mezze arrive fresh, then the kitchen sends out whatever looked good on ice, flame-grilled with the kind of confidence that doesn't need a sauce. The quayside strip has no shortage of fish restaurants, and this one earns its place quietly.
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Tail fins of oversized fish hang from the ceiling as a casual statement of intent at this family-run seafood grill on the Urla coast. The uncle fishes, the father works the grill, the mother handles the mezze, and the son runs the floor, which means everyone is exactly where they should be. The Michelin Guide gave it a Bib Gourmand, and the shimmering sea visible from your table explains why.