Library of Istanbul

Heritage Hotel & Library — 12-Month Build

Roman · Byzantine · Ottoman · Republic — Four empires, one building
Project Start: March 2026
Target Opening: February 2027
7 rooms · 4 eras · 1 story
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2
Active Phases
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6
Pending Permits
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50
Ideas Captured
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10
Budget Items

Building Profile

Address: Hacı Beşir Tekkesi Çıkmazı No:8/1, Alemdar Mah., Fatih/İstanbul
Permitted Use: Pansiyon (Otel) — Yapı Ruhsatı 2025/4/0064
Owner: UP Kapital Danışmanlık A.Ş.
Total Area: 587.61 m² · Footprint 117.4 m²
Floors: 6 total (2 below road + 4 above) · Height 21.74m
Class/Group: V-C · Korunması Gerekli Kültür Varlığı (Protected Cultural Heritage)
Parcel: Pafta 90, Ada 31, Parsel 18 · Yapı Kimlik: 2772637679
Heritage Layers: Roman → Byzantine → Ottoman → Republic
Contractor: Mira Restorasyon İnşaat ve Danışmanlık Ltd. Şti. (Neslihan Yurttaş)
Site Chief: Yunus Demirbaş, İnşaat Mühendisi
Estimated Cost: ₺23,210,585 (₺38,900/m²)
Key Features: Brick barrel vaults, stone stairs, garden (bahçe)

Quick Timeline

Green = active phases

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Timeline & Milestones

12-month build schedule — March 2026 to February 2027
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Design & Architecture

7 rooms across 4 eras — Bodrum Kat to 3. Kat
7 rooms

Heritage Layers

Republic Era(1923–present)
Upper floors · Above road +12.77m (total height 21.74m)
Ottoman Era(1453–1923)
Mid floors · Timber frame (hımış) construction
Byzantine Era(330–1453)
Street level · Arched openings, brick vaulting
Roman Era(pre-330 CE)
Below road · 2 subterranean floors, -8.97m depth

📁 Drawing & Document References

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Ideas & Inspiration

Vision, concept, positioning, launch strategy, design philosophy, experiences
50

Capture a new idea

🍷

The Library Table

A hosted seasonal supper — Sam Buckley / Where The Light Gets In

The Library Table

This is not a restaurant. It is not open nightly. It is not a profit centre first. It is a cultural ritual.

8
Seats Max
2
Evenings / Week
3–5
Courses
€140–160
Per Person

Evening Flow

18:45
Gathering drink
→
19:15
Seated at table
→
19:30–21:30
3–5 courses
→
~22:00
Close

Culinary Direction (Sam-Aligned)

Anatolian Micro-Seasonality

Kars cheeses · Divle tulum · Kastamonu pastırma · Aegean greens · Black Sea anchovy · Urfa pepper · Wild herbs

Fermentation Thread

Pickled vegetables · Fermented dairy · Vinegars · Sherbet variations

Bread as Centrepiece

One serious bread · House cultured butter or clarified sheep butter

Protein (Optional)

One carefully sourced element · Not heavy, not steakhouse

Dessert

Light · Fruit-led · Ottoman-inspired but refined

Precision Micro-Kitchen

Service Team (3 total)

1 highly capable cook · 1 assistant · 1 front-of-house host

"If it requires 4 chefs, it's wrong."

The Anatolian Larder

Temperature-controlled pantry space — retail + narrative node.

Sam Buckley — Proposed Role

"Not replication of Where The Light Gets In — a culturally rooted Istanbul expression that shares its seriousness."

Financial Impact

€9–12k
Monthly Revenue
€800
ADR Justification
Only one
In Sultanahmet

No one in Sultanahmet is doing: serious fermentation, producer-led Anatolian sourcing, micro-supper model, intellectual dining environment.

What The Library Table Is Not

Not Michelin theatre · Not Turkish tasting menu clichés · Not meze night · Not tourist Ottoman nostalgia · Self-contained is elegance — if you cannot cook it properly in-house, it does not appear.

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FF&E & Interior Specification

Furniture, fixtures, equipment — room-by-room BOQ
0

"Reveal, don't decorate." — No cheap shortcuts. Every item must hold weight.

Bone Tobacco Deep Green Midnight Blue Faded Terracotta

Add FF&E Item

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Budget & Contractors

Cost tracking and team management

👷 Team & Contractors

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Permitting & Legal

Regulatory approvals for heritage hotel conversion
6

⚠️ Key Heritage Considerations

  • • All modifications require Koruma Kurulu (Heritage Council) pre-approval
  • • Archaeological monitoring likely required during any excavation near Roman foundations
  • • Facade changes must respect and preserve each era's visible layer
  • • MEP routing must be invisible within the heritage fabric
  • • Seismic retrofit must use methods compatible with historic masonry
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Architectural Drawings

Extracted from DWG — floor plans, cross-sections & elevations · Click to expand
Source files: balıkesirhan_6.11.2023.dwg (Architectural, AC1015) · Balıkesirhan_MEL+S_revize.dwg (MEP/Structural, AC1021)
Converted from AutoCAD DWG using LibreDWG · Scale 1:50 · Architect: Halil Onur Mimarlık
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Location & Context

The building in its neighbourhood — Istanbul's historic peninsula

Nearby Heritage Sites & Context

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History & Artefacts

Historical research, findings, and references — layered by era
0

Add historical reference or finding

Library of Istanbul — Heritage Hotel & Library Project — UP Creative Studio