Belisırma Star Restaurant

Belisırma Star Restaurant is a riverside dining platform in Belisırma village, positioned in the heart of the Ihlara Valley gorge in Aksaray province, Turkey. Like its neighbours, it capitalises on the extraordinary setting — wooden platform tables built over the Melendiz River, encircled by volcanic canyon walls rising steeply to either side — to create a dining experience defined as much by place as by food. The kitchen centres on fresh trout, with the house speciality being trout cooked in a tomato-based sauce, a regional preparation that distinguishes the restaurant from the plain-grilled options common elsewhere on the valley floor. The tomato sauce version is typically simmered with green peppers, onion, and spices in a cast-iron pan and brought to the table still bubbling. The menu also covers hand-rolled gözleme and mercimek çorbası (red lentil soup) — thick, spiced, and comforting — alongside seasonal salads. Village bread is baked on site. Seating is entirely informal; wooden benches and plastic chairs are arranged across the platform, with no dress code. The river flows beneath the planks, producing a constant cooling effect in summer. Operating seasonally from spring through autumn, the restaurant draws both trekkers completing the Ihlara Valley route and day visitors arriving by road to the village. No alcohol is served; Turkish çay, ayran, and fruit juice are the available beverages. Prices are modest and consistent with other valley establishments. Like all Belisırma restaurants, payment is best made in cash, as card terminals are not always operational in the gorge. The restaurant makes a natural stopping point for anyone completing the valley hike, offering a brief rest with reliable food and one of the most scenic lunch settings in Central Anatolia.