Zorlu Center

Most Istanbul malls are boxes. Zorlu Center, beside the Zincirlikuyu junction in Beşiktaş, is the one that understands that a shopping centre can be a piece of urban design.

The concept is a canyon. A long central void runs the length of the building, cut into stacked terraces planted with trees and grass, crossed by bridges and escalators. It works — on a grey February afternoon you can stand on one level and see four others stacked above you through the branches, which is a genuinely pleasant way to spend an hour browsing. Architect AKP did the masterplan; the planted terraces are real, not renderings.

The anchor tenants reflect the neighbourhood: Apple Store, Boyner department store, Eataly, Decathlon, Moroccanoil, a good selection of Turkish fashion. The food is better than mall food has any right to be, and the basement cinema is well run.

The reason to come, though, is the terrace. On level 5, Zorlu PSM — Istanbul's premier performing arts centre — has a public terrace that is free, does not require a ticket, and looks west down the Bosphorus toward the fortress. At sunset with a drink it is one of the better free views in the city, and almost nobody knows it is there.

Get here on the M2 to Beşiktaş and walk five minutes through the underpass, or take the M1 tram to Zincirlikuyu.