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Editor’s Note: In honor of the Labor Day holiday, we are reposting our archived look at the esnaf lokantası, Turkey’s gift to the working man and woman. While in many parts of the world lunch during the workweek means eating an uninspiring sandwich or salad inside a lonely cubicle at the office, workers in Turkey have the esnaf lokantası (“tradesman’s restaurant” in Turkish). Outfitted with a steam table that usually holds dozens of ready-made and utterly homey dishes, it is much more than simply a canteen. In reality, it is the place that keeps a hungry nation going. Click here [2] to read reviews of five of our favorite esnaf lokantaları in Istanbul.