Apr 26
Friday
A Workers’ Lunchtime Paradise Lost
In the realm of Turkey’s small businesses, the esnaf lokantası (tradesmen’s restaurant) hovers above everything like a uniting holy spirit. A good one certainly is divine in nature. Take just about any old esnaf lokantası, and you’re sure to encounter a community that only exists at that particular spot on earth.
At Tunçlar Lokantası, not far from Istanbul’s downtown area of Taksim Square, the workers from the small shops on Cumhuriyet Caddesi would share tables with the bureaucrats from TRT Radio. At the next table, an old locksmith from the streets off of Elmadağ Caddesi might share a loaf of bread with an independent bookkeeper who was still around thanks to paying stabilized rent in a charitable foundation-owned building. For all of the people who crowded the room on a regular basis, Tunçlar was the center of their Venn diagram, the point at which disparate lives overlapped for some good, honest home cooking.
The rest of this news story can be found on CulinaryBackstreets.com, here.
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Göreme Muhallebicisi: The Milkman Stayeth
no responses - Posted 05.13.13
In the world of chicken breast pudding (a traditional Turkish dessert made with thickened milk and thin strands of poached poultry), elasticity is the quality that the confection is judged upon above all else. Tucking into a real tavuk göğsü requires full concentration, a good bit of dexterity and the proper tool. A special spoon with a flat chopping nose ... continue -
Advice: Dining with Kids in Istanbul?
no responses - Posted 05.08.13
Dear Istanbul Eats, My husband and I are planning a visit to Istanbul with two little ones in tow. We love to be adventurous with food and want to explore the city’s culinary scene, but are also a bit concerned about finding “child-friendly” places to eat. Do you have any recommendations? We happen to be of the opinion that Istanbul is the ... continue -
Liman Uykuluk: Sweetbreads for the People
no responses - Posted 04.30.13
Though it may seem bewildering or even exotic to outsiders, Istanbul’s commercial life is actually organized according to a very old, guildlike system that assigns different neighborhoods to the sale and sometimes manufacture of different types of products. If you bottom out in a pothole and need a rot balans, you head up to the Oto Sanayi area. For kitchen ... continue -
A Workers’ Lunchtime Paradise Lost
1 response - Posted 04.26.13
In the realm of Turkey’s small businesses, the esnaf lokantası (tradesmen’s restaurant) hovers above everything like a uniting holy spirit. A good one certainly is divine in nature. Take just about any old esnaf lokantası, and you’re sure to encounter a community that only exists at that particular spot on earth. At Tunçlar Lokantası, not far from Istanbul’s downtown area of ... continue -
Perazin: That Old Meyhane Magic
1 response - Posted 04.15.13
In an opinion piece published recently in the Latitude blog of The New York Times, veteran Turkey correspondent Andrew Finkel’s brutally honest appraisal of the state of “New Turkish Cuisine” called much of Istanbul’s restaurant establishment – down to the customers – into question. We’ve had similar misgivings after meals in some upscale nouveau meyhanes where fussy food and too ... continue -
Heyamola Ada Lokantası: Island Time
no responses - Posted 04.09.13
Editor’s note: This post was written by “Meliz,” an intrepid explorer of Istanbul’s culinary backstreets and frequent Istanbul Eats guest contributor who would like to keep her anonymity. While the Princes’ Islands make for a great escape from the city, it used to be hard to think of them as a culinary destination. That is, until Heyamola Ada Lokantası opened. The ... continue -
Siirt Şeref Büryan Kebap Salonu: The Lamb Underground
2 responses - Posted 04.01.13
Kadınlar Pazarı – a pleasant, pedestrian-only square in Istanbul’s Fatih neighborhood – is the closest thing the city has to a “Little Kurdistan.” The area is populated by migrants from Turkey’s predominantly Kurdish southeast region, and small market stalls and butcher shops selling honey, cheeses, spices and other goodies from the region surround the square. Visiting the atmospheric area is ... continue
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Göreme Muhallebicisi: The Milkman Stayeth
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All entries filed under News
Istanbul’s Burger Battle Goes International
1 response - Posted 02.18.13
As we've previously chronicled, the Tünel end of Istanbul’s famed İstiklal Caddesi was some two years ago the site of a heated burger war. It all started when a former Turkish basketball-player-turned-restaurateur who had spent time studying in California opened up Mano Burger, a mostly successful recreation of the kind ...continue
1 response - Posted 02.18.13
As we've previously chronicled, the Tünel end of Istanbul’s famed İstiklal Caddesi was some two years ago the site of a heated burger war. It all started when a former Turkish basketball-player-turned-restaurateur who had spent time studying in California opened up Mano Burger, a mostly successful recreation of the kind ...continue
The Simits Take Manhattan (Again)
3 responses - Posted 01.30.13
Being big fans of simit – the sesame-encrusted bread ring that’s one of Turkey’s most popular street foods – we’ve looked on with delight over the last few years as the humble snack has made its way from Istanbul to the other metropolis with a 212 area code: Manhattan. First, ...continue
3 responses - Posted 01.30.13
Being big fans of simit – the sesame-encrusted bread ring that’s one of Turkey’s most popular street foods – we’ve looked on with delight over the last few years as the humble snack has made its way from Istanbul to the other metropolis with a 212 area code: Manhattan. First, ...continue
On the Anchovy Trail
1 response - Posted 01.14.13
We are unabashedly fanatical in our love of hamsi, or anchovies, a late fall/wintertime specialty whose arrival we eagerly await each year in Istanbul, where the tiny fish are most commonly served pan-fried, grilled or in pilaf. But as any hamsi aficionado knows, for the best anchovy-eating in Turkey one ...continue
1 response - Posted 01.14.13
We are unabashedly fanatical in our love of hamsi, or anchovies, a late fall/wintertime specialty whose arrival we eagerly await each year in Istanbul, where the tiny fish are most commonly served pan-fried, grilled or in pilaf. But as any hamsi aficionado knows, for the best anchovy-eating in Turkey one ...continue
IE’s First App in Saveur’s Top 100!
no responses - Posted 01.08.13
We are proud to announce that Saveur has included the Culinary Backstreets: Istanbul iPhone app in its “Saveur 100: Travel Edition” list, published in the magazine’s January/February 2013 issue. Saveur praised the app’s “smart search functions, integrated maps, and vivid photos,” calling it “the ideal portable portal to one of ...continue
no responses - Posted 01.08.13
We are proud to announce that Saveur has included the Culinary Backstreets: Istanbul iPhone app in its “Saveur 100: Travel Edition” list, published in the magazine’s January/February 2013 issue. Saveur praised the app’s “smart search functions, integrated maps, and vivid photos,” calling it “the ideal portable portal to one of ...continue
Seeking Your Best Bites of 2012
no responses - Posted 12.20.12
Continuing a tradition we began at Istanbul Eats in 2010, as we approach the end of the year, we’ll be publishing “Best Bites of 2012,” a roundup of our top culinary experiences over the last year that will appear on our sister website, CulinaryBackstreets.com. Submitted by CB’s correspondents in Istanbul, ...continue
no responses - Posted 12.20.12
Continuing a tradition we began at Istanbul Eats in 2010, as we approach the end of the year, we’ll be publishing “Best Bites of 2012,” a roundup of our top culinary experiences over the last year that will appear on our sister website, CulinaryBackstreets.com. Submitted by CB’s correspondents in Istanbul, ...continue
İnci Pastanesi: Remember the Cream Puff
no responses - Posted 12.11.12
We would have liked to like the profiterol at İnci Pastanesi, and to believe their claim that the profiterol was invented on the premises in the 1940s. But in fact, we’ve always appreciated İnci for non-culinary reasons. Until last week, this old-school Beyoğlu pastry shop had been spooning out cream ...continue
no responses - Posted 12.11.12
We would have liked to like the profiterol at İnci Pastanesi, and to believe their claim that the profiterol was invented on the premises in the 1940s. But in fact, we’ve always appreciated İnci for non-culinary reasons. Until last week, this old-school Beyoğlu pastry shop had been spooning out cream ...continue
IE on CBS!
no responses - Posted 11.19.12
Istanbul Eats co-founders Ansel Mullins and Yigal Schleifer recently spent a few days introducing a crew from the CBS Sunday Morning show to Istanbul’s gastronomic underbelly, at one point journeying in a rickety wooden boat on the Golden Horn in order to get to the next meal. Tagging along on ...continue
no responses - Posted 11.19.12
Istanbul Eats co-founders Ansel Mullins and Yigal Schleifer recently spent a few days introducing a crew from the CBS Sunday Morning show to Istanbul’s gastronomic underbelly, at one point journeying in a rickety wooden boat on the Golden Horn in order to get to the next meal. Tagging along on ...continue
Lunch Series: Istanbul’s Migrant Kitchens
4 responses - Posted 11.05.12
Istanbul is often billed as the city where “East meets West,” but to many it is a place where those geographies pass each other on the way in and out of town. Afghans, Iranians, sub-Saharan Africans, Bosnians, Bulgarians, Armenians, Filipinos and many other nationalities end up in Istanbul, struggling to ...continue
4 responses - Posted 11.05.12
Istanbul is often billed as the city where “East meets West,” but to many it is a place where those geographies pass each other on the way in and out of town. Afghans, Iranians, sub-Saharan Africans, Bosnians, Bulgarians, Armenians, Filipinos and many other nationalities end up in Istanbul, struggling to ...continue
An App Now on our Menu!
2 responses - Posted 09.03.12
We are proud to announce that the Istanbul Eats iPhone application is finally here! For almost a year we’ve been sorting through comments and suggestions from our readers to help us develop the ultimate iphone application for Istanbul Eats. We know Istanbul is a tough city to navigate, so our app’s ...continue
2 responses - Posted 09.03.12
We are proud to announce that the Istanbul Eats iPhone application is finally here! For almost a year we’ve been sorting through comments and suggestions from our readers to help us develop the ultimate iphone application for Istanbul Eats. We know Istanbul is a tough city to navigate, so our app’s ...continue
Introducing Culinary Backstreets
no responses - Posted 07.27.12
As some of our readers might already know, we recently launched a new venture: CulinaryBackstreets.com. The idea behind this new site is simple. When it comes to exploring a city’s authentic dining scene, while the stomach should ideally serve as the best compass, the truth of the matter is that ...continue
no responses - Posted 07.27.12
As some of our readers might already know, we recently launched a new venture: CulinaryBackstreets.com. The idea behind this new site is simple. When it comes to exploring a city’s authentic dining scene, while the stomach should ideally serve as the best compass, the truth of the matter is that ...continue
