Jun 05
Friday
Akdeniz Hatay Sofrası
The only positive thing about the torturous annual visit we make to Istanbul’s main police station in order to renew our residence permit is the chance to drive through the low-rent Aksaray neighborhood.It’s home to dozens of intriguing off-the-beaten-path restaurants, most of them opened by migrants from other parts of Turkey. On our last trip through the area, we noticed a large, newish-looking sign belonging to a restaurant called Akdeniz Hatay Sofrası.
Hatay is the name of Turkey’s southernmost province, an area bounded by the Mediterranean and the border with Syria. Until the 1930s, the Hatay region was actually part of Syria, and the food from there is closer in spirit and flavor to what is found on menus in Aleppo or Damascus. Hatay, the restaurant, is run by a family that hails from the area and does brisk business serving up authentic and very good food from the region. On the several occasions that we’ve been there, the two-floor restaurant was packed with large groups, mostly families who also originally came to Istanbul from Hatay, sitting at long tables covered with countless plates of food.
Read the rest of the updated review at Culinary Backstreets.
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Recent Posts
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Hanging On to History: Edible Nostalgia in Samatya
no responses - Posted 05.08.18
That much of the past seems to stick to Samatya is a marvel in Istanbul, a city being rebuilt and “restored” at an alarming pace. First, there’s the question of its name. Occupying a stretch of the Marmara Sea and squeezed between the old city walls and Kumkapı, an area home to a rotating cast of eclectic restaurants, the neighborhood still ... continue -
Spring Surprises: Skewering the First Fruits in Istanbul
no responses - Posted 04.25.18
It was the first of April and an absolutely pristine Istanbul spring day, the kind where one can break a slight sweat walking up a hill then catch a cool breeze in a nearby patch of shade. Returning to the city from a lovely weekend on Büyükada, we were smitten with spring and wanted to indulge in its finest offerings. In ... continue -
Farewell, Pando: An Istanbul Culinary Legend Passes On
no responses - Posted 04.16.18
It’s Saturday around lunchtime and business as usual in the bustling Beşiktaş Çarşı neighborhood, as crowds of mostly younger people fill the narrow streets. Down on Mumcu Bakkal Sokak, a pedestrian-only street lined with miniscule shops, a line around the block has been formed by those eager to get into one of the city’s best döner spots. For many of those ... continue -
Bağdat Ocakbaşı: Licensed to Grill
no responses - Posted 04.09.18
Istanbul’s T1 tramway is relatively pleasant if you can find a seat, but borders on unbearable if you are on your feet. Back in 2015, we wrote about a trip we took from the line’s first stop all the way to one of its last, which lies way out in the district of Güngören. By the time the tram has made ... continue -
Dose & Istos Café: Greek Revival
no responses - Posted 03.30.18
A café at its best is so much more than the sum of its parts: it’s a place where people can easily mingle, share ideas, and dertleşmek, or commiserate over their troubles, all while imbibing caffeine. At the same time, it’s a place where visitors might feel an invisible thread of common beliefs connecting them, an unspoken camaraderie, even if ... continue -
Back to the Land: Urban Turks Tackle Rural Life
no responses - Posted 03.23.18
When Buket Ulukut first moved from Istanbul to a rural plot of land in the foothills of the Taurus Mountains in southern Turkey, she was leading a double life. “I’d be taking calls from clients in Europe while out amidst the rows of peppers and eggplants, hoping they didn’t hear the rooster crowing in the background,” says Ulukut, who worked in ... continue -
Semt Pazarları, Civic Life Perfected
no responses - Posted 03.09.18
“Two kilos five liraaa! Two kilos five liraaa!” bellowed a young and exuberant vendor of tomatoes to the ongoing stream of frugal-minded shoppers making their way through the snaking Tarlabaşı Sunday Market. Hundreds of sellers of fresh produce, dairy, seafood, kitchenware, clothing, smuggled tobacco, jewelry, fresh baked goods and numerous other items set up side by side in the central Istanbul ... continue
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Hanging On to History: Edible Nostalgia in Samatya
All entries filed under this archive
Hatay Has Kral Sofrası: Kebab’s Krib
no responses - Posted 07.02.13
In our imaginary primetime lineup, a reality show called “Pimp My Kebab Salon” transforms a drab kebab shop into a grill palace suited to the tastes of the latter-day sultans. Surfaces are suddenly gilded in gold, fountains appear and everything is reupholstered under the watchful eye of the boisterous host ...continue
no responses - Posted 07.02.13
In our imaginary primetime lineup, a reality show called “Pimp My Kebab Salon” transforms a drab kebab shop into a grill palace suited to the tastes of the latter-day sultans. Surfaces are suddenly gilded in gold, fountains appear and everything is reupholstered under the watchful eye of the boisterous host ...continue
The Grand Bazaar: Come for the Shopping, Stay for the Food
7 responses - Posted 05.16.11
We like to think of Istanbul’s Grand Bazaar – open since 1461 – as the world’s oldest shopping mall. If that’s the case, shouldn’t the Grand Bazaar be home to the world’s oldest food court? That may be taking the analogy too far, but for us, the Grand Bazaar can ...continue
7 responses - Posted 05.16.11
We like to think of Istanbul’s Grand Bazaar – open since 1461 – as the world’s oldest shopping mall. If that’s the case, shouldn’t the Grand Bazaar be home to the world’s oldest food court? That may be taking the analogy too far, but for us, the Grand Bazaar can ...continue
Hatay Has Kral Sofrası: Kebab’s Krib
no responses - Posted 05.09.11
In our imaginary primetime lineup, a reality show called “Pimp My Kebab Salon” transforms a drab kebab shop into a grill palace suited to the tastes of the latter-day sultans. Surfaces are suddenly gilded in gold, fountains appear and everything is reupholstered under the watchful eye of the boisterous host ...continue
no responses - Posted 05.09.11
In our imaginary primetime lineup, a reality show called “Pimp My Kebab Salon” transforms a drab kebab shop into a grill palace suited to the tastes of the latter-day sultans. Surfaces are suddenly gilded in gold, fountains appear and everything is reupholstered under the watchful eye of the boisterous host ...continue
Meşhur Kanatçı Haydar’ın Yeri: Wing Nuts
no responses - Posted 11.08.10
Editor’s note: This guest post was written by Salih Seçkin Sevinç, creator of the fantastic Turkish-language food blog Harbi Yiyorum (loosely translated as “Eating, For Real”) and the man behind our recent mouthwatering series of reports from Gaziantep. Kanatçı Haydar started providing services in the chicken wings sector beginning in 1996, ...continue
no responses - Posted 11.08.10
Editor’s note: This guest post was written by Salih Seçkin Sevinç, creator of the fantastic Turkish-language food blog Harbi Yiyorum (loosely translated as “Eating, For Real”) and the man behind our recent mouthwatering series of reports from Gaziantep. Kanatçı Haydar started providing services in the chicken wings sector beginning in 1996, ...continue
Musa Ustam: Sinfully Good Kebab
3 responses - Posted 09.13.10
“What would you say if I offered you a very tender lamb filet marinated in garlic?” a voice boomed from behind the grill, its source obscured by an ornate copper hood decorated with a scene of kebab heaven – sheep, shepherd and steppe. Was this Saint Peter in kebapci disguise ...continue
3 responses - Posted 09.13.10
“What would you say if I offered you a very tender lamb filet marinated in garlic?” a voice boomed from behind the grill, its source obscured by an ornate copper hood decorated with a scene of kebab heaven – sheep, shepherd and steppe. Was this Saint Peter in kebapci disguise ...continue
Urfali Haci Usta: In the Bosom of Abraham
2 responses - Posted 08.09.10
Like Turkish foreign policy, we could easily be accused of “tilting east” these days. Just after making our way to Fatih’s Öz Kilis, we soon found ourselves trawling the streets of the nearby Aksaray neighborhood in search of food from another southeastern Turkish city near the Syrian border, in this ...continue
2 responses - Posted 08.09.10
Like Turkish foreign policy, we could easily be accused of “tilting east” these days. Just after making our way to Fatih’s Öz Kilis, we soon found ourselves trawling the streets of the nearby Aksaray neighborhood in search of food from another southeastern Turkish city near the Syrian border, in this ...continue
Öz Kilis: Kebab That Deserves to Be Panned
4 responses - Posted 08.02.10
In Turkish popular lore, the denizens of Kilis, a town in southeastern Turkey right near the Syrian border, are known for two things: kebab-making and smuggling. We haven’t been to Kilis, so we can’t vouch for the smuggling bit. But we did recently have lunch at Öz Kilis, a wonderful ...continue
4 responses - Posted 08.02.10
In Turkish popular lore, the denizens of Kilis, a town in southeastern Turkey right near the Syrian border, are known for two things: kebab-making and smuggling. We haven’t been to Kilis, so we can’t vouch for the smuggling bit. But we did recently have lunch at Öz Kilis, a wonderful ...continue
Istanbul Eats on the Road: Antakya’s Sultan Sofrasi
1 response - Posted 04.06.10
(Editor's Note: This guest post came to us courtesy of Katie Parla, a Rome-based food writer whose blog, Parla Food, is a great resource regarding eating in both Italy and Turkey. Katie's is the first post in a new feature called "Istanbul Eats on the Road," in which we plan ...continue
1 response - Posted 04.06.10
(Editor's Note: This guest post came to us courtesy of Katie Parla, a Rome-based food writer whose blog, Parla Food, is a great resource regarding eating in both Italy and Turkey. Katie's is the first post in a new feature called "Istanbul Eats on the Road," in which we plan ...continue
The Grand Bazaar: Come for the Shopping, Stay for the Food
12 responses - Posted 07.15.09
We like to think of Istanbul’s Grand Bazaar – open since 1461 – as the world’s oldest shopping mall. If that’s the case, shouldn’t the Grand Bazaar be home to the world’s oldest food court? That may be taking the analogy too far, but for us, the Grand Bazaar can ...continue
12 responses - Posted 07.15.09
We like to think of Istanbul’s Grand Bazaar – open since 1461 – as the world’s oldest shopping mall. If that’s the case, shouldn’t the Grand Bazaar be home to the world’s oldest food court? That may be taking the analogy too far, but for us, the Grand Bazaar can ...continue
Akdeniz Hatay Sofrası: The Syrian Connection
12 responses - Posted 04.20.09
The only positive thing about the torturous annual visit we make to Istanbul’s main police station in order to renew our residence permit is the chance to drive through the low-rent Aksaray neighborhood, home to dozens of intriguing off-the-beaten path restaurants, most of them opened by migrants from other parts ...continue
12 responses - Posted 04.20.09
The only positive thing about the torturous annual visit we make to Istanbul’s main police station in order to renew our residence permit is the chance to drive through the low-rent Aksaray neighborhood, home to dozens of intriguing off-the-beaten path restaurants, most of them opened by migrants from other parts ...continue
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