Feb 04
Monday
Beşaltı Kirvem Tantuni: Turkish for “Taquería”?
One of the big downsides to Istanbul’s otherwise great food scene is the lack of a credible Mexican option. We’re not asking for anything special, just a place that serves simple, tasty tacos or burritos. But when the craving for Mexican gets strong, we don’t despair; we just head down to the waterside neighborhood of Karaköy, home to Beşaltı Kirvem Tantuni, a hole-in-the-wall (literally) spot whose food and atmosphere remind us of the tiny taquerías in Mexico and the United States that we miss so much.
Beşaltı Kirvem is located in a ruined former Orthodox church in the heart of the old port district, an area still packed with import/export offices and frequented by stevedores waiting for work, whose streets have lately become the place for architecture and design offices. But the chic cafés and art galleries that have followed the buzz don’t seem to have threatened this old-school joint’s business. In fact, the recent gentrification of Karaköy has only made it harder to find a stool out front during lunchtime.
The rest of this previously featured review can be found on CulinaryBackstreets.com, here.
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no responses - Posted 05.13.13
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no responses - Posted 05.08.13
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no responses - Posted 04.30.13
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1 response - Posted 04.26.13
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1 response - Posted 04.15.13
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no responses - Posted 04.09.13
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Göreme Muhallebicisi: The Milkman Stayeth
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All entries filed under this archive
Ali Usta Kokoreç: Gut Master
no responses - Posted 08.21.12
Recently, while continuing our research into how kokoreç (grilled lamb intestines) became a fast-food staple in Istanbul, we were told by our favorite kelleci (vendor of cooked sheep’s head), Muammer Usta, about one of the oldest kokoreç masters around. Ali Usta’s shop is in Dolapdere, down the hill from the Tarlabaşı Sunday market and just ...continue
no responses - Posted 08.21.12
Recently, while continuing our research into how kokoreç (grilled lamb intestines) became a fast-food staple in Istanbul, we were told by our favorite kelleci (vendor of cooked sheep’s head), Muammer Usta, about one of the oldest kokoreç masters around. Ali Usta’s shop is in Dolapdere, down the hill from the Tarlabaşı Sunday market and just ...continue
Hacı Beşir Usta: The Raw and the Hooked
1 response - Posted 08.07.12
(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.) At Istanbul Eats HQ, the conversation comes up every once in a while about how çiğ köfte has emerged as a sort of fast-food franchising ...continue
1 response - Posted 08.07.12
(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.) At Istanbul Eats HQ, the conversation comes up every once in a while about how çiğ köfte has emerged as a sort of fast-food franchising ...continue
Istanbul Eats on the Road: Rotterdam’s Multiculti “Kapsalon”
3 responses - Posted 05.24.12
In Rotterdam, one of Europe’s most culturally mixed cities, you’d expect a more diverse street food scene. The Rotterdam diet does embrace shwarma, Vietnamese spring rolls and Turkish lahmacun, but then Dutchifies the food by dousing it with liberal squirts of mayo. Due to cultural assimilation or by catering to ...continue
3 responses - Posted 05.24.12
In Rotterdam, one of Europe’s most culturally mixed cities, you’d expect a more diverse street food scene. The Rotterdam diet does embrace shwarma, Vietnamese spring rolls and Turkish lahmacun, but then Dutchifies the food by dousing it with liberal squirts of mayo. Due to cultural assimilation or by catering to ...continue
Vahap Usta: The Man Who Would Be (Kokoreç) King, Pt. I
1 response - Posted 05.01.12
Vahap Usta pulled a pair of reading glasses from the inside pocket of a snug dinner jacket and sifted through a stack of newspaper clippings. Here was a full spread from a major daily paper proclaiming him the “King of Kokoreç” and another with him in his signature tuxedo and ...continue
1 response - Posted 05.01.12
Vahap Usta pulled a pair of reading glasses from the inside pocket of a snug dinner jacket and sifted through a stack of newspaper clippings. Here was a full spread from a major daily paper proclaiming him the “King of Kokoreç” and another with him in his signature tuxedo and ...continue
Bahar Lokantası (AKA “Mehmet Usta”): Have It His Way
no responses - Posted 03.12.12
Last week, we wrote about our new favorite cake from Fatih Sarmacısı. We’d had our eye on this vintage-looking cake shop for quite a while but hadn’t had the chance to stop in for a slice and really explore the area until recently. It was lunchtime when we set out ...continue
no responses - Posted 03.12.12
Last week, we wrote about our new favorite cake from Fatih Sarmacısı. We’d had our eye on this vintage-looking cake shop for quite a while but hadn’t had the chance to stop in for a slice and really explore the area until recently. It was lunchtime when we set out ...continue
Meşhur Unkapani IMÇ Pilavcisi: The (rice) Freaks Come Out at Night
no responses - Posted 07.06.11
One recent late night, zipping down a busy Istanbul thoroughfare in a taxi on our way home from the airport, we passed by an intriguing scene. Huddled around a brightly lit food cart was a large group of men stuffing their faces in a kind of zombie-like frenzy. It almost ...continue
no responses - Posted 07.06.11
One recent late night, zipping down a busy Istanbul thoroughfare in a taxi on our way home from the airport, we passed by an intriguing scene. Huddled around a brightly lit food cart was a large group of men stuffing their faces in a kind of zombie-like frenzy. It almost ...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
Istanbul’s Top 5 Lahmacun Makers: #5 – İsmail Kebapçısı
no responses - Posted 03.21.11
(Editor's Note: A recent article about a spat between Turkey and Greek Cyprus over who owns the rights to claim lahmacun as their own got us thinking about those minced-meat covered discs of dough and how, when done right, they really are something worth fighting over. So, prompted by the ...continue
no responses - Posted 03.21.11
(Editor's Note: A recent article about a spat between Turkey and Greek Cyprus over who owns the rights to claim lahmacun as their own got us thinking about those minced-meat covered discs of dough and how, when done right, they really are something worth fighting over. So, prompted by the ...continue
Istanbul Eats Cooks: Sabırtaşı’s İçli Köfte
4 responses - Posted 03.18.11
Several years back, before İstiklal became an open-air shopping mall and walking down the boulevard past Galatasaray still had a certain kind of frisson to it, reaching old man Sabırtaşı’s streetside içli köfte stand felt like pulling into a safe harbor. Always standing there was the beatific Ali Bey, an ...continue
4 responses - Posted 03.18.11
Several years back, before İstiklal became an open-air shopping mall and walking down the boulevard past Galatasaray still had a certain kind of frisson to it, reaching old man Sabırtaşı’s streetside içli köfte stand felt like pulling into a safe harbor. Always standing there was the beatific Ali Bey, an ...continue
Sabırtaşı’s İçli Köfte: Handmade in Beyoğlu
no responses - Posted 03.14.11
(Editor's Note: We've recently been given access to one of Istanbul's most inner sanctums: the kitchen of Beyoğlu's Sabırtaşı, where we were shown how to make the restaurant's superlative içli köfte, winner of our "Top 5 Street Foods" contest from a while back. We will be sharing the recipe on ...continue
no responses - Posted 03.14.11
(Editor's Note: We've recently been given access to one of Istanbul's most inner sanctums: the kitchen of Beyoğlu's Sabırtaşı, where we were shown how to make the restaurant's superlative içli köfte, winner of our "Top 5 Street Foods" contest from a while back. We will be sharing the recipe on ...continue
