Aug 19
Friday
Öz Develi Etli Pide Salonu: From the Wrong Side of the Tracks
Tarlabaşı: These days, this run-down neighborhood in the rapidly gentrifying Beyoğlu district is the focus of a tug of war between preservationists and developers, with an impoverished population caught in the middle. While some cast the place as nothing more than a den of thieves, junkies, prostitutes and terrorists, many people who really know Tarlabaşı have experienced the vivid juxtaposition of village life in an ultra-urban setting that is the brutal charm of the place. Nelson Algren could have been talking about Tarlabaşı in his epic ode to the slums when he compared Chicago to a woman with a broken nose: “You may find lovelier lovelies but never a lovely so real.”
In almost a decade of living in or near this neighborhood we’ve come to appreciate its blemished beauty, but, as much as we’d tried, we had never managed to find a restaurant worth mentioning.
Then came a tip from a reader promising great pide just off of Ömer Hayyam Caddesi on the Tarlabaşı market street, Kurdela Sokak. Continue…
In case you didn’t know, Istanbul Eats now lives over at Culinary Backstreets. Same great culinary walks, same great culinary writing. You’ll be redirected there in a few seconds!
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Quick Look
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
Govinda’s Vejeteryan Evi: Veg Out
4 responses - Posted 07.25.11
(Editor's Note: Unfortunately, this restaurant is now closed.) Step out of the dingy stairwell of the Rumeli Han and into Govinda’s Vejeteryan Evi and you will feel as if you’ve crossed a cosmic divide. The warm and cozy room has café tables, pillowed floor seating, walls covered with a friendly looking ...continue
4 responses - Posted 07.25.11
(Editor's Note: Unfortunately, this restaurant is now closed.) Step out of the dingy stairwell of the Rumeli Han and into Govinda’s Vejeteryan Evi and you will feel as if you’ve crossed a cosmic divide. The warm and cozy room has café tables, pillowed floor seating, walls covered with a friendly looking ...continue
Lagmania: Eating with the Uighurs of Zeytinburnu
5 responses - Posted 07.11.11
(Editor’s Note: In almost a decade of intrepid eating in Istanbul, we still miss the immigrant community restaurants we know from the American big cities where language barriers and foreign customs make a lunch into a real adventure. Istanbul has foreign communities and it has foreign restaurants but the two ...continue
5 responses - Posted 07.11.11
(Editor’s Note: In almost a decade of intrepid eating in Istanbul, we still miss the immigrant community restaurants we know from the American big cities where language barriers and foreign customs make a lunch into a real adventure. Istanbul has foreign communities and it has foreign restaurants but the two ...continue
Istanbul Eats on the Road: Putting the “Pit” Back into Pit Stop
1 response - Posted 07.01.11
When traveling by bus in Turkey, we tend to get anxious as the dinner hour approaches. As the bus downshifts, through the mesh shades we see a gleaming rest area/cafeteria/gas station/carwash facility specifically constructed for cross-country bus traffic. We feel trapped, robbed of the chance to eat at a local ...continue
1 response - Posted 07.01.11
When traveling by bus in Turkey, we tend to get anxious as the dinner hour approaches. As the bus downshifts, through the mesh shades we see a gleaming rest area/cafeteria/gas station/carwash facility specifically constructed for cross-country bus traffic. We feel trapped, robbed of the chance to eat at a local ...continue
Ehli Kebap: Slurper’s Delight
no responses - Posted 06.27.11
Southeastern Turkey’s culinary mecca of Gaziantep is best known for its baklava and kebabs. But lately we’ve been thinking that it's soup that may actually be the city’s real crowning glory. Not just any old soup, mind you, but beyran çorbası, a stupendously delicious lamb-based broth that is usually slurped ...continue
no responses - Posted 06.27.11
Southeastern Turkey’s culinary mecca of Gaziantep is best known for its baklava and kebabs. But lately we’ve been thinking that it's soup that may actually be the city’s real crowning glory. Not just any old soup, mind you, but beyran çorbası, a stupendously delicious lamb-based broth that is usually slurped ...continue
Istanbul Eats on the Road: The Magic Meat of Keşan
2 responses - Posted 06.20.11
Editor’s note: This guest post comes courtesy of Salih Seçkin Sevinç, author of the great Turkish-language food blog Harbi Yiyorum (loosely translated as “Eating, For Real”). On my last two journeys to the Gallipoli region, I made sure to make a stop along the way for satır et, an awesome dish ...continue
2 responses - Posted 06.20.11
Editor’s note: This guest post comes courtesy of Salih Seçkin Sevinç, author of the great Turkish-language food blog Harbi Yiyorum (loosely translated as “Eating, For Real”). On my last two journeys to the Gallipoli region, I made sure to make a stop along the way for satır et, an awesome dish ...continue
Özkonak: The Real Pudding Shop
no responses - Posted 04.25.11
(Editor's Note: This review originally appeared on June 12, 2009.) Regulars at Özkonak, a well-loved fixture in Cihangir’s ever-changing restaurant scene, must cluck in disapproval at the sight of a new generation of customers who walk right past the pudding display at the front and head for the steam table and ...continue
no responses - Posted 04.25.11
(Editor's Note: This review originally appeared on June 12, 2009.) Regulars at Özkonak, a well-loved fixture in Cihangir’s ever-changing restaurant scene, must cluck in disapproval at the sight of a new generation of customers who walk right past the pudding display at the front and head for the steam table and ...continue
Istanbul’s Top 5 Beaneries – #1: Hanımeli
no responses - Posted 04.23.11
1028th street in the already far-flung district of Gaziosmanpaşa might sound like a long distance to travel for a plate of beans. There are plenty of perfectly good beans to be eaten in less remote locations. But we’ve tried all of the big-name beans in this city, from Çamlıca to ...continue
no responses - Posted 04.23.11
1028th street in the already far-flung district of Gaziosmanpaşa might sound like a long distance to travel for a plate of beans. There are plenty of perfectly good beans to be eaten in less remote locations. But we’ve tried all of the big-name beans in this city, from Çamlıca to ...continue
Istanbul’s Top 5 Beaneries – #2: Hüsrev
no responses - Posted 04.22.11
(Editor's Note: This week we are celebrating the white bean, that humble legume that reaches levels of incredible complexity and flavor when in the hands of Turkish cooks. Until we visited some of Istanbul’s shrines to the baked bean, we generally regarded the dish as something eaten out of a can ...continue
no responses - Posted 04.22.11
(Editor's Note: This week we are celebrating the white bean, that humble legume that reaches levels of incredible complexity and flavor when in the hands of Turkish cooks. Until we visited some of Istanbul’s shrines to the baked bean, we generally regarded the dish as something eaten out of a can ...continue
Istanbul’s Top 5 Beaneries – #5: Erzincanlı Ali Baba
no responses - Posted 04.18.11
(Editor's Note: This week we are celebrating the white bean, that humble legume that reaches levels of incredible complexity and flavor when in the hands of Turkish cooks. Until we visited some of Istanbul’s shrines to the baked bean, we generally regarded the dish as something eaten out of a can ...continue
no responses - Posted 04.18.11
(Editor's Note: This week we are celebrating the white bean, that humble legume that reaches levels of incredible complexity and flavor when in the hands of Turkish cooks. Until we visited some of Istanbul’s shrines to the baked bean, we generally regarded the dish as something eaten out of a can ...continue
Since You Asked: Springtime Specialties?
no responses - Posted 04.08.11
Dear Istanbul Eats, I've heard that springtime finds some of Istanbul's restaurants with unique seasonal items on their menu. I know the weather hasn't quite turned yet, but when spring does come, I don't want to miss out on any of those dishes. Do you have some suggestions on what to ...continue
no responses - Posted 04.08.11
Dear Istanbul Eats, I've heard that springtime finds some of Istanbul's restaurants with unique seasonal items on their menu. I know the weather hasn't quite turned yet, but when spring does come, I don't want to miss out on any of those dishes. Do you have some suggestions on what to ...continue
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