ISTANBUL’s street food and drinks;
AYRAN: Cold yogurt and water mixed with salt is definitely an acquired taste for most westerners, but Turks love it. McDonalds even sells their own version in Turkey. Where can I find it? Ayran is best paired with meat dishes. Choose any small kebab seller on the street, wash your meal down with this drink, and feel like a real Turk.
SALEP: This drink is exclusive; it’s only sold in the winter months! If you’re in Istanbul when the temperature drops, don’t miss out on this sweet milky drink sprinkled with cinnamon. Orchid roots were the original thickeners, but you’re more likely to encounter corn starch these days. Don’t worry- it tastes exactly the same! Where can I find it? Cozy up in any Kahve Dunyasi and if the salep’s not enough, grab one of the other hundred treats they offer to satisfy your sweet tooth.
RAKI: This is a strong, clear, anise-flavored spirit, similar to Greek ouzo and French pastis. Most people drink it by adding cold water and ice cubes (in that order), which gives rakı its chalky white look. Hence why people also call it lion’s milk. The most popular brands are Yeni, Efe and Tekirdağ. Locals usually consume rakı while enjoying mezes and fish.
BOZA: This seasonal fermented drink appears in various incarnations from the Balkans to Central Asia. In Istanbul, boza is made from millet that has been boiled, crushed, and strained. The result is a thick liquid, which is fermented and ultimately garnished with cinnamon and roasted chickpeas. Popularized during the Ottoman period, boza is made mainly during the winter and sold by mobile vendors and from small shops or cafes.
SERBET: Şerbet is a beverage of ancient origins, which is made by infusing liquid with herbs, fruits, flowers, resins, or honey. Istanbul’s old-school şerbet vendors serve it from flasks on the street, though the custom is disappearing. Thankfully, the drink has been somewhat revived by a handful of new cafes and simple eateries that embrace Ottoman and Anatolian traditions.
BALIK-EKMEK: Balık-ekmek, literally fish-bread, is a cheap sandwich composed of grilled fish (usually mackerel or a similarly oily catch), onions, tomato, and lettuce. They are typically served from venues ranging from portable grills beside the Sea of Marmara to rocking boats on the Golden Horn, and to slightly more formal (but still completely casual) venues along the Bosphorus. The most famous vendors serve balık-ekmek from boats in Eminönü beside Galata Bridge. There, the sandwiches are undeniably cheap, but the quality of the fish is abysmal. For a slight improvement in quality, head up the Bosphorus for sandwiches sold near ferry landings and at cafes at the edge of the water. Regardless of where you find balık-ekmek, wash the sandwich down with şalgam, a salty and tangy drink made from fermented carrots and turnips.
GOZLEME: Like many of Istanbul's fast foods, these savory hand-rolled crepes have their origins in Anatolia. They are best when filled and grilled to order. The thinly rolled dough is folded around the fillings of your choice (chard, white cheese, potatoes, onions, or even meat), then seasoned with butter as it cooks. Live gözleme production — featuring women in archaic dress rolling dough in storefront windows — is a ploy used to entice visitors into tourist traps in Istanbul's historic districts, but there are plenty of markets that sell better quality crepes.
TURSU: Pickles are a beloved feature of the city's cuisine, and pickling offers the possibility of preserving fruits and vegetables year-round, a necessity due to Turkey's natural abundance. The city's historic shops peddle all sorts of pickled produce, from plums and tomatoes to garlic and whole ears of corn. Depending on the shop or the item, the pickling liquid may be vinegar or salt brine. Every shop sells pickles to take away or to consume on the spot, ideally plunged into a glass of brine and seasoned with pickled peppers for an extra kick.
ISLAK BURGER: Mystery meat patties are served on spongy buns, which have been doused in a sweet tomato and onion sauce, then left to steam in glass cases. These so-called "wet burgers" cost the equivalent of about a buck and are sold 24 hours a day from the shops in the southwest corner of Taksim Square. Though they are available around the clock, there's an unsurprising surge on wet burgers right around the time the bars close.
DİLLİ KASARLI TOST: Essentially a grilled cheese sandwich enriched with slivers of beef tongue, dilli kaşarlı tost falls into Istanbul's much-beloved category of "drunk food," ideally consumed standing around Taksim Square in a rakı-induced haze. The sandwich is by no means strictly for the intoxicated, and plenty of cafes serve it all day long, but consumption spikes when the bars in Beyoğlu shut down and the masses converge on Taksim's southwest edge for alcohol-absorbing snacks.
KOKOREC: This grilled offal delicacy, which is popular throughout Turkey, Greece, and the Balkans, consists of lamb's intestines wrapped around innards such as sweetbreads. The resulting loaf-like product is roasted, then sliced, chopped, and cooked on a grill with diced tomato, spices, and dried herbs. Kokoreçis best when made from young lambs, but the demand by large chains often leads to older animals being used instead, leading to a gamier quality than the milder, younger offal. Kokoreç stalls are particularly present near the city's bazaars, offering a cheap and quick lunch for shoppers and vendors to enjoy on the fly.
#Privateistanbulwalkingtours
#turkeyistanbultours
#OnTripAdvisor.
www.privateistanbulwalkingtours.com
www.turkey-istanbultours.com
Private tours in Istanbul, Istanbul tours, Istanbul tour, walking tours in Istanbul, food tours in Istanbul, Ephesus Tours, Cappadocia tours, Gallipoli tours, Turkey tours and Tripadvisor Istanbul tours.
