Bosphorus, Çay and the Kiz Kulesi

In Istanbul, there are many outside spots where you can enjoy sipping your tulip-like glass of hot çay along the Bosphorus.

The breathtaking views along the Bosphorus never gets old to me! I love watching the boats pass by, men fishing along the Galata Bridge and families strolling along the waterfront.

My husband and I recently discovered a new location to drink our çay along the Bosphorus. One Sunday afternoon, we took a 10-minute ferryboat ride from Beşiktaş to Üsküdar – the quickest way to travel from Europe to Asia.

The seagulls soar right along the ferryboats.

Here, the vibe of the city instantly changes. The district of Üsküdar, Istanbul's oldest-established residential suburb, has a more relaxed atmosphere as well as being home to more traditional Turkish families. We saw few women who weren’t wearing headscarves and long trench coats.

Daily life in Üsküdar in Istanbul.

Along Üsküdar’s waterfront, the area is bustling with activity. Boats are arriving and departing about every 10 minutes. We strolled a bit through Üsküdar and then decided to follow the crowd along the waterfront.

Note: there are several mosques and a nice market area in Üsküdar that’s worth exploring if you have time.

After a 15-minute walk along the promenade south of Üsküdar, we discovered a busy çay bahçesi (tea garden) with one of the best views of Sultanahmet and the Kiz Kulesi (Maiden’s Tower). This small tower off the coast has existed since Byzantine times. You also can see the Topkapı Palace, Aya Sofya, the Blue Mosque, the Dolmabahçe Palace along the European shore.

At first, I tried to hold my çay and take a photo at the same time. To the left is the Kiz Kulesi (Maiden's Tower) and Sultanahmet is in the far background.

This çay bahçesi is filled with wooden benches and stretches along the Bosphorus towards the bus station at Harem. We pulled up a front-row seat, ordered our çay and spent an hour both reading our books.

A view of the tea garden and it's bleacher-like seating.

At 2 tl per glass of çay and 1 tl for a simit, this is a very cheap way to spend the afternoon. Plus, the Bosphorus view is priceless!

Where is your favorite location to enjoy the Bosphorus view in Istanbul?

Fisherman along the promenade near Üsküdar in Istanbul.

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A Perfect Afternoon for Turkish Çay

Today the brisk wind was gusting more than 15 mph.

I definitely was cold, and I had forgotten my wool hat at home. It’s supposed to be mid-April, but it almost feels like winter has returned.

As soon as I reached home, I decided I was going to enjoy a glass of Turkish çay to warm up my chilled bones. Turks seem to drink tea morning, afternoon and night. The guy trying to sell you a Turkish rug or silver jewelry will you offer you tea while you browse. Drinking çay is tightly woven into the fabric of life here.

I like çay and happily will drink it, but I haven’t taken to the tradition like Turks do.

Another tradition I’ve noticed is when I pass a cafe or a pastane people often are leisurely enjoying the afternoon with a glass of çay and something sweet. Today, I also decided to do that at home.

I stopped at one of my favorite baklavacı, Güllüoğlu, to grab a snack. Güllüoğlu, with several locations in Istanbul, is probably the city’s most well-known baklavacı selling several varieties of the phyllo dough-layered delicacy. The original Güllüoğlu shop is located in Karaköy, a commercial neighborhood in the Beyoğlu district of Istanbul. The original is separately owned from the other Güllüoğlu in the city, and you can if tell the difference in the packaging as the Karaköy Güllüoğlu has the Galata Tower in its logo.

Once home, I brewed my Turkish çay, opened my box of pistachio baklava and sat down to read a book. (I’m completely engrossed in “Under the Dome” by Stephen King right now.)

I indulged in 2 glasses of çay and 1 and a half pieces of the heavenly baklava, feeling that slight crunch of the countless layers of impossibly thin phyllo pastry and the gooey syrup while I ate.

Buttery pastry, pistachios and a sugary syrup - what else could a girl need on a cold afternoon?

Afiyet olsun!

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One Week of Good Eats in Istanbul

No trip to Istanbul would be complete without eating Turkish food and lots of it.

Every day during my trip in July, I met friends for lunch and dinner. They treated me to all the Turkish foods that I miss such as kebabs, mezes galore, ahtapot, balkaymak, gözleme and künefe. I thought I would recap all the delicious foods that I ate into one long post for you. Maybe on your next trip to Istanbul you can visit some of the same restaurants in Istanbul that I did.

From the Old City to the Asian Side

My eating adventure in Istanbul started shortly after my friends, Nicole and Kartal, picked me up from the airport. I had visions of eating Turkish mezes and drinking raki so they took me to Giritli Restoran near Sultanahmet. They had me mesmerized by Giritli’s fixed-price menu that includes bottomless glasses of raki or local wine and mouth-watering mezes. I was overwhelmed by the unique mezes – typical of the Turks who once lived on the island of Crete – especially herb-covered olives with feta and the seaweed.

On Monday afternoon, we tried the infamous profiteroles at Inci Pastanesi’s new location on Mis Sokak. This old school pastry shop has been serving up cream puffs drowned in chocolate sauce for more than 70 years. I honestly don’t see what the fuss is about, but Inci was one of those things I had to try at least once.

On Tuesday morning, I specifically went to the Salı Pazarı (Tuesday Pazar) at 4Levent for the gözleme. This Turkish “quesadilla” with spinach and cheese filling is one of my favorites while my husband prefers the karışık (mixed) version.

After visiting the Museum of Innocence, my girlfriend and I grabbed an afternoon snack of fried mini sigara böreği at the laidback Şimdi Café located off Istiklal Caddesi. I smuggled some yufka back to Poland and plan to make my own sigara böreği at home someday.

For dinner, we went to Gelik in Etiler because it features a splendid meze selection (paid for by the weight) and delicious kebabs. Oddly, we were scolded by our server for not eating all our bread since it was iftar and we had apparently sinned against Allah. Oh well.

For a post-dinner cocktail and magnificent night view, Kartal took us to the fairly new Boaz Bar on the 34^th floor of the Le Meridien Hotel in Etiler. Not surprisingly, cocktails don’t come cheap at 30-35 tl each, but my company and the night views of a city that I love definitely made it worthwhile.

On Wednesday, I had my ridiculously good Turkish Breakfast by the Bosphorus washed down with copious glasses of çay at Kale Café. During the day, I spent time with my older girlfriends at a cute teahouse, Villa Park Çay Bahçesi, in Yeniköy, which is a wonderful place to watch the Bosphorus and gossip.

On Thursday, another girlfriend and I headed to the Grand Bazaar and stopped by my friends at Huzur Café (Yağlıkçılar Cad. In the Cebeci Han) for lunch. The patlıcan soslu and aclılı ezme were prepared just the way they should be, and my patlıcan kebab also was good.

I love these Ikat-pattered pillowcases and fabric that my friend purchased next door. 

On Friday night, Murat and his wife took me for another meze and balik dinner at Galatalı Balık in Suadiye on the Asian side. The three of us finished off a bottle of 70 cl of Yeni Raki. No wonder my head was a bit foggy in the morning, and I didn’t take any photos!

On Saturday morning, we entertained my friend’s two-and-a-half-year-old daughter by taking her to Tarihi Çınaraltı Aile Çay Bahçesi in Çenkelköy. This quaint, always packed teahouse allows you to bring your own food as long as you order çay and perhaps some menemen. Buy some Turkish börek from the corner store, eat and then feed the fish the leftover bread. After breakfast, we walked along the Bosphorus for awhile. I miss these gorgeous sea views!

After strolling past the Kuleli Military School, we decided to turn back. Murat said he would drive us all the way to Anadolu Kavağı because I had never been there. This tiny village, known for its fish restaurants and Byzantine-Genovese castle ruins, feels likes a world apart from the city. We found another seaside restaurant, ordered two rounds of the best midye tava (fried mussels) I’ve ever had in Turkey and watched the world go by.

Our Turkish waiters, in true fashion, entertained my friends’ daughter by letting her hold (strangle) fish while we relaxed.

"But daddy, I want to eat the fishy!" Sophie exclaimed. 

To cap off my one week in Istanbul, we ate some of the best kebab I had at a nondescript, sort of divey café in Bostancı called Adana Öz Asmaaltı Kebap, which received stellar reviews by Istanbul Eats. We ordered Adana kebab, ciğer (liver) and çöp şiş (tiny nuggets of roasted lamb). Even though we were stuffed, Murat surprised me by ordering my favorite Turkish dessert - künefe. Good friends and good food, that’s all a girl needs.

After eating like this for a week in Istanbul, you easily can see why I gained a kilo on this trip! But it was worth every calorie!

What are your must-eat Turkish foods in Turkey?

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Gaziantep: Indulging in Sweet Katmer

Seems only fitting for my 300^th blog post today that I write about something sweet.

During our recent trip to Mount Nemrut, we stayed overnight in Gaziantep – a foodie destination in southeast Turkey that should be on every traveler’s list.

My expat friend in Istanbul had told me about this special Gaziantep breakfast pastry that I MUST try. “You will love it! It’s my favorite,” exclaimed my friend, who also happens to have a Turkish boyfriend from Gaziantep.

In the morning, we walked from our hotel, heading to the winding streets near the Bakırcılar Çarşısı (Coppersmith’s Bazaar) in Gaziantep.

Trying to find this renowned katmerci proved to be challenging. We both had our phones out and even a paper map looking for this place. We turned down a pedestrian-only side street and just when we thought nothing was even open, we found Katmerci Zekeriya Usta on the right-hand side.

Several picnic tables decked out with red and white tablecloths lined the walkway in front of the katmerci. There is no menu. You order katmer and katmer only plus çay (Turkish tea) to drink. A man with a tray brings fresh çay around as fast as you can drink it.

Katmer is a like a sweetened version of my beloved gözleme. It’s a breakfast pastry made out from sheets of phyllo dough wrapped around kaymak (Turkish clotted cream) and studded with chopped local pistachios. For my American readers, picture a sweetened quesadilla…something along those lines.

A bundle of katmer love in Gaziantep!

And the katmer was superb!

It’s like someone took some of favorite Turkish ingredients and wrapped them in one perfect bundle just for me.

The hot pastry is flaky and sweet. I tried to pick out the pieces with the most kaymak in them while my husband preferred the crispier edges.

Hubby and me before we devoured the katmer.

We almost finished the whole katmer. I love sweets, but by the end I just couldn’t eat another bite. My husband doesn’t like sweets for breakfast so I ate part of his portion too.

Eating katmer with several locals on the street in Gaziantep was the ideal way to start our day. Thank goodness we walked off some of the calories later!

Katmerci Zekeriya Usta - Open only 6-11:00 am.
Address: Çukur mh. Körükçü Sok. B., Hilmi Geçidi No: 16/C-D, Gaziantep
Telephone: 0342-230-0971 or 0534 7607454

You can also read Katie Parla's blog post about Katmerci Zekeriya Usta and see step-by-step how it's made here.

Also recommended:

Orkide Pastanesi

Address: Şehitkamil, Gazi Muhtar Paşa Bulv. 17, Gaziantep

Telephone: 0342-215-1500

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Selvi Lokantası: Home Cooking in Istanbul

There are few places I return to time and time again to eat at in Istanbul.

Selvi Lokanatası – a non-descript Turkish buffet-style restaurant located off of Taksim Square – is one of those places I have frequented many, many times. And it’s one you should put on your list if you’re looking for an inexpensive, home-cooked meal while you’re in Istanbul.

When I was taking Turkish lessons at Dilmer, I stopped in for lunch at least twice a week at Selvi. At least I would eat a delicious meal before I started crying again or pulling my hair out over my dreadful Turkish homework.

What I like about Selvi Lokantası is the food is always fresh, there’s a nice variety of menu options, the service is fast and friendly, and there’s always soup on the menu. I love soup even when it’s 90 F outside! It’s one of places where you simply point to the food that you want even if you don’t speak Turkish. However, usually, one of the workers speaks a little English.

Just walk up to the counter at Selvi Lokantası and point to what you would like to order.

Breakfast service starts at 6:30 a.m. with two kinds of soup in the summer and four kinds in the winter, or a traditional Turkish breakfast also is available. Lunch service begins at 11 a.m. The sign says the restaurant also serves dinner until 1 a.m. to catch the late night revelers in Taksim, but I haven’t been by that late. At that time of night, I’m more in the mood for tantuni or a late-night döner kebap.

Selvi Lokantası is a longtime family-owned restaurant. In the 1950s, the father, Ayvaz Hacızade, started out with a pudding shop and later started his first restaurant with his four siblings. In 1970, the restaurant was the first to introduce the idea of self-service in Turkey. (You go up to the counter, select your food, place on it on a tray and then you pay.) Today, the son, Metin Hacızade and his wife, Çiğdem, run the restaurant. Apparently, the family has even used the same butcher for 40 years.

Recently, my husband and I stopped at Selvi for lunch at 11:45 a.m. The buffet trays looked like they had just been refreshed. The four soup kettles were steaming hot. I ordered one of my favorite Turkish soups - mercimek çorbası (lentil soup). The employee pointed out the main dishes, which ones contained tavuk (chicken) or dana (beef). Our total bill, including drinks, was under 30 tl. A great bargain!

When you’re done eating your home-cooked Turkish meal, one of the friendly employees will usually come around and offer you çay. I have even stayed long enough to drink two glasses of çay. I like to leave a few lira on the table for the good service.

The restaurant is always busy with neighborhood locals stopping by for a quick lunch and the occasional tourist. If you arrive during the noon rush hour, you may even have to wait for a table.

Selvi Lokantası is one of those foodie gems that I’m glad I found in Istanbul

Location: 

Katip Mustafa Çelebi Mah., Sıraselviler Cad. 6/I, Cihangir, Istanbul.

If you exit out of the Taksim metro stop at the square, turn left down the street by the Burger King and row of döner kebap places. Selvi is about 10 doors down from the corner.

Phone: +90-212-293-8964

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Visiting the Ulus Pazarı in Istanbul

Once again, I found myself spending a few hours at a Turkish pazar with my friends here in Istanbul.

This time my trip coincided with a visit to the Ulus pazarı (held every Thursday) located off one of the main streets in Ortaköy, called Dereboyu Caddesi. This market also is known as the “Ulus sosyete pazarı” because of the namebrand clothing you sometimes find here. One of my longtime expat friends here told me the pazar was closed for about five years and only reopened in the last few years in this new otopark location under the first bridge.

Prior to my trip, I had emailed several friends in the area to see if they wanted to meet up for a pazar stroll and perhaps a gözleme lunch. This is the same gözleme seller that I mentioned in this post: Visiting the 4Levent Pazar in Istanbul.

I hadn’t planned to spend nearly four hours at this pazar, but I couldn’t help myself. I visited with a couple of my girlfriends over çay, then a second glass of çay, ate my spinach and cheese gözleme, strolled through the familiar sights and sounds of Istanbul and just soaked up the atmosphere. I miss this! (I am enjoying the markets in Warsaw, but they aren’t quite the same as this.)

Turks love to pickle everything! Yum!

My Turkish gözleme at the pazar. 

I also stocked up on some Turkish ingredients such as dried currants, freshly, sundried apricots from Malatya, olives, pickled veggies and more. As you stop by the different vendors, you can taste test everything and basically are encouraged to do so – a bite of beyaz peynir or tulum peynir, a couple different olives, nuts, etc. You could practically make a mini meal off just these items.

These sundried apricots from Malatya, Turkey, tasted like sunshine. So sweet and good!

Until next time, enjoy the photos from my pazar visit!

 

 

Of course, there's something for everyone at the pazar.

How to get there:

The Ulus pazarı is held every Thursday in the Ortaköy/Ulus neighborhood on Dereboyu Caddesi. See map. 

The DT1 bus from Taksim will stop nearby or the pazar is about a 15-minute walk from the shore road in Ortaköy. There’s also a free shuttle bus that leaves from the Akmerkez Mall in Etiler to the pazar.

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Why I Still Love Istanbul & You Should Too

Having just spent a week in my beloved Istanbul, I can reassure you that it’s definitely worth visiting even right now.

Tourism in Turkey seems to have declined sharply, especially in Istanbul, since the events revolving around the Gezi Park protests started in late May. I saw signs of this stillness nearly everywhere I went on the European side. (For another first-hand account, please see this July 18 blog post by Turkish travel writer Pat Yale: Silence Falls on Sultanahmet.)

Istiklal Street at night was eerily quiet. Usually packed cafés and restaurants were half filled (if they were so lucky) with hungry people. My six girlfriends and I had the normally-packed, reservation-only Sensus Wine Bar near Galata Tower practically to ourselves.

A very quiet Istiklal Street in Istanbul.

I hung out in Taksim on last Monday afternoon and evening and for about five hours on Tuesday afternoon. No problems. I will mention there was more police presence up by the square, but that’s all I saw both days. However, on Saturday nights, Taksim is best avoided as the Turkish police still get tear gas happy. 

Here's an afternoon view of Taksim Square taken near Gezi Park, overlooking the construction.

One of my girlfriends stayed six nights at a boutique hotel near Galatasaray for only 35 euros per night compared to the normal 129 euros per night. She was told she could stay as late as she wanted when she requested a late check-out as the hotel was dead. Because there are fewer tourists, you may get an unheard of hotel rate like my friend!

Even if it is summertime and Ramazan, I have never seen Istanbul this quiet in the three years that I lived here!

An afternoon visit to the Grand Bazaar yielded the same results. My kebab guy was ecstatic to see me. “Where have you been abla?” He served us delicious portions of patlıcan soslu and aclılı ezme on the house.

Later on, I got a steal of deal on a beautiful Kurdish kilim. His friends wished him well on his sale. “Inshallah” my girlfriend heard the Turkish rug dealer say as we returned to his third-generation family store. I hadn’t planned to buy a kilim, but I couldn’t resist the deal.

I loved both of these kilims, but I chose and purchased the one on the right.

I’m saddened to see Istanbul in this state. These small shopkeepers don’t deserve this treatment that has befallen them as a result of the actions by the Turkish government. Less adventurous tourists are afraid to travel here as they see images of the Turkish police reacting haphazardly with water cannons and tear gas in the Taksim area.

I’m certainly not happy with the Turkish government and their ridiculous responses to the protesters. However, I won’t get into that rant right now.

But I do want to remind you why you should visit and love Istanbul as much as I do!

7 Reasons to Love Istanbul

Bosphorus

The changing colors of the Bosphorus is one of the many things I miss about Istanbul. The early mornings can turn the waters a hard, steel gray and then a sparkling, brilliant shade of blue or turquoise in the afternoon and even a murky black as the day wears on. Find a café and enjoy the cool sea breeze, or take a vapur ride along the Bosphorus.

A view of the Bosphorus from the Bostanci neighborhood on the Asian side of the city.

Eminönü

Regular readers know how much I love visiting this bustling neighborhood. On my first full day in Istanbul, I paid a visit to Bilge, my favorite spice girl at Ucuzcular in the Mısır Çarşısı (Spice Bazaar). This is THE place to stock up on high quality Turkish spices. I spent 150 tl on my supplies because I’m not sure when I’ll be back again yet.

Pazar

Every neighborhood in Istanbul hosts a pazar (outdoor market) on different days of the week. This visit, I stopped at the Tuesday 4Levent pazar (a 5-minute walk from the Yenilevent exit at the 4Levent metro stop). I enjoyed a cheese and spinach gözleme as a late breakfast. Going to a pazar gives you a chance to see the local color of the city.

Turkish Food

I could go on and on about the Turkish food I ate on this trip in Istanbul. I’m pretty sure I gained another kilo. How could I turn down my favorite balkaymak or künefe? There were kebabs and mezes galore! I’ll tell you more in another post.

Turkish Hospitality

Even if you aren’t a regular customer, you’re bound to get offered çay as soon as you walk into a shop. From the Spice Bazaar to the Grand Bazaar to my shoe repair guy to my Turkish towel shop, I was offered copious amounts of çay. Even if my Turkish was a little rusty, I enjoyed having conversations here. I miss the welcoming Turkish hospitality.

History

I think one of the things that’s always fascinated me about Istanbul is its long, rich and colorful history. The city is ancient compared to America where I’m from. I still love seeing the city’s historic Byzantine walls, the minarets of the Blue Mosque, the Galata Tower and cobblestone streets. These are things that make Istanbul unique and why tourists come to visit.

Friends

Most importantly, I miss all my friends in Istanbul. I have cried, laughed, lamented over Turkish, traveled, confided in and celebrated with these friends. It’s been difficult moving to a new city and starting the process of making friends all over again. I have a feeling though many of my Istanbul friends will be friends for life. Even if you are a tourist in Istanbul, don’t be surprised if make a Turkish friend or two.

I could go on and on about why I love Istanbul, but you should really see this beautiful city for yourself. The city and its shopkeepers need your support!

(For additional reading, please see this July 20 article in The Guardian: The ongoing Turkish protests have left us enlightened and emboldened.)

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