Turkish food is quite good, and is very similar to the Greek food that is

plentiful in the United States.  Turkish cuisine varies dramatically by region.  For

example, Istanbul, Izmir and Samsun have excellent fish because they are near the

sea.  You are more likely to find chicken and lamb in Kayseri or other cities in central

Anatolia.  I particularly like the spicy cuisine that comes from Southeastern Turkey.

Turkey is famous for kebab (kebap in Turkish), which is the generic term for

grilled meat.  You will find several types of kebabs, including chicken kebab, lamb

kebab, şiş kebab (meat or lamb on a skewer), Iskender Kebab (sliced lamb with tomato

sauce and yogurt-very good if done right), Adana kebab (my personal favorite, which is

a spicy, ground lamb kebab).  Doner is the term for lamb and is the same as Greek

Gyros (the Turks invented it though).  Doner sandwiches from street vendors make

great snacks.

Prior to your meal at a traditional Turkish restaurant the busboy or waiter will

bring out a tray containing plates of meze, or small salads/appetizers (a concept similar

to Tapas in Spain).  There is a large variety of meze in Turkey, including eggplant, string

beans, white cheese, and my personal favorite, called ezme salata, a spicy tomato

salad.  You can easily become very full on the meze alone, so be sure to save room for

the main course and dessert.

Other Turkish specialties include lentil soup and lahmacun, a Turkish style

pizza covered with a spicy mixture of ground lamb, onion and tomatoes,

Traditional Turkish desserts include fruit and pastries, such as baklava.  The

fruit in Turkey is excellent and, depending on the season, you will find fresh

strawberries, watermelon, apricots and small green plums, known as erik.  The baklava

in Turkey is superb and comes in many varieties.  Be sure to try the baklava made with

or covered in pistachio nuts (pistachio nuts grown in Turkey are excellent as well).

Another excellent dessert is Firinda Sutlaç, a baked rice pudding.

Also, many hotels serve a traditional Turkish breakfast, which consists of

tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, white cheese and fresh bread.  At first it will seem a bit

strange eating vegetables for breakfast, but I assure you that you will enjoy it.

If you get tired of Turkish food, there is a good variety of international fare in

Istanbul, including Chinese, Japanese, Thai (Pera Thai in Beyoglu) and Italian.  Istanbul

has some of the greatest collection of restaurants anywhere.  Many of the restaurants

move to outdoor summer locations in June, July and August, so call in advance.

Here is my list of some recommended restaurants:

Istanbul is famous for seafood.  When the weather is good, I highly recommend

taking a taxi to an area known as Kumkapı, located across from the fish market on the

Marmara Sea and below Sultanahmet.  Kumkapı has several small streets with scores

of restaurants.  The best place to go by far in Kumkapı is called the Sandal Restaurant

(from the main entrance, Sandal is located halfway down the main street on the righthand side –

Address, Capariz Sokak No 13A, telephone 518-6708).  After trying the

various mezes (salads) order one of the grilled fish, such as Çupra, Levrek (Seabass) or

Lufer (bluefish) and the fried mussels (Midye Tava) or fried calamari (Kalimar Tava).

The other outstanding fish dish is known as Lipsos Guveç.  Although no one can

provide me with the exact English translation for the Lipsos fish, this hot, casserole-style

dish combines the fish with cheese, olives and peppers.  It is excellent on a cold

evening.

Park Fora – This upscale seafood restaurant is located on the European side of the

Bosphorus, just north of Ortakoy and the first bridge, before Bebek.  It also has an

inside seating area.  The seafood, atmosphere and service are excellent.  The sea bass

in salt is as good as that served at Korfez Restaurant mentioned below.  Park Fora's

address is Muallim Naci Caddesi, No. 134 in Kuruçesme (pronounced Kurucheshmay).

Telephone 265-5067.

Korfez Restaurant – This romantic restaurant on the Asian side of the Bosphorus is the

premier fish restaurant in Istanbul.  Their special dish is sea bass cooked in salt

(Tuzden Levrek in Turkish).  Korfez (which means “bay” in Turkish) is located under the

second bridge over the Bosphorus.  If you have a car you can drive to the restaurant.

But the best way to get there is using the restaurant’s boat service.  When you make

your reservation (which is a must) they will tell you where to meet the boat (located near

the Rumeli Hisari fortress, just North of the town of Bebek).  All you have to do is to tell

the taxi driver where to take you.  The best way to do this is to have your hotel

concierge or some other Turkish speaking person make the reservation and write down

the directions in Turkish.  You can then give the written instructions to your taxi driver.

Allow at least 30 minutes to drive to the meeting point, more on Friday night.  A word of

caution:  Korfez’ menu does not have all of the prices listed.  When in doubt, ask the

price in advance in order to avoid any unwanted surprises when the check comes.

Korfez’ telephone number is 216-413-4314.

Hammam – Hammam is a great place in the summer.  It consists of a group of

restaurants located in an outdoor garden on the Bosphorus, with a beautiful view of the

city.  It is located behind the International Press Center located below Topkapı Palace

and near the central train station (in the Eminonu District).  Hammam, which means

Turkish Bath, includes an Italian restaurant, a Turkish restaurant and several others.  In

the winter time the restaurant is located in a glass enclosed building.  The address is

Kennedy Caddesi, Sarayburnu, Eminonu, Istanbul.  Call for reservations – 212-528-

8810.

Develi –The name of this restaurant means "with camel" in Turkish, is an authentic,

local kebab restaurant  considered by many locals to be the best kebab restaurant in

Istanbul.  If you are adventurous, this place is worth a trip.  It is located about a 20

minute taxi ride, halfway between Sultanahmet and the airport, in an area known as

Samatya.  Be sure to order the kebab with pistachios (Fıstık kebab).  Address:

Gumusyuzuk Sokak, No. 7, Samatya, Istanbul.  Telephone 212-529-0833.

Vogue – If the weather is good, you can't beat this place. Located on the top floor of a

modern office building near the Swissotel, this relatively new Euro-bistro offers an

incredible opportunity to eat outdoors overlooking the Bosphorus and the Sea of

Marmara.  The food is good too, with fish and pasta the predominant choices.  Getting

an outdoor table on a nice evening is difficult at this new restaurant, so be sure to make

a reservation in advance.  (Address:  Spor Caddesi, BJK Plaza, A block, 13th floor,

Beşiktas; Tel:  212-227-4404).

Sarniç – Located near the Aya Sophia in Sultanahmet, this restaurant is located in a

former cistern that is lit only by candles and has a wonderful atmosphere.  The food is

typical Turkish.  Be sure to call for a reservation in advance (Tel 212-512-4291).

The village of Ortakoy, located up the Bosphorus near the first-bridge, has many

nice outdoor restaurants.  Ortakoy, which has a beautiful mosque on the water, is very

popular with locals on Sunday.  Further up the Bosphorus is a town called Bebek with

many good restaurants.

The area with the greatest number of shops and restaurants is Taksım.  There

are many large hotels nearby and the main street is called Istiklal Caddesi.  You

should not miss this place on your trip.  Istiklal Caddesi runs from Taksim to the Tunel

area and is closed to traffic.  The architecture in this area has a European look and feel.

There are many shopping arcades in this area, which are known as passages.  The

building known as the Çicek Pasajı (Flower Passage) in the Galatasaray area has

numerous, albeit, turistik (the Turkish word for touristy), restaurants.  One of my favorite

pastimes is to wander around the narrow hallways of the market situated next to the

Flower Passage.  Make sure you check out the giant baked potatoes and the freshly

fried mussels.

A great inexpensive kebab restaurant on Istiklal Caddesi is Koşebaşi

(pronounced koshaybashuh) in the Pera/Beyoğlu area (address Istiklal Caddesi No.

405).  Koşebasi is a well-known kebab restaurant with several locations in Istanbul and

has very good food at reasonable prices (there is one in the Nisantaşi area).  Try the

Adana kebap, doner kebap or lahmacun.  The  Pera/ Beyoğlu location has separate sit

down and carryout areas.

I also highly recommend an excellent Anatolian-style restaurant right off of Istiklal

Caddesi.  It is called Marko Paşa Şark Şofrasi (pronounced Marko Pasha Shark

Sofrasuh).  Şark Şofrasi means “Eastern Cuisine.”  In other words, this restaurant

serves central Anatolian cuisine, such as mantı (delicious Turkish ravioli covered in

yoghurt and garlic and Gozleme, Turkish crepes filled with cheese or meat).  The

restaurant is nicely decorated and is inexpensive.  The menu is printed in Turkish and

English and a few of the waiters speak excellent English.  The food is very reasonably

priced and you can have an entire meal for 5 or 6 dollars.  Marco Paşa is the second

restaurant on the right of Sadri Alisik Sokak, an alley located off Istiklal Caddesi, across

the street from the Ağa Camii or Ağa Mosque in the Beyoğlu neighborhood.  Tel. 212-

252-8080 (look for the ladies making mantı in the window).

If you want a truly unique experience, buy a grilled fish sandwich from one of the

boats in the water near the Eminonu ferry piers (across from the Spice Market).  They

will serve you a freshly grilled fish sandwich on bread.  The sandwiches are a bargain

and are very tasty.

(djacobsonlaw.com)