We booked a Get your Guide “Istanbul: European and Asian Side Guided Foodie Walking Tour” for today. We met at 10 am with another 8 people and our guide Bahri, to wander street food stalls, restaurants, markets on both the European and Asian sides of Turkey..catching a ferry between the two.
(We were struck by how similar the ferry/water felt to Sydney harbour, and indeed other travellers from Denmark said the same to us.
Today is best told in pictures…as I can’t adequately explain the taste sensations. Sweet, sour, salty, intense, strong, spicy at times. Lots of lamb, garlic, greens, bread, tomato, peppers, pistachio, filo, yoghurt, cheese, clotted cream, honey and sugar.
On the European side, we enjoyed multiple breakfast tastes - mostly savoury and including two soups.
On the Asian side we enjoyed many lunch foods, drinks and deserts. We attempted to keep track of all the names but they escaped us as we were just too busy eating and chatting with our fellow tasters!
Bahri was an excellent guide - an actor in the low tourist season - who had himself worked in hospitality and run his own (unsuccessful) cafe business. He now can do two 5.5 hour foodie tours a day - with great local history and cultural knowledge to add to the experience.
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| Fresh bread rolls - crunchy at street vendors are called Simit |
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| The fresh rolls - eaten with two types of cheese, fresh olives; a red paste (Biber Salcasi) and a pastrami type meat slice, served with Turkish Coffee |
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| Choosing the olives and cheeses for breakfast |
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| Spiced Lamb Mince with tomato spread on Pita - you then put fresh rocket and lemon juice and roll to eat. |
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| Lamb Pide |
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| Stuffed Mussels - served with two shells - once for each hand and you scoop to your mouth. |
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| Stuffed Mussels with a variety of sources and stuffings |
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| Pickle Juice with a variety of pickle vegetables |
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| Fish wrap |
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| The pickle shop |
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| The pickle shop…you can have your own selection in pickle juice |
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| Goat milk icecream flavoured with Salep, cut a slice and make a baklava sandwich…cold baklava |
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| A pistachio paste inside filo |
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| Ayran - a cold yoghurt drink |
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| Rose water Turkish Delight |
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| Kaitafi - shredded Filo Pastry, pistachio and honey syrup |
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| Iksander Kebap - Lamb meat on a bed of pita with tomato, peppers and yogurt covered with hot butter |
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| The covering with hot butter at the table |
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| Lentil soup |
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| Spice Bazaar |
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| There are approximately 90 different types of olives available, and then add the flavourings and different pickling…we tried green olives in beet juice, and green olives in blueberry juice. |
The day was fabulous. We have very full stomachs, very sore feet and enjoyed the immersion into Turkish cuisine, which I loved!
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