« Airline News The Write Stuff »
Istanbul by Mouth
With its colourful spice bazaars, top– notch kebabs and seafood, Istanbul has long been a magnet for gourmands – and now there’s even more to tickle your tastebuds
Words by Rachel Howard
PHOTO: ©
GETTY IMAGES
Despite the recent arrival of Starbucks, most visitors and locals would thankfully never swap a dainty glass of apple tea for a decaf frappuccino. But more inspiring changes are afoot as Michelin–starred restaurateurs flock to Istanbul and local chefs start to explore a fusion of different cuisines that befit a city straddling two continents.
Think global
Zuma, London’s achingly hip and painfully pricy Japanese restaurant, opened in February in Ortaköy, a trendy suburb of cobbled streets and waterside cafes.
In March, London’s feted Cantonese restaurant, Hakkasan, launched at Kanyon, a futuristic shopping centre in the swanky Levent district. And in April, the king of New York’s dining scene, Jean–Georges Vongerichten, opened a branch of Spice Market in Europe’s first W hotel on the banks of the Bosphorus.
Jean-Georges
Vongerichten
Alan Yau blames his Turkish wife, Jale Eventok, for his decision to roll out the first of 10 Hakkasans around the world in Istanbul. But Yau shares his wife’s passion for the city’s epicurean pleasures, and personally oversaw the three–year, $12 million launch of Hakkasan Istanbul. Designed by Gilles & Boissier, the restaurant’s look is decadent ethnic: all black and gold, lattice screens, and a kitchen screened behind blue glass. Twenty chefs from China were recruited to create signature dishes such as crispy duck salad and silver cod with Chinese honey and champagne.
Zuma has imported bartenders from London to concoct exotic cocktails like Rubabu (rhubarb–infused sake shaken with vodka and passion fruit). Socialites and celebrities are queuing up to sample chef Rainer Becker’s modern twist on traditional Japanese cuisine. There’s even a private pier so jetsetters can step straight from their yacht on to the waterside terrace.
Eat in the secluded
gardens of Asitane
Spice Market is a sexed–up marriage of Far East and Middle East. The restaurant’s concept of sharing little dishes fits well with Turkey’s mezze culture, but the flavours are distinctly Asian: crispy sesame crab, sweet soy, pink grapefruit and ginger salad, followed by pumpkin crème brulée with garam masala. The menu features a few dishes tailored to local tastes. ‘As part of the historic spice trail, the Middle East has a number of exotic flavours and ingredients that I’m eager to explore,’ says chef Jean– Georges Vongerichten.
His first port of call might be Istanbul’s own Spice Market, where tourists haggle over red hot chilli, deep purple sumac, plump figs and shiny dates. For seafood at rock–bottom prices, Vongerichten might head to the fish market beside the Galata Bridge in Karaköy. Locals sit at tiny tables overlooking the Golden Horn and tuck into balik ekmek, grilled sardine sandwiches heaped with raw onion, parsley and tomato.
WHERE TO STAY
Witt Istanbul Suites
This brand new boutique hotel boasts 15 rooms in soothing shades of ivory and beige, with sea or city views. (Defterdar Yokus¸u 26, Cihangir, +90 212 393 7900, doubles from €260)
W Hotel
This newcomer has 134 rooms offering all the slick amenities you would expect from the W brand, plus sweeping Bosphorus views. (Suleyman Seba Caddesi 22, Bes¸iktas¸, +90 212 381 2121, doubles from €370)
Eklektik Guest House
With just seven cosy, themed rooms this guest-house in hip Tünel is like staying with friends. (Serdari Ekrem Caddesi, Kadribey Cikmazi 4, Galata, +90 212 243 7446, doubles from €85)
Acting local
Kebabs get a makeover
at KomsuWhile Istanbul’s residents are experimenting with Asian flavours, a new wave of native chefs is updating Turkey’s rich culinary heritage. At Çiya, Musa Dagdeviren’s hugely popular restaurant in the Asian suburb of Kadiköy, the tantalising display of Anatolian dishes changes with the seasons. If you’re lucky, today’s specials might include wild plum and cured beef soup, meatballs with sour cherries, and candied pumpkin in a tahini crust. Across the street, Çiya Kebap serves more than 100 variations of kebabs, lahmacun and pide at bargain prices.
The lowly kebab has been given a designer makeover at Koms¸u, a swish shish joint in Nis¸antas¸?, where fat cats tuck into sogan kebaps (lamb with pomegranate sauce) and aubergine caviar. At Cezayir, a glamorous garden bar-restaurant in Galatasaray, the mezzes match the décor – a mish-mash of modern and old-fashioned: broad bean puree with raki and dill or pastrami borek in rosehip sauce. After stints in London and Melbourne, chef Cos¸kun Uysal returned to Istanbul to set up the wittily named Moreish. ‘It’s a boutique restaurant, a very personal combination of my international experiences and local ingredients,’ says Uysal. With space for just 26 diners, and a small menu that changes fortnightly, reserve a seat several days in advance to sample pan-fried scallops with green apple and cumin caramel, or pear tarte tatin with caramelised walnuts and stilton ice cream.
Traditionalists need not despair. The cuisine of the Ottoman Empire is in no danger of extinction. At Asitane, in the secluded garden of Kariye Hotel, you can feast on almond and coconut soup or veal in apple sauce; 500-year-old recipes rescued from the archives of Istanbul’s imperial kitchens.
Little Black Book
Hakkasan
(Büyükdere Caddesi 185, Levent, +90 212 319 8888,
www.hakkasan.com)
Zuma
(Salhane Sokak 7, Ortaköy, +90 212 236 2296,
www.zumarestaurant.com)
Spice Market
(Suleyman Seba Caddesi 22, Bes¸iktas¸, +90 212 381 2121,
www.starwoodhotels.com)
Çiya
(Günes¸libahçe Sokak 43, Kadiköy, +90 216 330 3190,
www.ciya.com.tr)
Komsu
(Vali Konag? i Caddesi Isik Apt 8B, Nis¸antas¸?, +90 212 224
9666, www.komsu-kebap.com)
Cezayir
(Hayriye Caddesi 12, Beyog? lu, +90 212 245 9980,
www.cezayir-istanbul.com)
Moreish
(Mes¸rutiyet Caddesi 67, Tepebas¸?, Beyog? lu, +90 212 245
6089, www.moreishrestaurant.com)
Asitane
(Kariye Camii Sokak 6,
Edirnekap?, +90 212 635 7997,
www.kariyeotel.com/asitane.htm)
Bookmark This Post 
Print This Post
Email This Post
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.