Lonely Planet İstanbul Guide

its rustic and honest base. Here mezes (small tapas-like dishes) are simple, kebaps uncomplicated, salads unstructured and seafood unsauced. Flavours explode in your mouth because ingredients are grown locally and used when they are in season. MARVELLOUS MEZES Mezes aren’t just a type of dish, they’re a whole eating experience. In meyhanes (Turkish taverns), waiters heave around enormous trays full of cold meze dishes that customers can choose from; hot meze dishes are usually chosen from the menu. Mezes are usually vegetable based, though seafood dishes also feature.

Turkish Delight ( lokum ) – comes in a variety of flavours | PEREKOTYPOLE/SHUTTERSTOCK ©

MEAT – THE TURKISH WAY Overall, the Turks are huge meat eaters. Beef, lamb, mutton, liver and chicken are prepared in a number of ways and eaten at home, in kebapçıs