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Istanbul food guides, by district

Walking food guides to ten historic districts of Istanbul. Each guide names the venues worth finding, drawn from the same editorial selection that powers the Taste Istanbul app — never paid placement, no user reviews, one editor's opinion stated transparently.

How these guides work

Every district guide follows the same shape: a short essay on what the neighbourhood is and isn't, the five things worth eating there, the venues that do them best, and a walkable sequence for a single day or evening. Every venue named in a guide is also in the free Taste Istanbul app, mapped, addressed and walked offline.

We're publishing one new district guide each week through the summer. New guides will appear on this page as they ship.

Live guides

Sultanahmet

Ottoman dawn breakfasts, Sultanahmet köftesi since 1920, hand-cut lokum and the boza of Vefa.

Read the guide →

Beyoğlu

İstiklal Caddesi, kokoreç at midnight, profiterol since 1944 and the meyhane culture of Nevizade Sokak.

Read the guide →

Coming soon

The remaining eight district guides are in the editing pipeline. Each one is anchored on a small set of named venues drawn from the app:

• Kadıköy — Çiya Sofrası, the Kadıköy market, and the eclectic Asian-side food scene.
• Karaköy — Karaköy Güllüoğlu (the baklava reference since 1949), specialty coffee and the modern meze rooms below Galata.
• Beşiktaş — the Çarşı fish market, the breakfast houses of the European shore, and the Çırağan Palace dining room.
• Eminönü — balık ekmek from the sandwich boats, the 1664 Egyptian Spice Bazaar and Pandeli (1901).
• Üsküdar — Kanaat Lokantası since 1933, börek culture and the Maiden's Tower.
• Balat — multicultural meyhanes, Sephardic bakeries and the artisan cafés of the Golden Horn.
• Ortaköy — kumpir, waffles and Bosphorus-side fine dining under the bridge.
• Nişantaşı — Kantin, the patisseries of Teşvikiye, and the Salt Bae original steakhouse.