Editor’s note: We asked Aslı Aydıntaşbaş, a columnist for Turkish daily Milliyet, where she heads first for food when she returns to Istanbul after a trip abroad. Aydıntaşbaş is also a commentator on CNNTürk’s show “Karşı Gündem” and has written for numerous publications, including the former International Herald Tribune, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Forbes and Newsweek.
Funny enough, I don’t really crave Turkish food if I have been spending time out of the country. This is because, for starters, I am a foodie: I crave things. I schlep to the other side of town for a meal. I never hesitate to spend money on good restaurants.
But I guess deep at heart I lack loyalty to Turkish cuisine. Out of sight, out of mind. I never particularly miss food when I travel.
That, of course, is not to say that I don’t have favorite spots across town. One of these is Karaköy Lokantası, where I find myself enjoying the mezes and a dinner with friends several times a month. The food is always fresh, not pricey, and exciting enough.
But it is a very peculiar restaurant in the sense that at lunchtime it takes on an entirely different character – and menu. I do love doing lunches there, though it is quite far from my work. The lunch menu is more plebeian – Turkish home cooking – things like cauliflower with ground beef or bakla beans from your grandmother’s recipe. Being a fan of traditional Turkish food – and that, by the way, does not mean kebabs – I am always delighted by the daily surprises at Karaköy.
I believe my mom or aunt took me there when I still lived in the States and was visiting. I grew up in Cihangir before it was super trendy – when you actually had transvestites and hookers and cynical post-coup-era artists and writers. Back then, “cool” was not around much. Nor the cafés and the gourmet shops. Karaköy Lokantası opened exactly around the time of gentrification in Cihangir. With turquoise tiles and lovely floor patterns, Karaköy Lokantası resembles Istanbul restaurants of a few generations ago.
March 14, 2014 Karaköy Lokantası
When Karaköy was still “the docks” and filled with shop windows advertising boat tickets […] Posted in Istanbul
August 22, 2016 CB on the Road
As one approaches the port of Ermoupolis (named after Hermes, the god of commerce), the […] Posted in Athens
January 8, 2014 Babo’nun Yeri
Near the Aksaray metro station, set back from a loveless part of Istanbul crossed by […] Posted in Istanbul
Published on April 19, 2014
Related stories
March 14, 2014
IstanbulWhen Karaköy was still “the docks” and filled with shop windows advertising boat tickets to Odessa alongside cubby-sized import and export offices, Karaköy Lokantası felt like a culinary mirage. With great food, personable service and tasteful décor, this family-operated eatery stood out, prominently, among the humble street-side eateries filled with noshing stevedores. These days, snapshots…
August 22, 2016
AthensAs one approaches the port of Ermoupolis (named after Hermes, the god of commerce), the main town of the island of Syros and capital of the Cyclades, one cannot help but marvel at its beauty and grandeur. Imposing public buildings and private mansions, marble-paved streets, a large Italian-style piazza and numerous churches make the city…
January 8, 2014
IstanbulNear the Aksaray metro station, set back from a loveless part of Istanbul crossed by wide roads and overpasses, the kebab is flourishing. Over the past few decades, waves of migration have brought a particularly southeast Anatolian flavor to the otherwise drab apartment blocks and government buildings of this part of the Fatih district. Now…
