The neighbourhood: Rüstem Paşa. Locals: Gülin Özalp. Shop: Pandeli. Photos: Deniz Sabuncu.Rüstem Paşa has represented the most colourful side of socio-economic life for thousands of years, with its open-air bazaar, shops, market, inns, mosques, square and historical Egyptian Bazaar. This is a lively, highly energetic, and crowded neighbourhood. As soon as I pass through Karaköy and enter the Galata Bridge, I find myself in the middle of the movement. I feel that I have arrived in the neighbourhood. The Spice Bazaar, where the heart of the trade beats, is in this neighbourhood, and right next to it, Eminönü, where I can supply the basic needs of the shop, the movement of the ferries docking one after another, the rush of pedestrians are the trademarks of here. As lively and crowded as it is during the day due to trade, it is just as deserted and quiet at night.<img src="https://images.aposto.com/2022/11/5/1670569680219.jpeg" style="display: block; float: none; vertical-align: top; margin: 5px auto; text-align: center; width: 100%; max-width: 550px; border-style: none; position: relative; cursor: pointer; padding: 0px 1px; box-sizing: border-box;" ratio="0.67" width="550" fr-original-style="display: block; float: none; vertical-align: top; margin: 5px auto; text-align: center; width: 100%; max-width: 550px;" fr-original-class="fr-draggable"><h4 dir="ltr" fr-original-style="text-align: center;" style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.85); font-weight: 500; padding: 0px; box-sizing: border-box;">Gülin</h4><hr fr-original-style="" style="height: 0px; overflow: visible; border-bottom: none; clear: both; user-select: none; break-after: page; box-sizing: border-box;">Thanks to the abundance of street flavours and artisan restaurants, one wanders among saporous smells. The Spice Bazaar, which was known as a spice centre in the Ottoman Empire, has lost its fundamental function with the opening of shops by different tradespeople; however, there are still places, like Malatya Bazaar, where we shop here and there. The food and beverage culture is as active as the city itself. Some disappear, but new ones come into their place right after. Of course, there are also things that remain rooted and unchanging, such as bazaars and mosques. Pandeli, whose home has been Rüstem Paşa for 122 years, is one of them.<img src="https://images.aposto.com/2022/11/5/1670569786046.jpeg" style="display: block; float: none; vertical-align: top; margin: 5px auto; text-align: center; width: 100%; max-width: 550px; border-style: none; position: relative; cursor: pointer; padding: 0px 1px; box-sizing: border-box;" ratio="0.67" width="550" fr-original-style="display: block; float: none; vertical-align: top; margin: 5px auto; text-align: center; width: 100%; max-width: 550px;" fr-original-class="fr-draggable"><h4 dir="ltr" fr-original-style="text-align: center;" style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.85); font-weight: 500; padding: 0px; box-sizing: border-box;">Mr Pandeli's special aubergine döner börek</h4><hr fr-original-style="" style="height: 0px; overflow: visible; border-bottom: none; clear: both; user-select: none; break-after: page; box-sizing: border-box;"><h2 dir="ltr" fr-original-style="" style="margin: 0px; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.85); font-weight: 500; padding: 0px; box-sizing: border-box;">The story of Mr Pandeli</h2>Mr Pandeli, a Greek from Niğde. As soon as he came to Istanbul, he started working in various professions other than portering, which was his father's profession. He first started selling meatballs and&nbsp;piyaz&nbsp;(a Turkish food with kidney beans, onion, and olive oil) in a portable car on Mercan Slope, behind the Spice Bazaar. When his&nbsp;piyaz's&nbsp;became very popular, the neighbourhood pushed him to open his own meatball shop. In this modest place in Çukur Han, he continues his passion for his father's profession and serves meatball bread to the porters. At the period of the World War I, the Hamal Lokantası was gradually becoming a frequent place for intellectuals, journalists, poets, writers, and politicians. Ahmet Hamdi Tanpınar, Yahya Kemal Beyatlı, Hüseyin Cahit Yalçın, Orhan Seyfi Orhon, Faruk Nafiz Çamlıbel, and Ahmet Haşim from Turkey; Queen Elizabeth II, King Juan Carlos of Spain, Queen Sofia, and Audrey Hepburn are just some from around the world who have tasted Pandeli.However, the effects of the war turned out severe, and Mr Pandeli had to return to Niğde. After the war, it reunites with its regulars in a 3-storey building at Yağcılar İskelesi in Eminönü. Mustafa Kemal Atatürk is one of those regulars, too. When he was in Ankara, he used to miss Pandeli and sometimes when he would have guests in Ankara, the special orders he had made were delivered to him by train from Istanbul.This love and devotion, unfortunately, came to a stop again when the shop was looted during the Istanbul pogrom and Mr Pandeli gave up his profession. Later on, then-President Celal Bayar and Prime Minister Adnan Menderes, who heard the news from the newspaper headlines, persuaded Pandeli, and the upper floor at the entrance of the Spice Bazaar, where it is today, was allocated to Pandeli Restaurant by state order.&nbsp;<img src="https://images.aposto.com/2022/11/5/1670569825957.jpeg" style="display: block; float: none; vertical-align: top; margin: 5px auto; text-align: center; width: 100%; max-width: 550px; border-style: none; position: relative; cursor: pointer; padding: 0px 1px; box-sizing: border-box;" ratio="0.67" width="550" fr-original-style="display: block; float: none; vertical-align: top; margin: 5px auto; text-align: center; width: 100%; max-width: 550px;" fr-original-class="fr-draggable"><h4 dir="ltr" fr-original-style="text-align: center;" style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.85); font-weight: 500; padding: 0px; box-sizing: border-box;">Spice Bazaar</h4><hr fr-original-style="" style="height: 0px; overflow: visible; border-bottom: none; clear: both; user-select: none; break-after: page; box-sizing: border-box;"><h2 dir="ltr" fr-original-style="" style="margin: 0px; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.85); font-weight: 500; padding: 0px; box-sizing: border-box;">Our regulars: Spice Bazaar’s shopkeepers</h2>Rüstem Paşa does not have particular regulars. This place belongs to all of us. With those who come every day, regulars, nomads, and the indispensable. Since the neighbourhood is a commercial centre, its energy is very high and there are always tourists, but for shops like ours to be sustainable, the primary job is to satisfy the local guests before the tourists. A significant part of our Pandeli regulars are the tradespeople of the Spice Bazaar. Fishmongers, spice shops, greengrocers and butchers, where we run to when the shop runs out of something. Since we prepare everything on a daily basis, our supplies are limited, and when we run out of stocks, the tradespeople come to our help. It is valuable to support each other and share the same table. This place can make people feel at home, thanks to Aslı Hanıms and Ahmet Beys, who have been coming here for generations and who tell their grandchildren ‘My grandmother used to take me here’ while climbing the stairs of the shop.&nbsp;<img src="https://images.aposto.com/2022/11/5/1670569898554.jpeg" style="display: block; float: none; vertical-align: top; margin: 5px auto; text-align: center; width: 100%; max-width: 550px; border-style: none; position: relative; cursor: pointer; padding: 0px 1px; box-sizing: border-box;" ratio="0.67" width="550" fr-original-style="display: block; float: none; vertical-align: top; margin: 5px auto; text-align: center; width: 100%; max-width: 550px;" fr-original-class="fr-draggable"><h4 dir="ltr" fr-original-style="text-align: center;" style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.85); font-weight: 500; padding: 0px; box-sizing: border-box;">Papers folded by the team each morning and sea bass in curlpaper with its special recipe</h4><hr fr-original-style="" style="height: 0px; overflow: visible; border-bottom: none; clear: both; user-select: none; break-after: page; box-sizing: border-box;"><h2 dir="ltr" fr-original-style="" style="margin: 0px; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.85); font-weight: 500; padding: 0px; box-sizing: border-box;">The paper for the sea bass in curlpaper still comes from Athens</h2>After Hristo Bey's death, his daughter Sofia Hanım decided to take over Pandeli, which she had doted upon from Greece and which she had inherited from her grandfather. As regulars who have been coming here for years, we were very sad and refused to believe it, when we learnt that the shop would close. When they offered us to take over the business, we did not know what to do. On the one hand, we were not willing to close it down. On the other hand, the idea of maintaining a place that we loved so much was such a heavy responsibility.It has always been crucial for Sofia Hanım for the shop to meet its regulars. With her support, we continue to run Pandeli, sticking as much as possible to the old tradition. Even during the menu-tasting process, we had Sofia Hanım’s hand on us. One of Pandeli's original tastes, the paper for Mr Pandeli's own recipe, Sea Bass in curlpaper, still comes from Athens today. The paper has a special way of folding. Hristo Bey taught this technique to Özay Bey, who has been devoted to Pandeli since he was 13. Now, Özay Bey and I fold papers every morning before work. It has become a ritual. Most of our colleagues working at Pandeli have been here since the early days. We didn't want to dispel the team or lose that authentic spirit. Now, we are a resilient team that grows together. There is something we have been repeating since the first day:&nbsp;‘This place is not ours, it belongs to all of us, to Istanbul.’<img src="https://images.aposto.com/2022/11/5/1670569957382.jpeg" style="display: block; float: none; vertical-align: top; margin: 5px auto; text-align: center; width: 100%; max-width: 550px; border-style: none; position: relative; cursor: pointer; padding: 0px 1px; box-sizing: border-box;" ratio="0.67" width="550" fr-original-style="display: block; float: none; vertical-align: top; margin: 5px auto; text-align: center; width: 100%; max-width: 550px;" fr-original-class="fr-draggable"><h4 dir="ltr" fr-original-style="text-align: center;" style="text-align: center; margin: 0px; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.85); font-weight: 500; padding: 0px; box-sizing: border-box;">Mr Pandeli's special recipe: Cherry Tirit</h4><hr fr-original-style="" style="height: 0px; overflow: visible; border-bottom: none; clear: both; user-select: none; break-after: page; box-sizing: border-box;">One of the important factors that make up the cuisine of Istanbul is the coexistence of different religious communities in the city. The food cultures of Muslim, Christian and Jewish communities have always been in mutual exchange with one another. Pandeli is a place that has not moved away from the historical peninsula where it was born and even earned a place in memories by identifying with the neighbourhood. Taking inspiration from Istanbul, there is an almost organic relationship between Istanbul and Pandeli.

Soli

Rüstem Paşa has been Pandeli’s home for 122 years.

Papers from Athens, food from shopkeepers, a star from Michelin

2. Where to drink rakı with mezze? <a fr-original-style="" href="https://www.instagram.com/lagunbalikrestaurantbargilya/?hl=en" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(9, 9, 9); text-decoration: none; background-color: transparent; outline: none; cursor: pointer; transition: color 0.3s ease 0s; touch-action: manipulation; user-select: auto; box-sizing: border-box;" target="_blank">Lagün restaurant</a>Close your eyes and imagine. You are on the sea, up above there are colorful tiny lights, the smell of salt and rakı in your nose. Sun is about to set, the sky slowly turns purple from orange, and a Greek song silently plays in the background while your friends are by your side, and pitch green mountains are facing you. The dinner table is full of mezzes; chard, carrot, roasted almonds,&nbsp;Zaho (A local appetizer that is prepared with yogurt and dried grapes), and more…Away from the chaos of Bodrum, the prices are comparatively reasonable. If you are asking yourself, “I wonder what is this place to be like”, then head to the Lagün and say hi to sister Gülören from us.Duly noted: It's open between 2 p.m and 1 a.m, and don't forget to try its aubergine with pistachio.&nbsp;

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