Photos: Elif Bayram.Well, Sıraselviler is not the place where you would prefer to hang out or have a fine meal. However, occasionally you end up here. Since you are here, you complain about the crowd and the transformation of Taksim. Sure, after a while, you begin starving in the middle of this concrete jungle. And here we are with a list full of the classics and the latest.&nbsp;<h3 dir="ltr" fr-original-style="" style="margin: 0px; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.85); font-weight: 500; padding: 0px; box-sizing: border-box;">For a good morning</h3>Historical Savoy Patisserie: The patisserie, which was first opened on Soğancı Street in Cihangir in 1950, has been on Sıraselviler Street since 1989. The patisserie, which always keeps up with the needs of the time, uses sourdough with high protein value and grains with high nutritional value. Just like the new generation patisseries, ‘sugar-free’ products are available on its counter. When you enter, the smell of tahini buns and mini cherry cakes take over. Well, we take our share and continue on our route.&nbsp;<ul fr-original-style="padding-inline-start: 20px;" style="padding-inline-start: 20px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 1em; list-style-position: inside; box-sizing: border-box;"><li dir="ltr" fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: border-box;">What to order: ‘Turkish’ breakfast tea and tahini bun</li><li dir="ltr" fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: border-box;">Where: Sıraselviler Street No:91/A&nbsp;</li></ul><h3 dir="ltr" fr-original-style="" style="margin: 0px; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.85); font-weight: 500; padding: 0px; box-sizing: border-box;">It's always lunch time... somewhere</h3>Vegan Dükkân&nbsp;Lokanta: Istanbul’s new vegan, the neighbourhood’s most wanted. Vegan Dükkân’s latest initiative, Vegan Shop Lokanta may be the best thing that has ever happened to Cihangir in a while, especially now that Özkonak Esnaf Lokantası is closed. Good news for those who want a taste: It’s open between 10:00 a.m. and 09:00 p.m. Extensive vegan breakfast is also available.<ul fr-original-style="padding-inline-start: 20px;" style="padding-inline-start: 20px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 1em; list-style-position: inside; box-sizing: border-box;"><li dir="ltr" fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: border-box;">What to order? Katsu curry or 'Hünkar Beğendi' with homemade sugar-free lemonade.&nbsp;</li><li dir="ltr" fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: border-box;">Where: Soğancı Street&nbsp;</li></ul><img src="https://images.aposto.com/2022/9/5/1665154588908.png" style="display: block; 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;" width="550" ratio="0.81" fr-original-style="display: block; vertical-align: top; margin: 5px auto; text-align: center; width: 100%; max-width: 550px;" fr-original-class="fr-draggable"><h4 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;">Mmmm katsu curry</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;"><h3 dir="ltr" fr-original-style="" style="margin: 0px; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.85); font-weight: 500; padding: 0px; box-sizing: border-box;">Late night with ‘ıslak hamburger’</h3>Bambi: Some say it’s impaired its quality, some still eat it as they did on the first day. Let’s stop arguing and face this: In the heyday of Istiklal Street, if you didn’t end the night at Bambi, the late-night snack stop for regulars, you wouldn’t have had your ultimate ‘Taksim night’. It didn’t matter if it was cheddar toast, double cheddar toast, or Istanbul-style ‘ıslak hamburger’, we would wait for it in the queue. When it was close to sunrise, we would eat our sandwiches hungrily. Would we go again today? Yes, and yes.<ul fr-original-style="padding-inline-start: 20px;" style="padding-inline-start: 20px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 1em; list-style-position: inside; box-sizing: border-box;"><li dir="ltr" fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: border-box;">What to order? Islak hamburger or double cheese toast&nbsp;</li><li dir="ltr" fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: border-box;">Where? Sıraselviler Street No:2\J</li></ul><h3 dir="ltr" fr-original-style="" style="margin: 0px; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.85); font-weight: 500; padding: 0px; box-sizing: border-box;">‘I'm craving something spicy, something sour’</h3>Geyik:&nbsp;The meeting point of Cihangir people awaits those who want to join the locals hanging out in the streets with their cocktails. Go for Tommy’s with chili.<ul fr-original-style="padding-inline-start: 20px;" style="padding-inline-start: 20px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 1em; list-style-position: inside; box-sizing: border-box;"><li dir="ltr" fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: border-box;">Where: Akarsu Yokuşu Street No:22</li></ul>Asri Turşucusu: The famous pickle shop of Cihangir. It’s worth walking all the way for its spicy pickle juice or pickled okra and green plum.<ul fr-original-style="padding-inline-start: 20px;" style="padding-inline-start: 20px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 1em; list-style-position: inside; box-sizing: border-box;"><li dir="ltr" fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: border-box;">Where:&nbsp;Ağa Hamamı Sokak No:9/A</li></ul><img src="https://images.aposto.com/2022/9/5/1665154993276.png" style="display: block; 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;" width="550" ratio="0.67" fr-original-style="display: block; vertical-align: top; margin: 5px auto; text-align: center; width: 100%; max-width: 550px;" fr-original-class="fr-draggable"><h4 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;">A map of the concrete jungle</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;">Check this out!&nbsp;Weekly travel and culture journal&nbsp;Soli (aka sis) prepared special neighbourhood guides including essentials of the hood for the 17th of Istanbul Biennial&nbsp;visitors. Last Tuesday, Soli saluted you from Sıraselviler. <a fr-original-style="" href="https://aposto.com/i/soli-is-at-17th-istanbul-biennial-siraselviler" 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">Read the full guide here.</a>

Aposto Istanbul

A guide for foodies. 

Craving food in the middle of the concrete jungle aka Sıraselviler

We met with Pat in Cihangir’s Kahve Firuzağa, where she is a regular, and and escaped to Kahve6 for some solace. From there, we took a cruise from her early beginnings in Bristol, UK to her love affair with Göreme, and lastly to Istanbul the chaos, never-ending change, and vibrance...&nbsp;<blockquote fr-original-style="color: rgb(9, 9, 9); border-color: rgb(166, 68, 27); border-width: 4px; font-style: italic; padding-left: 10px;" style="color: rgb(9, 9, 9); border-color: rgb(166, 68, 27); border-width: 4px; font-style: italic; padding-left: 10px; margin: 0px 0px 1em; border-left-style: solid; box-sizing: border-box;">Pat is currently on the cusp of publishing her most ambitious book to date, <a fr-original-style="" href="https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2016/apr/22/turkey-istanbul-gertrude-bell-pat-yale-why-i-love" 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">Following Miss Bell: Travels Around Turkey in the Footsteps of Gertrude Bell</a>, which traces the inspiring journey of late 19th and early 20th-century explorer Gertrude Bell and took Pat from Istanbul to Izmir, and Cappadocia to Cizre. Her most current ongoing project will focus on her life spent as a “yabangee” in the beautiful Göreme region of Cappadocia.</blockquote><img src="https://images.aposto.com/2022/6/6/1659189877126.png" style="display: block; 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;" width="550" ratio="0.66" fr-original-style="display: block; vertical-align: top; margin: 5px auto; text-align: center; width: 100%; max-width: 550px;" fr-original-class="fr-draggable">The smallest inhabitant of Cihangir &amp; Pat<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;">ID</h2>Your nickname:&nbsp;In Göreme, not in Istanbul, they used to call me "Problemly Pat" because of the problem "yabangees" tend to have such as bills payment.I have visited in Istanbul recently: Turkish &amp; Islamic Art MuseumI have explored recently: The wooden area around Küçük Çamlıca KorusuI live in: Firuzağa, ÇukurcumaI am from: To be honest, when I lived in Göreme, that's where my heart was.<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;">SHOOT THE BREEZE</h2>You were born and raised in the UK. This is also where you gained your degree. But you moved to Turkey in the late 90's and you have been living here for the last 24 years now. What attracted you to live here continuously and to be an Istanbulite?I was working for Lonely Planet Turkey. So I was coming to Turkey every two years to do a new guidebook. As a result of that I knew quite a lot of people in most places in Turkey. The guidebook was created every two years and in the in-between year, I'd go somewhere else like Iran, England, Ireland, etc. In 1998, I just thought “I don't want to find another country to do, I think I am going to live in Turkey for a year with the intention of learning Turkish.” It's not like I suddenly decided, it was just a natural development from the fact that I was coming to Turkey frequently anyway.I love Istanbul. The history, the Bosphorus, obviously the people I know here, the chaos, the never-ending change... I just find it such a vibrant place. I am never bored, that's the thing about Istanbul, I am never&nbsp;ever&nbsp;bored.You have co-written a book with Saffet Emre Tonguç titled “Istanbul The Ultimate Guide”. The book is an exhaustive research on Istanbul, it is almost 700 pages long! How do you think your connection to the city was reflected in the book?Well, I remember it was very important to me not to present tourist cliches of Istanbul. You absolutely have to have all the historic monuments because that's what people want to see. But I felt that for the city I knew and loved, we had to be sure that we'd show Istanbul was a modern city as well. It wasn't just Sultanahmet that was interesting, a lot was going on all over the city. I do remember that it was important to me that we had both those aspects.<img src="https://images.aposto.com/2022/6/6/1659190060245.png" style="display: block; 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;" width="550" ratio="0.66" fr-original-style="display: block; vertical-align: top; margin: 5px auto; text-align: center; width: 100%; max-width: 550px;" fr-original-class="fr-draggable">Pat is in the neighborhood<hr fr-original-style="" style="height: 0px; overflow: visible; border-bottom: none; clear: both; user-select: none; break-after: page; box-sizing: border-box;">You are an observer on a daily basis and passionate about the discovery that the city brings within itself. Can you give us insights into the potential future of Istanbul and the upcoming changes you foresee; do you think the cultural richness of Istanbul is decaying?I don't see it as decaying, it changed. Some of that change is related to modern change. So there are fewer cinemas, well that's because everybody is at home watching Netflix. When I first came to Istanbul, it was great. We could go up to Istiklal back in 1998 and watch American movies in English that have just come out now we can't. That's because Turkish cinema developed, it produces its own films so you don't have to put on Hollywood movies. Pandora Bookshop for instance, which has been here forever, is closing at the end of this month. There is another branch at Harbiye so it's not the end of the world really. But that is just part of the change as a lot of people are probably ordering whatever books they want online. To me, it's hard to separate what it's just a natural evolution and what's not. It wouldn't matter where you were, the same things would be happening.To make the interview a little bit concrete per se, can you give us examples from your favorite places in Istanbul?Where we are, Kahve6. It's probably my favorite place in Cihangir. Hidiv Kasrı is a beautiful place, I love it during the tulip season. My friend and I particularly like Göztepe Park. It's beautiful, filled with flowers. You just see hundreds of happy families having a nice time in the park, just sitting around not worrying about what's going on anywhere. Surprisingly yesterday, in Sultanahmet, I arranged a meeting with a couple of friends in a place that I stopped going, called the Dervish Tea Garden. But I thought “Why would you not want to sit here, this is lovely!” We were sitting under a giant plane tree and the prices seemed very reasonable.

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