Istunbelievabul!

Istanbul. Europe-meets-Asia. East-meets-West.

Mike-meets-kebap.

Love at first sight

That’s a Cag Si- wait, wait. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves.

Istanbul is also the place where this happened.

We don’t talk about it.

Most of all, Istanbul is a bloody great city. We had 5 nights in town and it really knocked our socks off. For starters it’s a visually stunning harbour city, spread across the ‘Bosphorus‘ (the strait connecting the Mediterranean with the Black Sea). The skyline is dotted with mosques and minarets; breathtaking vistas await around every corner.

Even beneath the streets there’s something to see; take the ancient Basilica Cistern filled with tons of atmosphere and a busload or seven of Japanese tourists.

Also, the original Phantom of the Opera set. Probably.

But despite this it’s still a very urban city – for one thing, it has the world’s longest shopping strip and a ton of bars, cafes and restaurants.

And all this is before we even GET to the food. O Mama, the food.

The first pic is me marvelling at a Cag Sis. That’s a kind of sideways doner where the meat is carefully threaded onto a skewer and served with flatbread and sides. I’d picked this joint after reading that the lambs reportedly munch on wild oregano before they answer a higher calling. The result: tender, crispy, bursting with flavour, utterly addictive.

This guy could get a gig on Savile Row.

We ate Durum; a special type of kebap wrap. Durum bread is somewhere between a tortilla and pizza; chewy, bubbly and so so good. Best with adana – minced and sharply spicy lamb. Anthony Bourdain gave these guys the tick of approval and it ain’t hard to see why.

I regret I only have one stomach to give.

The Turks also came up with a little thing called Pide. Some more savvy research led us to a little hole-in-the-wall where a moustachioed Pide genius shovelled heaven in-and-out of a wood fired oven. The review said the guy loved tourists and boy did he. This man was the happiest person we’d met on our trip so far. Pide perfection and afterwards he gave me a big floury hug.

I may have instigated the hug.

I wanted to eat all my food there, forever.

Nonetheless, all these meals and sights – and a truckload of unpictured delicious meze – pale in the wake of a cooking class we were lucky enough to do. An experience so epic it deserves its own post.

Needless to say if you ain’t been to Istanbul yet, get there asap. We’re thinking of going back – and if we do, there won’t be much of anything left afterwards.

More photos here.