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Shopping for Turkish Cuisine

Istanbul at the Bosphorus, Turkey

The best way of keeping the memories of a beautiful trip alive is to take back home some of the memorable tastes you’ve experienced during your stay. Turkish cuisine never ceases to surprise with its rich and tasty variety and many people feel excited at the idea of preparing those dishes when they’re back home. Nowadays globalisation allows us to find almost every ingredient, everywhere. But when it comes to authentic cooking there are certain elements you need to purchase from the source. During your stay at Four Seasons Hotel Istanbul at the Bosphorus, you’ll have the chance of tasting many Turkish specialties. For those who want to set a table with Turkish flavours, these unique spots that the concierge will lead you to will feel like finding Ali Baba’s treasure chest.

We have picked three neighbourhoods where you can find all the essential ingredients. Shopping online is always possible, but tasting the food before buying is an incomparable experience. Although some of them will send your purchase directly to the Hotel, make sure you have a big bag with you for the irresistible array of ingredients you’re going to find.

Spice Bazaar (Egyptian Market)

Eminönü is a vibrant food shopping area and the Spice Bazaar is at the heart of it. Built in the 17th century, this market served as an important hub for food and spice trade ever since then and hosts around 90 shops today. Although it offers other goods than culinary items, what attracts both the tourists and the locals alike are its unique venues for food shopping.

Cankurtaran Gıda is a 75 year-old charcuterie tthat sells the best quality of local cheeses and cold cuts. Turkish feta (with sheep milk), tulum (from the Erzincan area) and kaşar (the aged Thracian variety) are the ones you should try first. Don’t hesitate to ask for a bite for every cheese and meat you’re interested in buying - or simply tasting. Sucuk (spicy Turkish beef sausages, best cooked with eggs) and pastırma (thinly sliced, cured beef meat) are traditional Turkish cold cuts. Kavurma (potted beef meat) is also a Turkish delicacy and makes a great pasta dressing when heated. You can also buy tasty honey varieties from Cankurtaran. If you are interested in seafood, they have good quality botarga (dried mullet eggs covered with bee wax) that keeps for very long.

Hayfene and Ayfer Kaur are two spice shops where you can find all the spices you’ll need while cooking Turkish dishes. They are both second and third generation family businesses and the owners are known for their picky purchases. Mint, cumin, red pepper flakes and oregano are essential for cooking Turkish food but Hayfene also prepares great spice mixtures for dolmas (stuffed vegetables), köftes (meatballs) and many more for various uses. You’ll find essential oils, good quality rose water and specialty teas at both of the shops and Ayfer Kaur has a huge variety of packed herb teas.

Taksim Area

In and around Taksim you can find many specialty food shops. Two of these are in Cihangir neighbourhood and they complement each other since one is a cheese and the other one is a wine shop. Antre Gourmet was founded with the goal of discovering local cheeses all over Turkey and has a remarkable selection today. It is a small shop packed with delicious Anatolian products and sells very good quality olives, olive oil, honey and jam next to the cheeses.

Close by the cheese store, the first and the biggest liquor store of Istanbul welcomes its customers - most of whom are lon -time regulars. La Cave not only sells almost every wine produced in Turkey but has the best of our national drink rakı (an anise flavoured drink similar to ouzo and arak) as well.

There is also a very good pickle shop close by. Fermented foods are on the rise because of their health benefits and pickles are an essential part of the Turkish diet for ages. Turkish pickles are never sweet, so if you are into savoury tastes stop by Asri Turşucu for a delicious tasting.

Since strolling through the Istiklal Avenue is inevitable when you’re in this area, the nearby Beyoğlu Fish Market will be on your way. Filled with food and fish stalls in the past, this market had gone under a remarkable change and most of the food stores turned into fast food corners, but some old shops are still worth a visit for an interesting shopping experience.

The market’s highlight is an old candy store. Üçyıldız Şekerlemecisi is open since 1926 and the third generation keeps the tradition alive without a single change neither at the shop nor at the variety - other than the sugar-free jams they’ve been making since some time. Their traditional jams are kept in big copper containers and even seeing those old pots is a feast for the eye. They also sell freshly made Turkish delights (the one with mastic is a big hit), halvas, hard candies and all kinds of Turkish confectionary. If you have tasted some traditional Turkish desserts such as tel kadayıf, taş kadayıf or güllaç and want to make them at home, this is the right place to gather the main ingredients.

Reşat Balık Evi and Tunç Balık are the two fish stores famous for their fish and seafood products. Salted bonito, botarga and many varieties of cured and dried fish are at their best, and you can create a perfect mezze dinner even with a few of them. Your purchase can be vacuum packed for a safe trip.

Petek Turşucusu is another famous pickle shop on the same street. They are known for their vegetable pickles and fruit-based pickle varieties such as cherries and apricots.

For spice shopping in this part of the city, Bünsa is the best address. All the essential spices used in Turkish cuisine, as well as a rich selection of hard to find, rarely used spices are available here.

Kadıköy Market

This is the biggest food market in the city and attracts customers from all over Istanbul. Always busy and crowded, this colourful “land of plenty” will even carry away the most indifferent soul by the abundance bursting from every corner, every store.

There are two charcuteries that excel in their profession. Gözde Şarküteri and Ecevitler are the two touchstones of this market. You can bring home their cheeses, cold cuts and olives but the mezzes that won’t be able to make a trip back home are worth tasting too. You can buy some specimens in small amounts and enjoy them during your stroll. Among the cheeses Turkish feta (with sheep’s milk), tulum (from the Erzincan area) and kaşar (the aged Thracian variety) are the ones you should try first. Sucuk (spicy Turkish beef sausages) and pastırma (thinly sliced cured beef meat) are traditional Turkish cold meats. Kavurma (potted beef meat) is also a Turkish delicacy.

For those who are looking for a special honey, Eta Bal is like a sacred temple. This specialty shop sells honey from different regions of Turkey, especially the North East part of the country known for the rich flora of its mountains. Each honey is more valuable and tasty than the other and making a choice is a hard task for a honey lover.

Özcan Turşu is selling pickles since 1935 and even if you are not into them just visit the store for the colourful display. They also sell first quality vine leaves for wrapping dolmas, have the best tomato and pepper pastes from the South East of Turkey, and olive oil and olives. A popular and healthy breakfast among kids, a mixture of tahini and grape molasses is just prepared on the spot. Their pomegranate and sour grape molasses are also great for using in savoury dishes and salads.

Mesut Güneş has two stores next to each other and both of them are worth a visit. The first store sells kitchen towels, wooden spoons, Turkish coffee pots, copper cooking pots and more, while the second one is specialised in pulses and grains. They have five-six different types of bulgur alone. Herbal teas are also great both in variety and in quality.

“The candy store” of this market is Şekerci Cafer Erol. It has the best traditional and “new age” Turkish delights, halvas and hard candies all over town. They sell a huge variety of jams too, but the rose and the sour cherry are the most traditional ones.

If you are interested in preparing Turkish desserts or Turkish pasta types, you will find many of the ingredients needed on the shelves in front of some of the stores in Kadıköy Market. Don’t hesitate to buy whichever looks attractive to you and when the time comes, Google its name for the recipes in English and immerse yourself in the memories of your trip.

Antre Gourmet - Cihangir, Bakraç Sk. 14 B D:14 B, 34433 Beyoğlu

Asri Turşucu - Kuloğlu, Ağa Hamamı Sk. 9/A, 34334 Beyoğlu

Bünsa - Duduodaları Sokak 26, Balıkpazarı, Beyoğlu

Cankurtaran Gıda - Inside Mısır Çarşısı, No:33, 34116 Eminönü/Fatih

Ecevitler Gıda Pazarı - Caferağa, Güneşli Bahçe Sk. No 14 D:16, 34710 Kadıköy

Eta Bal - Caferağa Mah. Güneşli bahçe Sok. no:28, Kadıköy

Gözde Şarküteri - Güneşli Bahçe Sok. No:8 Kadıköy Balıkçılar Çarşısı, 34710 Kadıköy

Hayfene - Inside Mısır Çarşısı, No:51, 34116 Fatih

La Cave - Kılıçali Paşa, Sıraselviler Cd. No:109, 34433 Beyoğlu

Mesut Güneş - Osmanağa Mah. Yasa Cad., No:44/A, Kadıköy

Özcan Turşu - Güneşli Bahçe Sk. No:7, 34710 Kadıköy

Petek Turşucusu - Dudu Odaları Sk. 1/D, 34435 Beyoğlu