Food & Drink

You can now book an exclusive adventure with TRIPS by Culture Trip to explore Istanbul as part of a 12-day, small-group tour of Turkey led by our local insider.

Turkey

Istanbul

The Coolest Neighbourhoods in Istanbul, Turkey

Read our guide to find out the best things to do in one of Istanbul's most beloved districts, Sultanahmet.

Sultanahmet and Beyond: Things To Do in Istanbul Old City

From catching an opera to dancing the night away, discover all the cool things you can do in Kadıköy, on Istanbul’s Asian side.

Things to Do in Kadıköy, Istanbul

You can now book an exclusive adventure with TRIPS by Culture Trip to take in all the sights and more on a 12-day tour of Turkey.

Top Things to See and Do on Istiklal Street, Istanbul

You can now book an exclusive adventure with TRIPS by Culture Trip to explore Istanbul and more as part of a 12-day tour of Turkey led by our local insider.

The Top Things to See and Do on the Bosphorus in Istanbul

Featured Articles

Istanbul is one of the world’s great cities. Divided between Europe and Asia by the Bosphorus, or Strait of Istanbul waterway which marks the continental divide, the area has been the capital of two empires – the Roman-Byzantine and Ottoman – under the name of Constantinople. Today, it remains one of the most culturally significant, remarkable cities on the globe. Here's our guide.

The Insider Guide to Instanbul

The Bosphorus strait (and the Golden Horn estuary linking to it) forms the foreground for so many of the most remarkable viewpoints in Istanbul, while also separating Europe and Asia and making it the only city in the world divided between two continents. 

The most famous structures in the city can be found in the Sultanahmet neighbourhood, in the centre of old Istanbul. It’s here the Hagia Sophia, probably the most famous building in Istanbul, was built in 537 and was once the largest Christian church of the eastern Roman Empire. It became a mosque under the Ottomans after the Fall of Constantinople in 1453 and has been a museum for most of the 20th century, before reopening as a mosque in 2020. 

From there, the Blue Mosque, built in the 1600s during the rule of Ahmed I, is a few minutes walk away; there are beautiful rooftop cafes in the area where you can have a coffee in fine view of both – as well as of the Ottoman imperial Süleymaniye Mosque. The Basilica Cistern and the Topkapı Palace are also in Sultanahmet, and the iconic hustle and bustle of the Grand Bazaar, one of the oldest roofed markets in the world, is a kilometre away. It’s a 10 to 15 minute walk across the Golden Horn, over into Asia, to the Galata Tower, a medieval stone tower in the Karaköy area of Istanbul. Head up the river to the Dolmabahce Palace, the largest palace in Turkey. 

But these are just the sights. Dig a little deeper and you’ll find a thriving city where modernity meets history in the most amazing ways.

The Main Attractions

Oran

Setif

Algeria

Luanda

Angola

Cotonou

Porto-novo

Benin

Botswana

Ouagadougou

Burkina Faso

Burundi

Tonga

Yaounde

Bamenda

Cameroon

Cape Verde

Central African Republic

Chad

Comoros

Kinshasa

Lubumbashi

Congo

Abidjan

Cote Divoire

Florentin

Dijibouti

Djibouti

Cairo

Alexandria

Sharm El-sheikh

Egypt

Equatorial Guinea

Asmara

Eritrea

Addis Ababa

Lalibela

Ethiopia

Gambia

Accra

Kumasi

Cape Coast

Ghana

Guinea-bissau

Nairobi

Mombasa

Malindi

Kenya

Lesotho

Liberia

Libya

Antananarivo

Antsirabe

Madagascar

Blantyre

Malawi

Bamako

Timbuktu

Mali

Mauritania

Port Louis

Mauritius

Casablanca

Marrakech

Sale

Morocco

Maputo

Mozambique

Swakopmund

Windhoek

Namibia

Lagos

Abuja

Ibadan

Nigeria

Pointe-noire

Republic Of The Congo

Kigali

Musanze

Butare

Rwanda

Dakar

Touba

Senegal

Seychelles

Freetown

Sierra Leone

Cape Town

Durban

Johannesburg

South Africa

South Sudan

Khartoum

Sudan

Mbabane

Manzini

Swaziland

Zanzibar

Arusha

Dar Es Salaam

Tanzania

Tunis

Hammamet

Tozeur

Tunisia

Kampala

Gombe

Uganda

Western Sahara

Lusaka

Zambia

Harare

Bulawayo

Zimbabwe

Africa

Antarctica

Kabul

Afghanistan

Dhaka

Bangladesh

Thimphu

Bhutan

Bandar Seri Begawan

Brunei Darussalam

Siem Reap

Phnom Penh

Sihanoukville

Cambodia

Shanghai

Beijing

Guangzhou

China

East Timor

Wan Chai

Hong Kong

Mumbai

Delhi

India

Bali

Penang

Jakarta

Indonesia

Israel

Tokyo

Kyoto

Osaka

Japan

Almaty

Astana

Kazakhstan

Pyongyang

Korea

Bishkek

Kyrgyzstan

Luang Prabang

Vientiane

Pakse

Laos

Macau

Kuala Lumpur

Ipoh

Malaysia

Maldives

Mongolia

Yangon

Mandalay

Nay Pyi Taw

Myanmar

Kathmandu

Darchula

Nepal

Hyderabad

Islamabad

Lahore

Pakistan

Manila

Boracay

Baguio

Philippines

Riyadh

Jeddah

Mecca

Saudi Arabia

Asia

Guide to Food & Drink in Istanbul, Turkey | Culture Trip

Great Eats & Drinks

Discover the best spots for good food & good vibes

Restaurants

Historic Restaurants To Try in Sultanahmet

Restaurants

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Istanbul’s Best Turkish Restaurants - From Classic To Modern

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Beyond the Doner: Restaurants in Istanbul

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The Top 10 Restaurants In Galata, Istanbul

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Guides & Tips

A Neighborhood Guide To Teşvikiye, Istanbul

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The Best Bars In Bosphorus, Istanbul

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The Best Wine Bars In Istanbul

See & Do

The 10 Best Bars Around Taksim, Istanbul

Sports

The Best Places to Watch Football in Istanbul

Food & Drink

Istanbul’s Most Popular Neighborhood: Arnavutköy

Breakfast

A collection of our favourite morning and brunch spots

Food & Drink

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Food & Drink

Istanbul's Best Brunch Spots With A Bosphorus View

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Veggie Delights

The top places to eat well when looking for veggie-options

Restaurants

The Best Vegetarian and Vegan-Friendly Restaurants in Istanbul

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The 7 Best Vegan-Friendly Restaurants in Istanbul

Markets & Shops

Restaurants

Best Spots For Food Shopping In Istanbul

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Fish Sandwiches: Istanbul's Favourite Fast-Food Treat

Food & Drink

Where To Buy Fresh Bread In Istanbul

Tech

The Tastiest Istanbul Startups Bringing Tech To Food & Drink

Restaurants

The Best Spots For Food Shopping In Kurtuluş, Istanbul

Restaurants

Best Places For Organic Shopping In Istanbul

Health & Wellness

Best Juice Bars in Istanbul for a Detox

Shops

The Best Fish Markets In Istanbul

Coffee

Food & Drink

Istanbul’s Coziest Cafes for the Winter

Food & Drink

For the Fans: Istanbul's Breaking Bad-Inspired Coffee Shop

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The Quintessentially Turkish Guide To Drinking Coffee

Bars & cafes