Markets in Istanbul; Kadikoy Food Market and Galata Bridge Fish Market
If you’ve read this blog for any length of time you’ll know that besides food, my biggest passion is travel. When the two intersect, I’m in heaven. So it’s natural that when I travel, I search out recommendations for the best food I can find, be it street food, restaurants, or markets. Likewise, I thought I’d share some of my favorite experiences here in case any of you should find yourselves traveling to some of the same places. Even if you have no plans for a visit, it’s always interesting to see how people eat in other cultures.
In April, my husband and I went to Turkey for 8 days, spending the bulk of our time in Istanbul and also visiting the Roman ruins of Ephesus. There are fantastic fresh markets all over Istanbul; these are photos from but two of them. If you are interested in markets other than those for food, you might want to check out the post on my travel blog about Istanbul’s Grand Bazaar, Spice Bazaar, and market streets (tip; shop where the locals do for the best souvenirs).
Kadikoy Market
First up is the Kadikoy Market which is on the Asian side of the city. No, that’s not an ethnic enclave, Istanbul is the only city in the world which straddles two continents. That’s right, in a short half an hour ferry ride you can go from Europe to Asia, for about a dollar, and without having to take out your passport. Once there, exit the ferry building and head to your right up Sogutlu Cesme Caddesi a few blocks and turn right, into an area of pedestrian only streets filled with food shops, produce and fish stalls and restaurants.
Olives! Need I say more? Any culture with that many different olive choices you know has to have good food, right? And look closely at the giant blocks of cheese in the back.
I’m not sure what this guy had in his basket, but he was a character.
The photo below shows dried eggplant skins and dried peppers. Both are rehydrated and then stuffed with a vegetable, rice and sometimes meat mixture.
The photo below is of a shop which sell herbs, spices and organic goods. We saw lots of shops like this in Istanbul. This is the place we bought 2 kilos of handmade soap (see the baskets below right). The soap is great and came in three “flavors”; olive oil, laurel and pistachio. The shop, Timsahli, is on Yasa Cadessi, opposite a Greek Orthodox church.
In a later post I’ll share the wonderful place we ate lunch, Ciya Sofrasi, while walking around the area and more on Turkish food in general.
Galeta Bridge Fish Market
The other market we’ll visit virtually today is the one at the base of the Galeta Bridge on the Beyoglu side. As you walk away from Sultanhamet and across the bridge toward the Galeta tower, on the far side of the bridge, below and to the left sits this fish market.
Of course there are plenty of places to eat here, from sit down restaurants, to fried fish sellers, to guys who have set up simple grills to make tasty fish sandwiches.
We bought a sandwich from this guy (above), though the more “famous” fish sandwich vendors are across the bridge selling sandwiches from rocking boats. Our sandwich was fantastic and came with this view:
More to come on where and what we ate in Turkey in a later post. In the meantime, if you want to see more on Istanbul, check out my travel blog, wired2theworld or specifically the page on Turkey.
15 Comments
Sharon Miro
I want to go back now.
Anise
I loved the Galata Bridge fish sandwiches, as I think I have mentioned. Greasy but oh so tasty.
formerchef
Anise- Our sandwiches really weren’t that greasy. I also liked that they were cooked to order where we were. Across the bridge, where the sandwiches are sold off boats, it looked like they were cooking pieces of fish by the hundreds and I really wondered about the quality there.
angela@spinachtiger
Really fabulous pics and I wish I could see a goats head up close. Not really. 🙂
formerchef
Angela-The goat heads really weren’t that bad. At least they were already cooked!
Cathy Mayhue
Wow! Great pictures.. When I see pictures like these I really regret becoming a vegetarian! I mean loved the variety of some of my favorite vegetables available there like artichoke hearts. But the place where I stop staring at are the fantastic fish’s!
formerchef
Yes, the fish there are really beautiful. They should be, many of them come right out of the Bosphorus or nearby Black Sea!
Simply Tia
These photos are absolutely fantastic!!!!! I’d love to visit that market and spend an entire day buying goods!
formerchef
Me too! Next time we go I’m going to make sure we rent a place with a good kitchen so I can cook!
Myra
Thank you for explaining those were dehydrated eggplant skins. You never know what they’ll sell at a market – my mind was wandering. 🙂 Gorgeous photos – markets are my favorite places to visit when I travel. I always end up buying something to immediately munch on, as well as treasures to bring back home.
formerchef
Myra, it took me a while to figure them out too, but then I ate them and they were really good. I think I have some pictures of them stuffed which I’ll show in a later post.
Jenn @LeftoverQueen
Great post! One of my closest friends from HS lives in Istanbul and I really need to go visit her!
formerchef
Jenn- You really should go vor a visit! Istanbul is amazing and I really want to go back. For me, it’s up there with Paris and Rome as a city I think I could return to again and again.
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tim
Ah yes, I remember the fish market by the Galata Bridge. It was very wet and a bit cold when I visited it in February. The fish were fresh and there were little eateries nearby that deepfried the fish and you just ate them with a bit of salt and lemon juice and crusty French baguettes. That was fantastic.