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Welcome to the sixth post in our İngilizce Türkiye’de series. Today we would like to highlight a newly opened casual lunch cafe and bakery in Beyoğlu, Gram Istanbul. 

In our İngilizce Türkiye’de series we highlight establishments across Turkey that offer great service and command of the English language. On a recent trip that TurksLearnEnglish.com made to Gram, we were impressed with the quality of the food, the service and servers’ ability to converse in English. The explanations of the food, ingredients and preparation style that we received in the English language, were commendable.

Gram is a small bakery and cafe in the heart of Beyoğlu, opened by chef, Didem Şenol. Didem is now famous in the Istanbul culinary scene due to her wildly successful Karakoy restaurant, Lokanta Maya. Lokanta Maya focuses on Turkish classics with a modern twist, prepared with seasonal fresh ingredients.

Gram Istanbul is effectively the lunch cafe version of Lokanta Maya. Everyday five to eight hot dishes and a selection of salads are prepared. The focus is on Turkish cuisine with some interesting takes on the classics. Like many classic Turkish büfe in Beyoğlu, servings are cafeteria style and priced based on the number of selections you make. Prices are reasonable but expect to pay more than your standard Istiklal lunch fare. There is also a bakery that prepares some of the best desserts and assorted baked goods we have ever eaten in Istanbul. Lunch is served from 12 to 3 pm daily with the bakery opened until 6pm.

On our last visit, we were particularly impressed with the quality of the service delivered in English.

For this week’s vocabulary lesson we would like to go over classic Turkish ingredients often featured on Gram’s menu:

• pazı … swiss chard
• kabak … pumpkin
• ıspanak … spinash
• havuç … carrot
• patlıcan …. eggplant
• pancar … beetroot
• bezelye …. pease
• enginar … artichoke

We hope you enjoyed both our review of Gram Istanbul and our vocabulary lesson! As always, if you know of any restaurants, cultural institutions or attractions across Turkey that should be commended for the quality of their English, be sure to let us know!

Welcome to the fifth post in our İngilizce Türkiye’de series. Today we would like to highlight a newly opened Bosphorus balık lokantası,  located in Kuruçeşme, Kydonia.

In our İngilizce Türkiye’de series we highlight establishments across Turkey that offer great service and command of the English language. On a recent trip that TurksLearnEnglish.com made to Kydonia, we were thoroughly impressed with the views, the food and the service.

Kydonia is an Agean fish restaurant specializing in mezze dishes and cooking styles from the island of Crete. The restaurant originally opened in the port of Alacatı. The Istanbul location (which we visited) opened last November. The setting is truly spectacular with a commanding view of the Bosphorus including the Kuleli Military High School, the first military high school (lisesi) in Turkey, founded in 1845 by Ottoman Sultan Abdülmecid I. Needless to say, the beautiful building makes a lovely backdrop at night when it’s lit up in multicolor LED effects. The defining feature of Kydonia is that the entire restaurant becomes an open air terrace in the warmer months, as the roof is completely retractable.

On our visit, the dishes were all extremely tasty and fresh, but the highlights were the cold mezes including grilled artichoke hearts, girit ezme, stuffed zuchini flowers and fried Greek cheese. The hot appetizers that followed were also very well prepared, including grilled octopus and fish kokorec (similar to the lamb version but prepared with a hard white fish instead). The wine list is impressive and the service is impeccable. Our server knew the English translation of every meze in the restaurant, and there were over 30 on display that evening! Kydonia is not a cheap night out, but it’s reasonably priced considering the quality of the ingredients, the inventiveness of the dishes and the view and setting of the restaurant.

Here are some Turkish to English translations of some of our favorite dishes at Kydonia:

• Izgara Lorlu Börek … white cheese rolled in pastry and grilled
• Sıcak Yatırma Peyniri … fried white cheese
• Izgara Ahtapot … grilled octopus
• Cevizli Kalamar Dolma … stuffed squid (with nuts and meat)
• Ahtapot Yahni … octupus stew

As always, if you know of any establishments that we should highlight in our İngilizce Türkiye’de series please do let us know!

Welcome to the fourth post in our İngilizce Türkiye’de series. Today we would like to highlight a wonderful cafe / restaurant located in the Sakıp Sabancı Museum, Muze de Changa.

In our İngilizce Türkiye’de series we highlight establishments across Turkey that offer great service and command of the English language. On a recent trip that TurksLearnEnglish.com made to the Sakıp Sabancı Museum, we decided to stop in to Muze de Changa for breakfast. We were very impressed with the quality of the food, the setting and the wonderful service we received in English.

Muze de Changa is a well established Istanbul restaurant that opened its doors back in 2005. The restaurant is located in the Emirgan district. The restaurant is housed on the top floor of the Sakıp Sabancı Museum, overlooking the property’s beautiful gardens and the Bosphorus. The restaurant is well known for its high end dinner menu. On our last visit we discovered that the restaurant makes a wonderful breakfast on weekends. The breakfast service is largely unadvertised on its website, yet is extremely popular with locals.

If you have ever wanted to visit the restaurant but are put off by the expensive prices for dinner, we certainly suggest visiting for breakfast. Prices are reasonable and the restaurant prepares wonderful twists on the classic Turkish kahvalti. Delicious börek with non-traditional ingredients, tasty menemen and a wide selection of traditional Turkish breads were a highlight. The kahvalti menu is short but it delivers enough choice to keep all your diners happy.

Combining a visit to the museum with a meal at the restaurant, and perhaps a walk to Emirgan park (which is located just a five minute walk up the Bosphorus), makes a perfect day out. For any visitor to Istanbul, the upper Bosphorus location of the restaurant is also a fabulous and often-skipped district. Be sure to call the restaurant ahead and a book a table on the terrace, which can be a bit crowded on the weekends, with many visitors celebrating birthdays or other special occasions.

For our Muze de Changa review, here is a small amount of vocabulary about museum collections:

• Kitap Sanatları ve Hat Koleksiyonu   Callıgraphy collectıon
• Resım koleksiyonu   Paıntıngs
• Arkeolojık ve taş koleksionu   Archeological collectıon
• Mobilya ve dekoratif koleksionu   Furnıture and decorative arts
• Yeni alımlar   Recent acquisitions

As always, if you know of any establishments that we should highlight in our İngilizce Türkiye’de series please do let us know!