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