If you’ve been hanging out with us for a while, then you just know we love a food tour. From discovering the Tastes and Traditions of Bologna with Devour Tours to sampling the tastiest morsels in Cairo with Bellies En-Route, the blend of off-the-beaten-path delicacies and insider knowledge is the perfect way to really get to know a place, we love supporting local businesses, so it’s a win-win. Recently, we had the opportunity to try Yummy Istanbul’s Istanbul Taste of Two Continents Food Tour, and it was everything we’d hoped for and more.
You might also be interested in our guide to the best boutique hotels in Istanbul.
While this experience was complimentary, all thoughts and opinions are our own.
Review of the Istanbul Taste of Two Continents Food Tour from Yummy Istanbul
Snapshot
Experience: Istanbul Taste of Two Continents Food Tour
Operator: Yummy Istanbul
Location: Istanbul, Türkiye
Route: Spice Market and Eminönü → Bosphorus ferry → Kadıköy and Moda
Duration: Approximately 5.5 hours
Group size: Maximum 10 people
Best for: First-time visitors, food lovers, curious travellers and anyone wanting to experience both the European and Asian sides of Istanbul
Food: 20+ tastings across eight food stops
Price: From around US$135 per person
Start times: Daily at 9:30am, 10:30am and 11:30am
What’s included: Food and drink tastings, ferry tickets and an English-speaking local guide.
Meeting the crew
It’s 09:25, and we’re striding past magnificent mosques on the hunt for our tour guide. We’d been sent the meeting location the day prior, along with a contact number for Bahri in case we got lost. Thankfully, we didn’t need it as we soon saw a group forming outside the coffee shop we were meeting at.
As a welcome, Bahri jokes that this might be the world’s longest food tour, but explains that the length is necessary to get the full picture of the diverse food scene here in Istanbul. Over six hours, we travel from the European side to the Asian side of the Turkish capital (ferry included), a group of 10 people from across the globe, united in their passion for food.
Getting amongst it
Bahri is a registered tour guide in Turkey, and while his love for cuisine is palpable, he also has an innate ability to talk about everything from the diverse architecture we pass throughout the city to cultural norms and, of course, lots of tales about his beloved Izmir – the place of his birth. Having a guide so deeply knowledgeable about the city is one of the best bits about this food tour, and we took many of his restaurant and sightseeing suggestions across our following days in the capital, not one of which disappointed.
As a pescatarian, food tours can sometimes be challenging, at least when it comes to really experiencing the vast local offerings, but Yummy Istanbul makes it easy, swapping out lamb soup (which incidentally got rave reviews from the meat eaters) for lentils and ensuring there are plenty of options. I didn’t feel like I was missing out a bit, and when everyone else was diving into lamb kebabs at the birthplace of the famed iskender, my eggplant version was blowing my mind.
Eating like a local
Trying local delights like Lahmucan, stuffed mussels, and baklava (served with a delightfully chewy mastic-infused ice cream) was fabulous, but one of the highlights for me was breakfast. We visited different vendors around the Spice Bazaar, purchasing local delicacies such as Simit (circular bread covered in sesame seeds commonly sold in food carts across the city) and a range of cheeses and dips before heading to a little spot to enjoy a veritable feast of all our wares. The meneman (scrambled eggs with tomatoes) from the cafe was exquisite, paired with the ashuka (spiced red pepper and walnut) dip and breads, and I couldn’t get enough of the fresh clotted cream drenched in Turkish honey – the very definition of heavenly.
Another standout was a visit to a pickle house, where we saw the buzzing spot in action as we drank pickle juice loaded with everything from okra to cauliflower. Renowned for its digestive properties, the stop was strategically, and thankfully, placed before our second lunch.
Frequently asked questions: Istanbul Taste of Two Continents Food Tour from Yummy Istanbul
Yes. The tour is particularly well suited to first-time visitors because it introduces you to Istanbul’s food culture while taking you between two very different parts of the city. Take the tour early in your trip so you can return to neighbourhoods and food spots you discover during the experience.
The approximately 5.5-hour tour includes eight food stops and more than 20 tastings, covering breakfast, savoury dishes, street food and desserts. It also includes local non-alcoholic drinks, the Bosphorus ferry crossing and an English-speaking licensed guide.
Yes. This is one of the defining features of the experience. The tour begins around the Spice Market and Eminönü on Istanbul’s European side, then crosses the Bosphorus by ferry before continuing through Kadıköy and Moda on the Asian side.
The exact tastings can change according to the season and what’s being served by the tour’s food partners, but typical dishes include Turkish breakfast, simit, cheeses, olives, menemen, kaymak, İskender kebab, lahmacun, stuffed mussels, beyran soup, baklava and Turkish dondurma.
Vegetarians can join, with vegetarian alternatives available at most stops, although a few speciality dishes don’t have meat-free alternatives. Vegans have fewer options, while guests with severe nut allergies may not be suitable for the tour because nuts are commonly used in Turkish cooking.
The tour lasts approximately 5.5 hours and currently costs around US$135 per person. It operates daily, with departures at 9:30am, 10:30am and 11:30am. Groups are limited to 10 people, and food, drinks and public transport used during the tour are included.
Final thoughts
This tour is an ideal way to get up-close-and-personal with Turkish cuisine and to try things beyond what you might otherwise find. We did it on our first day, and I’d recommend doing that too, as Bahri was super helpful and gave us lots of tips for the rest of our stay. Be sure to turn up on an empty stomach for maximum satisfaction.
Discover more about Yummy Istanbul or Book a tour through Viator
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