Baklava Backstreets Istanbul Food Tour with 12+ Tastings

Go straight for Istanbul’s culinary jugular on our tour through the Beyoğlu district, from Taksim to Karaköy. We don't just follow the herd down İstiklal Avenue, we take the backstreets to find local eateries at decades-old bakeries, historic pilavcı and kebap houses, and pistachio-coated baklavacı.

Start at the landmark Taksim Square, for a nearby slice of Kurdish börek - paper-thin, golden layers, accompanied by a glass of mahogany-dark çay.

Next, dip soft lavaş flatbread into hand-chopped acılı ezme salsa, and earn your foodie stripes by tucking into şirdan - sheep’s stomach that’s slow-simmered until deliciously tender. Between bites, we pause for a Turkish coffee workshop where copper cezve cups are brewing in hot sand, followed by the ancient art of kahve falı (fortune telling) from your guide, to find out what the beans have to say about your future.

We pay our respects to the Kalkanoğlu family, whose five-generation legacy is built on a single dish at their traditional pilavcı rice-house - a plate of buttery rice topped with creamy white beans and melt-in-the-mouth braised beef. With 14+ tastings, we’ve only scratched the surface of the surprises in store.

Slip into the Çiçek Pasajı arcade alongside rows of meyhane taverns, emerging onto İstiklal Caddesi’s Independence Avenue with late-Ottoman architecture and the iconic red tram clanging its bell through the crowd. Stop for midye dolma plump mussels stuffed with herbed rice, with a sharp squeeze of lemon.

Follow in the footsteps of the late Anthony Bourdain at a hole-in-the-wall kebab joint. Expect hand-minced adana lamb, hit with sumac and spice, wrapped in a bread charred over open coals.

Board the Tünel funicular to discover the ‘Golden Horn’ specialities of balık dürüm grilled fish wrap, and Mersin-style tantuni drizzled with garlic yogurt. The tour ends at the baklava-birthplace of Gaziantep, who have been perfecting the recipe for nearly 200 years - where forty layers of filo meet pleasantly chewy dondurma ice cream.

We'll end at Karaköy Pier, watching the ferries over to Sultanahmet. Whilst it’s possible to attempt this culinary marathon alone, why leave the fate of your taste buds to chance? Spaces for this moveable feast are strictly limited, grab yours before the word is out.