Food critics sing the praises of street eats in Istanbul, where twisted rounds of simit – sesame-covered bread – beckon in glass cases alongside sugary Sultan’s Lips. In Turkey, meat is king, and while vegetarian dishes are certainly available, standout dishes are nearly always carnivorous, and often include organ meats like tripe. Turkish coffee, kebabs of all imaginable combinations and varieties, and icli kofte (ground meat and spices in a bulgur wheat shell) are among the treats unique to this region.
Don’t miss: lamb slow-roasted in clay pit ovens and served on flatbread; real ‘Turkish Delight’, an ancient sugar-and-nut confection that little resembles the corn-syrup-and-powered-sugar versions found in the West.