Marmara Turkish
Imperial inheritance — Iskender, Istanbul street food, Ottoman drinks.
Iskender Kebab
Sliced doner kebab served over pita with tomato sauce, melted butter, and a side of yogurt from Bursa
View page →Marmara Turkish cuisine — from Istanbul, Bursa, the Marmara Sea coast, and the surrounding Thrace and Anatolia provinces — carries the Ottoman court's imperial legacy. The region is Turkey's most populous and historically the seat of empire; its cuisine reflects 500+ years of imperial palace cooking, refined by chefs who served sultans and developed by street vendors who fed the masses. Two distinct traditions coexist: the imperial-refined (lokum sweetshops, kaymak-and-pistachio pastries, Turkish coffee ceremony, salep and boza winter drinks) and the street-popular (döner kebab born in Bursa, balık ekmek at Eminönü, kokoreç at midnight, midye dolma sold from trays).
Signature dishes are deeply identified with Istanbul: Iskender kebab (the Bursa-original döner-on-bread with butter-tomato-yogurt), döner kebab (the vertical-spit lamb that conquered global street food in the 20th century), balık ekmek (the iconic fish sandwich sold from Bosphorus boats), kokoreç (the controversial-to-foreigners lamb-intestine grill), lakerda (Ottoman-era salt-cured bonito), midye dolma (the Ottoman-era stuffed mussel street food), and the four canonical drinks — Türk kahvesi (UNESCO Intangible Heritage), boza (winter fermented millet), salep (winter hot orchid drink), lokum (Turkish Delight, invented at Hacı Bekir in 1777). The Marmara cuisine is what most international restaurants call 'Turkish food.'
Start Here
Bursa's Iskender is the original; the Istanbul street wrap is the urban evolution.
Why start here · Döner Kebab is Turkey's most-globally-known street food — invented in Bursa, perfected in Istanbul.
Eat at Eminönü harbor in Istanbul, standing, with turşu suyu (pickled-vegetable juice) — this is the canonical experience.
Why start here · Balık Ekmek is Istanbul's most iconic street food — sold from floating boats at Eminönü since the 1800s.
Never stir — stirring brings up the grounds. Sip slowly; the bottom 5mm is fortune-telling material.
Why start here · Türk Kahvesi is UNESCO Intangible Heritage — the world's oldest extant coffee brewing tradition.
The Pantry
See all 95 ingredients›
Dairy & Fats
How They Cook
Techniques that define this cuisine
Kindred Kitchens
Cuisines built on the same signature ingredients
Other regions
Siblings within Turkish — each its own tradition.
