MENU's Aegean Odyssey. Day 3, Istanbul: Asitane, a restaurant with classic Ottoman cuisine

We decided to have an easy morning before going to one of  the "activities" we had planned when putting this trip together. We met Batur Durmay at Pete Ayub's Sense of Taste kitchen in Cape Town some years ago and he has been receiving MENU since then. He has a restaurant in Istanbul, Asitane, which specialises in traditional Fine Ottoman cuisine - 600 years of the Ottoman Empire's flavour legacy. Many years of research have gone into the recipes.

Up to now, all the restaurants we have seen have been very "touristy" with touts standing outside waving leaflets and menus and trying to persuade us to come in and take a seat. Asitane is very different...

We walked to our local Metro station about 15 minutes away and were immediately lost, went to the wrong platform for the line we needed and had to exit and start again. Fortunately a security guard gave us a metro map and told us which stations to use. So off we went

Two stations, and we needed to change lines, only to find that the next line was closed and we had to take a bus. These boys were cooling off in a sprinkler near the bus stop

Istanbul has a very good public transport system, once one learns to use it and learns a little Turkish. The Istanbulkart works on tubes, trams and large and small buses

From the last stop  we walked, got lost, asked for directions, got lost again, walked some more - we have found people, other than bus drivers, to be most helpful -

and walked alongside the old city wall

and eventually found Asitane after a two hour trip. It seems we should have taken a taxi which would have got us there very quickly

It has a lovely garden setting, cool and green under the Chestnut trees

And for inclement days, evenings and functions, a large indoor restaurant

The outside bar

Batur joined us, helped us to choose from the menu and suggested appropriate Turkish wines

Service was impressive, slick and polite

We started with glasses of this Turkish Rosé wine which smelt of rose hips and tasted of strawberries and grape must but was bone dry and very refreshing

Hot rolls, green fresh olive oil and a tapenade of green olive and walnuts

Batur ordered a tasting menu for us, smaller portions to share of some of the best dishes. This was a warm creamy almond soup from a 1539 recipe, sprinkled with some nutmeg and pomegranate aruls

Four tastes of Turkey to eat with the bread: 
L to R,  traditional 1469 chickpea humus delicately flavoured with currants, walnuts and cinnamon; fresh cottage cheese, spring onions, parsley, green pepper, tomatoes  seasoned with rosemary & paprika; broad beans with dill and olive oil; pounded cucumber with onion and pistachio. 
All are delicately flavoured 

The Kavaklidere Selection white wine we drank was made from unfamiliar grapes Narince and Emir, but had semillon notes and, on the palate, limes, slight Riesling notes but no terpenes, fruit present but bone dry and very good with the food. Served correctly in cold glasses

A delicate cabbage roll stuffed with chestnuts, rice, onions and delicate spices

In the front, what most South Africans might recognise as a skilpadjie. A fatty Apron Kebab: minced lamb and beef with coriander, cumin, pine nuts and mint and at the back a Balli Gemeci Boregi, deep fried pasta with white cheese, goat cheese, peas and finely chopped parsley

Our main course dish was so unusual and so delicious that, when melon season comes around again, Lynne might try making this. It's a cored, sweet juicy green cantaloupe
melon, stuffed with minced meats, rice, herbs, almonds, currants, pine nuts and then baked in the oven. The sweet fruitiness compliments the savoury; it doesn't fight with it. Lovely nuanced spicing

One large portion each

We finished our meal with double espressos

A friendly garden cat

Spring chestnut leaves

Our bill

The menus

A table setting

Wonderful perfumed 'orange blossom' bushes at the entrance

Next door is the Cora museum and lots of souvenir vendors selling traditional tiles and other enticements

Lynne had to explore the jewellery store and we met this very helpful Belgian store owner Alexis De Moulin, who just happens to be producing an on line food guide to Istanbul! How appropriate. He gave us lots of tips

At his suggestion, we walked down the hill to the side of the Golden Horn. We got lost a bit and it seemed a very long way, but we travelled through some very interesting neighbourhoods 

Hey, a local connection! In the most unlikely location

A falling down house. There are many
It seems the owners have left and no one is allowed to touch them, so they turn into ruins

And another

A Bulgarian church being restored - it is in the parkland alongside the Golden Horn

A view to Taksim and the Galata tower on the other, Asian,  side

We took a bus to the Haliç Metro. This Metro station is superbly modern. We could not understand  why the map placed it right in the middle of the Golden Horn. It has been built in the middle of a huge bridge spanning the water

The all around views from the platform are spectacular. Here is our train arriving

Walking back home through our colourful neighbourhood in rush hour. One needs to be careful with the pavements at night. They often have pitfalls like this

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© John & Lynne Ford, Adamastor & Bacchus 2015

MENU's Aegean Odyssey. Day 2, Istanbul: Grand Bazaar, Bosporus, Blue Mosque, Cisterns

On our second day in Istanbul, we decided to visit the Grand Bazaar

 a huge warren of arch ceilinged passages

 with a vast variety of jewellery, textiles and carpets

ceramics 

 a few teas

and spices

 Much of it expensive, some interesting and some not very good

 and some of it excellent

 The alleys we followed behind the bazaar were full of wholesalers selling textiles and clothing ...

... small "hole in the wall" places for a take out lunch

we could see rice, chickpeas, and chicken 

Lynne (an ex jeweller) was fascinated to find this man breaking up old broken bits. She bought two interesting pieces for 15 TLira 

Turkish variety of "Car" seats for children 

Down the steep hill in the scarf & textile area 

Some incredible old buildings with modern shops beneath 

Here you could buy underwear: 4 vests for 4 TL, or a wedding gown, or baby clothes

Or dress your children as Pashas

We loved the Hil FIGER  blue jeans

Three billy goats gruff

Lynne was taken by these beautiful bejewelled fabrics which you sew onto an evening dress to turn it into something spectacular and couture. We did not ask the price

The New Mosque and the unpleasant restaurant
where we had an indifferent lunch.
When we checked our map, 
we were amazed at how far we had walked

The food was ordinary, the service appalling

We asked for chicken doner kebabs; we were served the expensive 'undone' version
The chicken and the chips were dried out and tasteless. 
We called for yoghurt and chilli to add some moisture and flavour and made up our own
They sneakily added (and took) service to the bill, 
which we did not want to pay. 
If only we'd had the right change...

The Istanbul Commodity Exchange in a very old building

We found the dock side with a view of the ferries 
and the bridge over the Bosporus
We were on a ferry very similar to the one on the left 

The Galata Tower from our afternoon Bosporus ferry trip
Beware of ticket touts who charge 50 TL pp to go on a small, rickety ferry
The official ferry cost just 12TL pp for a 2½ hr trip

The Bosporus is extremely busy 
with ferries, barges and huge ships 

Boarding the ferry

Lots of international tourists on board

Old and modern are mixed in Istanbul

The ferry made one stop at the Bosporus Bridge 
which is right in front of a mosque 

We thought this huge ship was going to collide with us 
but she turned amazingly quickly

The Maidens' Tower

Touring can be tiring 

We went quite a long way up the Bosporus and saw the smaller expensive ferries alongside us

We next took the trolley up the hill to the Blue Mosque

Magnificent minarets

Waiting in the central courtyard till prayers are over at 5.30

The main Dome

The blue stained glass windows and the huge 'elephants feet' support pillars 

A detail shot of some of the beautiful blue tiles

More details. This was built in 

It is very dark inside the mosque at 5.30, 
but John's camera does capture the blue light
These two young Turkish lasses asked him 
to take their photograph with their phone

The magnificent stained glass windows 

and Lynne being respectful 

Hagia Sophia, built as a church by Justinian in 532-537, it was the most important church in Christianity for 1000 years, then became a mosque, now is a museum. It closed as we got there; we had to return next day

  A hooded crow
They are everywhere, like starlings at home

 Local stray dogs are tagged and left to fend for themselves, as are the many stray cats
It broke our hearts, some of these are pedigree dogs
They are fed by the city and the community

Afternoon nap

They are everywhere

Into the Cisterns, built by Emperor Justinian, 527-565 AD

 Magnificent domed roof and a selection of different columns to support it, with the water for the city below

The water is full of koi and other fish, coins thrown by visitors, and is very clear

The lighting is superb, but John's camera enhances light; it is actually much darker than this

Justinian reused older statues and columns. 
This is one of two Medusa heads he used as a column support

Being ambushed into a carpet sellers dungeon, we were not the only customers 

The psychology used is clever and persuasive, unless you have experienced it before, as Lynne has. She enjoyed the apple tea and the sit down very much and resisted all temptation 

The tram is modern, fast and quiet 

Walking from the tram back to our apartment area, lots of street life

We could not resist this local baker selling interesting local savoury and sweet pastries. We bought some meat stuffed borek and the cheesy pasta on the right which we thought was a cheese pie. Neither was great, sadly

Small roadside restaurant seating, not at all tempting. We had a take away chicken at home, quite exhausted from the huge range we covered
How do they keep the glasses on the tables?

To visit yesterday's instalment click here
and here for Day 3
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© John & Lynne Ford, Adamastor & Bacchus 2015