Istanbul, Turkey - any good for Vegetarians?

"Rash"

 > Hi all,
 >
 > I'm in the early stages of planning a trip to Istanbul in September.
 > My concerns are ...


some political leaders in europe try to convince us that Turkey
is part of europe
so in their opinon, your posting is in the wrong newsgroup...
 >> Stay informed about: Istanbul, Turkey - any good for Vegetarians? 

"Rash" a écrit dans le message de

 > Hi all,
 >
 > I'm in the early stages of planning a trip to Istanbul in September.
 > My concerns are that although there are a few vegetarian restuarants,
 > I may be struggling to eat much out there.

Here is a list of supposedly vegetarian restaurants in Istanbul
<a rel="nofollow" style='text-decoration: none;' href="http://www.bigglook.com/biggistanbul/yemeicme/searchresult.asp?FromRestSearchPage=True&MekanAdi=&semt=-1&mutfak=-1&ftVejeteryan=S&image3.x=16&image3.y=13" target="_blank">http://www.bigglook.com/biggistanbul/yemeicme/searchresult.asp?FromRes...archPag</a>
Actually if you have a look to descriptions they also serve non-vegetarian
food, but I suppose they have a vegetarian menu...

But you shouldn't worry too much.and try normal places.. In many (most?) of
them it is possible to order separately fish or meat and vegetables.
Cheese and yoghurt are available mostly as mezzes (starters) and there are a
lot of desserts with milk and without eggs (mühallebi, sütlaç...)
 >> Stay informed about: Istanbul, Turkey - any good for Vegetarians? 

Rash wrote:
 > I'm in the early stages of planning a trip to Istanbul in September.
 > My concerns are that although there are a few vegetarian restuarants,
 > I may be struggling to eat much out there. I don't eat fish or eggs
 > either (though I do eat cheese and other dairy).

Most (probably all) of the steam-table type places have at least a few
veggie items. Usually one that's just beans and one of steamed or stewed
vegetables (which were darn good in my experience). You can have them with
rice or bread. Turkish bread is of course excellent.

Unfortunately you'll miss out on the whole doner kebab scene. It's meat
dishes where Turkey really shines.

miguel
--
Hit The Road! Photos and tales from around the world: <a rel="nofollow" style='text-decoration: none;' href="http://travel.u.nu" target="_blank">http://travel.u.nu</a>
 >> Stay informed about: Istanbul, Turkey - any good for Vegetarians? 

 > Hi all,
 >
 > I'm in the early stages of planning a trip to Istanbul in September.
 > My concerns are that although there are a few vegetarian restuarants,
 > I may be struggling to eat much out there. I don't eat fish or eggs
 > either (though I do eat cheese and other dairy).
 >
 > Scanning the web it appears most postings on this subject are quite a
 > few years old ... so I'd like to hear some more current opinion on
 > what the situation really is like for vegetarians.
 >
 > All advice appreciated
 >
 >
 >
 > Rash

you should have no problems at all. the turkish cuisine has a huge vari-
ety of dishes. while meat and fish obviously have their place in turkish
cuisine, vegetables are also a major part of it. you will be able to get
a lot of appetizers and main dishes that wouldn't have meat in it. espe-
cially in istanbul, you'll have such a huge number of restaurants offer-
ing all types of food that you shouldn't be starving at all...
hope this helps.
cheers,
altan

--
Posted via <a rel="nofollow" style='text-decoration: none;' href="http://britishexpats.com" target="_blank">http://britishexpats.com</a>
 >> Stay informed about: Istanbul, Turkey - any good for Vegetarians? 

goingdubai wrote:

  >>Hi all,
  >>
  >>I'm in the early stages of planning a trip to Istanbul in September.
  >>My concerns are that although there are a few vegetarian restuarants,
  >>I may be struggling to eat much out there. I don't eat fish or eggs
  >>either (though I do eat cheese and other dairy).
  >>
  >>Scanning the web it appears most postings on this subject are quite a
  >>few years old ... so I'd like to hear some more current opinion on
  >>what the situation really is like for vegetarians.
  >>All advice appreciated
  >>
  >>Rash

 > you should have no problems at all. the turkish cuisine has a huge vari-
 > ety of dishes. while meat and fish obviously have their place in turkish
 > cuisine, vegetables are also a major part of it. you will be able to get
 > a lot of appetizers and main dishes that wouldn't have meat in it. espe-
 > cially in istanbul, you'll have such a huge number of restaurants offer-
 > ing all types of food that you shouldn't be starving at all...
 > hope this helps.
 > cheers,
 > altan

You're only problem will be to check that the veggie dishes do not have
any non veggie components. This can be difficult with non vegetarian
restaurants.
 >> Stay informed about: Istanbul, Turkey - any good for Vegetarians? 

"goingdubai" a écrit dans le message de

 >
  > > Hi all,
  > >
  > > I'm in the early stages of planning a trip to Istanbul in September.
  > > My concerns are that although there are a few vegetarian restuarants,
  > > I may be struggling to eat much out there. I don't eat fish or eggs
  > > either (though I do eat cheese and other dairy).
  > >
  > > Scanning the web it appears most postings on this subject are quite a
  > > few years old ... so I'd like to hear some more current opinion on
  > > what the situation really is like for vegetarians.
  > >
  > > All advice appreciated
  > >
  > >
  > >
  > > Rash
 >
 > you should have no problems at all. the turkish cuisine has a huge vari-
 > ety of dishes. while meat and fish obviously have their place in turkish
 > cuisine, vegetables are also a major part of it.

Actually many people can't afford meat or fish there, so I guess eating
vegetarian shouldn't be a major problem.
 >> Stay informed about: Istanbul, Turkey - any good for Vegetarians? 

 >
 > You're only problem will be to check that the veggie dishes do not have
 > any non veggie components. This can be difficult with non vegetarian
 > restaurants.

Yeah, make sure you've got some Immodium or other stomach drug -- no matter
how hard you try, you'll probably accidently eat some lard or broth. People
will swear something is vegetarian, even if they've thrown a spoonful of
lard in the pot! Many cultures just don't get the idea of vegetarianism,
especially poorer countries where they struggle to get the extra fat. So as
not to offend, I always do a little research on a country's popular foods
and their ingrediants.

I remember that many of the restaurants we ate in in Turkey would take us
inside and let us point at what we wanted -- to avoid the language gap.
That's a good chance to do check out what you're going to get.

Also, the rice pudding in Turkey is wonderful! It does a good job of
clogging you back up once you've got the runs

Sarah
 >> Stay informed about: Istanbul, Turkey - any good for Vegetarians? 

You're going to Istanbul but make it sound as if it's a third world country.
Sure there are poor there - the population is huge and many have moved in from
all over Anatolia. But many have money - and Istanbul is as least a second
world city if not higher.

The reason you'll find plenty of vegetables and fruit is that the Turks love
them. I lived in Istanbul for two years and some of my best memories concern
all the wonderful fruits that came in season in such vast quantities.

It's not like going to the U.K. or Germany - in Turkey you'll have no trouble
finding veggies. I doubt if any other country has as many ways of cooking
eggplants.
 >> Stay informed about: Istanbul, Turkey - any good for Vegetarians? 

In article ,
Steltzjr wrote:
 >You're going to Istanbul but make it sound as if it's a third world country.
 >Sure there are poor there - the population is huge and many have moved in from
 >all over Anatolia. But many have money - and Istanbul is as least a second
 >world city if not higher.

You mean they're communists?
 >> Stay informed about: Istanbul, Turkey - any good for Vegetarians? 

In article ,
steltzjr.TakeThisOut@aol.com (Steltzjr) wrote:

We just returned from three weeks in Turkey. I agree that Turkey is a
very easy country to find good food. If you stay in the European side
of the city (close to the scenic areas) you will find numerous street
restaurants and/or food stands. The Asian side of Istanbul is more of a
business district with large hotels and larger gaps between services.

The restaurant food is good and the variety is wide. Although I did not
seek out vegetarian food, there appeared to be a good selection. They
tend to minimize the meat as it is expensive to produce.

It is good to carry some immodium with you. Chances are you will never
need it but being prepared is wise.

You need to use common sense in eating fresh fruits by washing them.
The apples and peaches we purchased were some of the largest I have ever
seen. The tap water is supposed to be OK to drink but everybody drinks
bottled water. Buy the gallon sized containers of water.

Dick

 > You're going to Istanbul but make it sound as if it's a third world
 > country.
 > Sure there are poor there - the population is huge and many have moved in
 > from
 > all over Anatolia. But many have money - and Istanbul is as least a
 > second
 > world city if not higher.
 >
 > The reason you'll find plenty of vegetables and fruit is that the Turks
 > love
 > them. I lived in Istanbul for two years and some of my best memories
 > concern
 > all the wonderful fruits that came in season in such vast quantities.
 >
 > It's not like going to the U.K. or Germany - in Turkey you'll have no
 > trouble
 > finding veggies. I doubt if any other country has as many ways of cooking
 > eggplants.
 >
 >
 >> Stay informed about: Istanbul, Turkey - any good for Vegetarians? 

On Fri, 03 Sep 2004 17:21:13 GMT, "Sarah Banick"
wrote:

  >>
  >> You're only problem will be to check that the veggie dishes do not have
  >> any non veggie components. This can be difficult with non vegetarian
  >> restaurants.
 >
 >Yeah, make sure you've got some Immodium or other stomach drug.

Immodium is dangerous, if you get a bad bacterial attack and take
immodium it can kill you.
Our company doctor thought that it should be available by prescription
only.
 >> Stay informed about: Istanbul, Turkey - any good for Vegetarians? 

On 3 Sep 2004 15:35:46 -0600, bmoore.TakeThisOut@blackhole.nyx.net (Bill Moore)
wrote:



  >>You're going to Istanbul but make it sound as if it's a third world country.
  >>Sure there are poor there - the population is huge and many have moved in from
  >>all over Anatolia. But many have money - and Istanbul is as least a second
  >>world city if not higher.
 >
 >You mean they're communists?
 >> Stay informed about: Istanbul, Turkey - any good for Vegetarians? 

"Steltzjr" a écrit dans le message de

 > You're going to Istanbul but make it sound as if it's a third world
country.
 > Sure there are poor there - the population is huge and many have moved in
from
 > all over Anatolia. But many have money - and Istanbul is as least a second
 > world city if not higher.

Figures are about Isparta, not Istanbul,but you'll get the idea about meat
and fish consumption...

<a rel="nofollow" style='text-decoration: none;' href="http://www.ntvmsnbc.com/news/241822.asp?cp1=1" target="_blank">http://www.ntvmsnbc.com/news/241822.asp?cp1=1</a>

Consumption of red meat / white meat / fish

Every day 2.1% / 3.2 % / 0.8%
Every 3 days 5.6% / 12.3% / 3.2%
Every week 18.8% / 37.1% / 21.6%
Every 2 weeks 12.8% / 18.1% / NA
Every month 23.7% / 23.7% / 21.9%
Kurban bayrami 21.7% / NA / NA
Never 10.3% / 4.2% / 12.3%

(Kurban bayrami is a yearly holiday during which a sheep is sacrificed).
 >> Stay informed about: Istanbul, Turkey - any good for Vegetarians?