Famous Food in Turkey: 5 Dishes to Try

What to eat in Turkey, and what each dish is.

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Quick answer

The food to try in Turkey includes Doner Kebab (the Original), Meze & Meyhane Culture, Baklava & Turkish Sweets and 2 more.

Best time to visit Turkey: April – June or September – November.

Doner Kebab (the Original)

The döner was invented in Bursa, Turkey in the 19th century — slow-roasted stacked meat shaved onto fresh lavash or in a pide pocket with onions, tomato and yoghurt. The Istanbul street version is as far from the global kebab shop interpretation as champagne is from sparkling wine.

Meze & Meyhane Culture

Turkish meyhane (tavern) culture centres on shared cold and warm meze — white bean salad, stuffed mussels, hummus, olive oil-braised artichokes, cheese-filled börek — eaten over hours with raki and conversation. Istanbul's Beyoglu neighbourhood does this best.

Baklava & Turkish Sweets

Turkey's pastry tradition is one of the world's greatest — flaky phyllo layered with pistachios or walnuts and soaked in sugar syrup, made fresh each morning. Karaköy Güllüoğlu in Istanbul and Gaziantep (Turkey's baklava capital) are the pilgrimages worth making.

Lahmacun & Pide

Lahmacun is a wafer-thin flatbread topped with spiced minced meat and fresh herbs — rolled with raw onion and sumac, eaten in seconds. Pide is the boat-shaped Turkish pizza of cheese, egg and sucuk sausage. Both cost almost nothing and deliver far more than they have any right to.

Çay (Turkish Tea) & Simit

Turkish life runs on çay — double-steeped black tea served in tulip-shaped glasses, refilled perpetually in every shop, home and park. Paired with a simit (sesame-crusted bread ring from a street cart), it's the Istanbul breakfast that costs 30 cents and lasts all morning.

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Turkey food questions

What is the most famous food in Turkey?

Doner Kebab (the Original) is the dish most travellers start with. The döner was invented in Bursa, Turkey in the 19th century — slow-roasted stacked meat shaved onto fresh lavash or in a pide pocket with onions, tomato and yoghurt.

What should I eat in Turkey?

Try Doner Kebab (the Original), Meze & Meyhane Culture, Baklava & Turkish Sweets, Lahmacun & Pide, Çay (Turkish Tea) & Simit.

Is it easy to find vegetarian food in Turkey?

Tell us about dietary needs when you book. Trripah plans meals and restaurant stops around vegetarian, Jain and other requirements.

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