Enjoy street food in style Set up down a street you’ve probably walked down a thousand times opposite Karaköy port, Gümrük has just been opened by Yaşar Kartoğlu, the owner of Ara Kafe – a modern cafeteria-type joint. Gümrük’s style is saucy with dark tones, and black and white photos, giving the place a vintage touch. One quality of the place is how well this style suits the old Karaköy area, and another is the menu, updated daily. Greek chef Stavriani Zervakakou’s menu includes a lot of fish.
When they recreated the Istanbul classic balık ekmek, with fresh vegetables and different flavorings, the café announced on their Facebook page that “Street food culture is a real treasure in Istanbul. Whenever we need inspiration all we have to do is take to the streets, either for a balık ekmek or for something different. Today it might be seabream or vatozla, but who knows what it could be tomorrow”
Between 12.00-17.00 between 14-35 TL the lunch menu contains chicken soup, lamb ribs with salad, tomato paté and cinemmon pumpkin salad among many more. As if that doesn’t sound appetizing enough, there’s a lot bonito and chips, along with Bombay beans – which are definitely worth a try. Of course, these are just the dishes we tried the day we checked the place out. Who knows what will be on offer when you go, but for now it is clear that this is the place to check out. Nihan Bora