Turkish food is known for kebabs, but half the table is vegetable dishes. As a vegetarian you will not go hungry here; as a vegan you need a little more care.
The olive-oil dishes are the heart of it. The name says it: vegetables cooked in olive oil and eaten cold. All of them are vegan. In a meyhane or a neighbourhood restaurant, look for the *zeytinyağlı* section:
- Artichokes, green beans, leeks, celeriac in olive oil
- Yaprak sarma — vine leaves stuffed with rice (not to be confused with the meat version; ask)
- İmam bayıldı — aubergine stuffed with onion and tomato
- Barbunya pilaki — borlotti beans
Mezes. Most of a meyhane table is meat-free already: hummus, aubergine salad, muhammara, fava, piyaz, cacık, haydari. Haydari and cacık are yoghurt-based — skip them if you are vegan.
Breakfast. A Turkish breakfast is vegetarian by nature: cheese, olives, tomato, cucumber, jam, honey, eggs. Take out the cheese and honey and a vegan still has a full table. Menemen contains egg; sigara böreği contains cheese.
Street food. Simit is vegan. Corn on the cob is vegan if you refuse the butter. Kumpir, a baked potato, is filled with whatever you choose. Rice with chickpeas is usually made with chicken stock — ask.
Things to watch.
- Rice is cooked in chicken stock in most places. Ask if you are vegan.
- Soups likewise; even lentil soup can be made with meat stock.
- Börek with cheese is vegetarian, but the pastry is sometimes made with butter.
- Baklava is usually made with butter and is not vegan. For a vegan sweet, ask for helva or aşure.
How to ask. *Etsiz var mı?* — "is there anything without meat?" — is the useful sentence. As a vegan, add *sütsüz, yumurtasız* (no milk, no egg). Beyoğlu and Cihangir have fully vegan restaurants and the waiters are used to the question; in a small local place you may need to explain a little, but nobody finds it strange.
Cooking in the flat. The kitchen is fully equipped, and there is a greengrocer and a supermarket on the way down to Karaköy. The street market sets up in Beyoğlu on Tuesdays — vegetables there are both fresher and cheaper.