Istanbul is easier for vegetarians than its reputation for grilled meat suggests. Turkish cooking has a great many meat-free dishes, from cold olive-oil meze to cheese pastries, and several districts have vegetarian or vegan restaurants. The real trap is not a lack of choice: it is the meat or chicken stock hidden in soups, rice and "vegetable" dishes. This guide gives the dishes to order, those to avoid, the districts to eat in and the phrases to know. We give no prices, which change several times a year. ## What is naturally vegetarian  - **Turkish breakfast (kahvaltı)**: cheeses, olives, tomatoes, cucumbers, honey, jams, eggs and bread. **Menemen**, scrambled eggs with tomatoes and peppers, is vegetarian. - **Zeytinyağlılar**, "olive-oil dishes", served cold or lukewarm: green beans (taze fasulye), artichokes, celeriac, leeks, rice-stuffed vine leaves (yaprak sarma) and **imam bayıldı**, aubergine stuffed with onions and tomatoes. - **Meze**: hummus, **haydari** (yoghurt with garlic and herbs), **cacık**, **patlıcan salatası** (smoked aubergine), **şakşuka**, **fava** (broad-bean purée), beetroot salad, **ezme** (spicy tomato). - **Lentil soups** (mercimek çorbası) are often made without meat, but ask about the stock. - **Börek** with cheese (peynirli) or spinach (ıspanaklı), **gözleme** (stuffed flatbread), cheese **pide**, **mücver** (courgette fritters). - **Kumpir** (baked potato) can be topped with vegetable fillings from the menu; **simit** and **roasted chestnuts** are vegetarian. - **Çiğ köfte**: originally raw meat, it is now sold almost everywhere without meat, made with bulgur, in the shops that say so. ## The traps to know - **Stock**: some soups, rice (pilav) and cooked vegetables are made with meat or chicken stock. Ask before ordering. - **"Vegetable" dishes with meat**: dolma and sarma come in two versions, **etli** (with minced meat) and **zeytinyağlı** (meatless, in olive oil). Karnıyarık, for example, is aubergine with meat. - **Dried beans (kuru fasulye)** are generally cooked with meat. - **Fish**: some waiters do not count it as meat. If you avoid it too, say so explicitly. - **Vegan**: butter, yoghurt, cheese and honey are everywhere. Baklava contains butter, and lokum is most often plant-based (see baklava, Turkish delight and pastries). ## Useful phrases | Turkish | Meaning | |---|---| | Vejetaryenim. | I am vegetarian. | | Et yemiyorum. | I don't eat meat. | | Etsiz olabilir mi? | Can it be made without meat? | | İçinde et var mı? | Is there meat in it? | | Et suyu / tavuk suyu var mı? | Is there meat / chicken stock? | | Peynirli / sebzeli | With cheese / with vegetables | | Zeytinyağlı | In olive oil (meatless) | Showing the written phrase on your phone works better than pronouncing it. Keep in mind that "vejetaryen" is not always understood in the same way: also say "et yemiyorum". ## Where to eat vegetarian  - **Kadıköy**, on the Asian side, is the easiest district for vegetarians: the market, the meyhane that serve many vegetarian meze, and restaurants cooking regional specialities with vegetables. **Çiya Sofrası**, well known for its Anatolian cuisine, offers many vegetable dishes; the menu is displayed in the window. See Kadıköy and Moda. - **Cihangir and Beyoğlu** concentrate vegetarian cafés and restaurants, including the restaurant **Zencefil**, long established in Cihangir. Check hours and whether it is open before going. - **Karaköy and Galata**: cafés and small restaurants with more international menus; see Galata and Karaköy. - **Meyhane** are the best tables for building a meal of meze; ask the waiter to show only the meze without meat or fish. - **Lokanta** have vegetable dishes on display: point, and ask "etli mi?" (with meat?). ## Practical tips  - **Booking**: most lokanta take walk-ins; for dinner at a popular restaurant, call ahead. - **Breakfast** is the easiest meal to eat vegetarian: a kahvaltı, a simit or a börek. - **During Ramadan**, restaurants are quieter by day and full at iftar: see Ramadan in Istanbul. - For the specialities to try, our guide to what to eat in Istanbul points out those that contain meat; for historic tables, see the Ottoman cuisine restaurants. Prices and tipping are explained in money, payment and tipping.
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