There are some things that make every society special. We are talking about some characteristics that have become culture. The food culture of societies is one of these special things. Every nation in the world has a different food culture.

Sultanahmet is one of the most visited tourist centers in Istanbul. If you are in a restaurant in Sultanahmet, you will eat with people from many different nationalities. Sultanahmet, where tourists from almost every country in the world come, is like a small world mix. When you eat in one of the restaurants here, you will see people with different eating habits.

Food Culture and Tastes of Nations

You can witness this situation at Deraliye Ottoman Cuisine Restaurant, one of the best restaurants in Sultanahmet. Inside the restaurant you see people from different countries. This is our richness.

Our master chef Necati Yılmaz, with his many years of experience, shared with us some details about the food culture of many nations visiting Sultanahmet for this content.

“As I have been in the restaurant business for many years, I watch the eating and drinking habits of different nationalities. More precisely, when they come to our country, I examine their food tastes according to nationalities. As a result of this research, I even make changes in the menu style according to the density of foreign guests.”

“For example, German and Dutch guests tend to prefer oven dishes with meat. They prefer to have a cheese plate as a starter.”

“If our guests are from Scandinavian countries, they prefer poultry and light snacks, if available on the menu.”

“American, Canadian, British and Australian guests prefer local and cultural dishes. In other words, they search for the local and famous dishes of their city, and some of them may even be more knowledgeable than the service staff.”

“French tourists, whom you will encounter technical questions when ordering, prefer fried dishes or dishes with sauces.”

“Russians are the ones who prefer fish the most. Since the fish is mostly frozen in the restaurants in their country, the first flavor they want to taste when they come to Istanbul is naturally fresh fish.”

“Our guests from the Far East and Central Asia, on the other hand, prefer meat and kebabs, but they must have rice with them.”

“The dessert preference of all these nations is common; namely baklava. Few say no to Turkish coffee and tea after dinner.”