What are the best food tours in Istanbul, and which one offers the most authentic experience? Lucky for you, I’ve done all the research and share ALL the answers right here 👇
If you’ve ever wondered what makes Istanbul’s food scene worth traveling thousands of miles for, I just spent a full day on the Yummy Food Tour finding out… and I’m here to share whether it lives up to the hype.
My pre-requisites for our food tour, was a food experience that explored both the European and Asian side of Istanbul. I wanted a locally owned tour group company, not one of the large international food tour platforms that operates around the world. Most importantly, I was looking for the traditional meals, the authentic experience, the street food, the culture and local knowledge, and a guide who was as passionate about food as I am.
Our preference was for a small group, and a local tour group company that specialises in only food – a sign that tells me they’re experts in this one area! And naturally, I wanted a tour with the trust factor, which had good reviews and had been around a long time.
Oh food, the glorious food of Istanbul. Probably one of the reasons we keep coming back again and again to Türkiye. This time, on our most recent return, I decided to get my serious foodie hat on and try one of the popular Istanbul food tours. And I’m so very glad we did. Not only did we have the best experience, but we also learnt a lot.
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Table of Contents
A List of Food Tours in Istanbul
There are multiple food tour options in Istanbul, but not all offer the same experience.
As I mentioned above, as a writer and sharer of all the things I love in Istanbul, I make it my mission to do my homework. If I’m sharing an experience here, I want it to be the very best quality and a tour operator that I stand by. Put simply, I won’t share a shit tour! And so when looking for the best food tour I found the below.
In terms of operators in Istanbul who focus solely on food tours, there are four. These tours don’t offer anything other than a food experience! Which is a tick for me. Here are some examples of their tours, but note they do have other options.
- Yummy Istanbul – European & Asian Foodie Walking Tour
- A Chef’s Tour – Bosphorus Bites Food Tour
- Culinary Backstreets – Two Markets, Two Continents
- Secret Food Tours – Istanbul – Kadiköy Food Tour
These are a couple of the other food tours I dug up. However they’re provided by operators who offer a number of different types of city tours. Therefore they weren’t as appealing to me.
- My Local Guide Istanbul – Guided Food Tour with Ferry Ride and Tastings
- With Locals – Private Guided Food Tour with 10 Tastings
Food Tour Comparisons
Below is a comparison of 6 food tours to browse through. They are among the top on Get Your Guide. I was able to research most operators of these food tours, except for the two marked operator unverified.
⭐️ YUMMY ISTANBUL – EUROPEAN & ASIAN FOODIE WALKING TOUR | Best Overall
Price: €116 | Duration: 5.5 hours | 8-9 Stops
Rating: 4.9★ (1,172 reviews)
🧑🍳 A CHEF’S TOUR – BOSPHORUS BITES
Price: €86 | Duration: 4 hours | 8-9 Stops
Rating: 5.0★ (37 reviews)
😋 MY LOCAL GUIDE ISTANBUL – FERRY RIDE & TASTINGS
Price: €114 | Duration: 6 hours | 9 Stops
Rating: 4.9★ (833 reviews)
🌙 TURKISH FOOD NIGHT & ROOFTOP | Operator Unverified
Price: €72 | Duration: 3 hours | 4 Stops
Rating: 5.0★ (671 reviews)
🥘 CULINARY TOUR: LOCAL HOTSPOTS | Operator Unverified
Price: €104 | Duration: 3.5 hours | 5 Stops
Rating: 4.9★ (108 reviews)
🫂 WITH LOCALS – 10 TASTINGS PRIVATE FOOD TOUR
Price: €99 | Duration: 3 hours | 6 Stops
Rating: 4.7★ (50 reviews)
My Best Pick – Yummy Food Tours
WHY CHOOSE YUMMY ISTANBUL
They have 3 different food tour options to choose from
1️⃣ Taste of Two Continents: Spice Market & Ferry / aka European & Asian Foodie Walking Tour (multiple per day)
2️⃣ Evening Food Tour: The Best Bites of Taksim and Karaköy (few per week)
3️⃣ Street Food Tour: Kadıköy & Asian Side Experience (few per week)
🕵 Also options for private tour
👧 Children are welcome to join, children 6 to 12 pay a discounted rate
🥕 They can cater for vegetarian/vegan and other dietary requirements, with some limitations
💰 Prices range from €116 to €76, depending on tour type
⏰ Duration approximately 5½ hours
🔟 Maximum group size 10 people
In short, Yummy Istanbul is the best of the food tours from the list. The company has been around a long time, since 2013! It’s one of the originals, and it’s owned by a lovely husband and wife duo, Korhan and Leisa. What began as a small business that started out as Istanbul on Food, these days goes by the name Yummy Istanbul.
Yummy Istanbul is focused on providing their guests a high quality experience. It feels personal, local and family friendly. I would pick them every time!
The Taste of Two Continents Food Tour
With multiple departures leaving every morning, we selected the 9.30am Taste of Two Continents Tour. (Also known as the European & Asian Foodie Walking Tour listed above.)
The communication and instructions leading up to the day, were super straightforward and easy to follow. Which meant that we got to the departure point in Eminonü, ready to go and excited for 5+ hours of food goodness. And just as we expected, Ali our guide was there to greet us with an enthusiastic smile.
As the others trickled in, we began to see that it was going to be a fun day out. The other guests were awesome and easy to talk to. I think generally foodies are just good people right?!
Our journey saw us start the morning with a delicious breakfast, so first tip… come HUNGRY! In a cute little local breakfast spot, we sampled a typical, traditional breakfast feast. Then explored the Spice Market, which I’m no stranger to, but it was nice to hear about it from someone who really knows the lay of the land. Shortly after we were boarding the ferry to Kadiköy Europe!
And this was for sure, my favourite part of the journey. Kadiköy is quite literally a criss cross of streets, mostly food places. Consequently it’s almost impossible to know where to begin. And this is why I love a food tour, some of the most unassuming places, become the best food experiences.
After we’d walked the streets, tasted all we possibly could, the tour was over. Our little group of 6 food lovers, all happy and bursting at the seams, bid farewell to our fab guide, and headed back to Europe for the afternoon!
The Food – What We Ate
But what did we eat you ask… well what didn’t we eat more like it! Without giving away all the trade secrets and restaurant names, here are a few of my favs!
The breakfast was amazing, a full table assortment of olives, spreads, clotted cream and honey, simit bread, menemen eggs, pastırma meats and white cheeses.
Then across on the Kadiköy side of Istanbul, we ate delicious iskender with hot butter sauce, I’ve never tasted an iskender like it! On the street we ate borek, a mouth watering pastry and cheese combo. We enjoyed pickles and pickle juice… yes you read that correctly. Actually pickle juice was a new one for me, and at this point in the tour it was a welcome flavour, cutting through any feeling of ‘fullness’ I was beginning to experience.
Moving on we tried lamb shin soup, lentil soup and chicken soup. Then lahmucan, a mince meat spread thinly over bread, topped with fresh parsley and lemon. Washing it down with aryan, a salted yoghurt drink, which tastes way better than it sounds. Then finishing this stop, with katmer (phyllo, pistachio and cream) and a çay (tea).
Finally we took our last walk of the tour, thankful for the opportunity to burn off some more calories, before a dessert of dondurma ice cream and baklava! The perfect end to our Istanbul culinary food tour.
My Review – Overall Experience
I think you can tell I was a very big fan of the Yummy Istanbul food tour. It’s no surprise that they are the most popular option on Get Your Guide and Viator. Their thousands of five star reviews make perfect sense to me.
Our guide Ali was incredible, a knowledgeable foodie, who took his time to explain everything we ate. But I also loved how he shared information about the districts, the people and the culture. I loved learning about Rodi the Goose and the big ginger cat of Kadiköy.
The food, the morning out, the other guests, it all came together to form one of my most memorable days in Istanbul. I will always recommend this guided tour to friends and family. As such I recommend it to you too! Go book your Yummy food tour of Istanbul, you won’t regret it 🤤
Booking a Food Tour
Below is the Get Your Guide booking page, or you can also book here through Viator if this is the platform you choose to use. Do reach out if you have any questions, or if you want to share your own feedback with me. I always love to hear from readers who want to share their experience. If you do book a tour, with Yummy Istanbul, and you get Ali as your guide, please say hi from Mike and Sharon!
More on Istanbul
Want more of my Istanbul guides? Here are a few of my most helpful guides to get you exploring like a pro.
🏨 Where to stay in Istanbul – the best areas & hotels for your stay
🗺️ Planning 4 days in Istanbul + how to get around
🧖 Choosing the best hammam in Istanbul
💎 A guide to the top unique things to do in Istanbul
📌 Save my post – food tours in Istanbul – for later!
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