On October 14, 2011, Jay and I met acclaimed Istanbul-based food blogger Cenk for lunch. When he heard we were going to be visiting his hometown, he suggested we meet, and I asked him to come up with a place we’d never find on our own, a place where we’d be the only Americans. Be careful what you ask for. Cenk replied: “Great! I have the perfect place in mind. Hope you guys like beans :)” OK. We do. Then, a few days later: “A friend of mine can not stop talking about the place. I haven't been there before, but she has amazing taste in food and I trust her. She said they only had two tables (two more outside during the summer), only serve beans, rice and pickles....Unfortunately they do not have a phone and she doesn’t even have an address....Her last visit was about a year ago, so if it turns out they are not open anymore, I’ll come up with something else.” He did find something else, and we had a great lunch, a great visit. Meanwhile, of all the places I ate on my earlier 2007 Istanbul trip, my favorite (and Cenk’s, too, it turns out) is Çiya, seen above. We eat there at least once every time we visit the City of the World's Desire. They serve beans, too.
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