Bistros, trattorias and the everyday places where Gaziantep actually eats.
Bistros, trattorias, taverns and neighbourhood rooms: the mid-tier places where Gaziantep actually eats.
Çulcuoğlu Et Lokantası is the esnaf lokanta of the Gaziantep bazaar, serving kebab, pide and bottomless soup to coppersmiths and shoppers alike.
Order: Kuşbaşı kebab with firik pilav and the free soup refill.
Tip: Complimentary fruit and soup arrive unasked. Do not over-order the starters.
Üçler Kebap Lahmacun is a straightforward Gaziantep grill room on Zübeyde Hanım Bulvarı, priced for a family lunch rather than a special occasion.
Order: Two lahmacun and a plate of kuzu şiş between two people.
Tip: Lahmacun comes fastest. The şiş takes longer because it is fired to order.
Evirgeç Mantı Evi is where Gaziantep eats the dishes people cook at home, a plain room on Atatürk Bulvarı built around mantı and stuffed köfte.
Order: Mantı, then içli köfte from the daily tray.
Tip: Prices run higher than the room suggests. Check the daily board before ordering the full spread.
Muhsinzade is a charcoal counter in the Gaziantep bazaar where traders eat şiş and dürüm standing up, from six in the morning until early evening.
Order: A liver and mince dürüm wrapped in bazaar flatbread.
Tip: No English menu. Point at the skewers you want and the owner will build the plate.
Ali Usta Kebap ve Baklava runs a kebab grill and a baklava tray side by side in central Gaziantep, open from six in the morning six days a week.
Order: Ali Nazik at breakfast, which is normal here.
Tip: The baklava counter sells by weight. Half a kilo is enough for four people.
Sakıp Usta is the all-hours beyran and paça room of Gaziantep, a functional counter on Kemal Köker Caddesi that keeps serving past midnight.
Order: Paça soup and half a portion of beyran.
Tip: Soup portions are large. Order one beyran between two if you plan on kebab afterwards.
Yesemek Gaziantep Mutfağı plates regional home cooking near the castle, and half portions make it the easiest place in Gaziantep to taste widely.
Order: Ekşili köfte, the sour meatball soup.
Tip: Vegetarian dishes are listed separately. The kuru patlıcan dolması is meat-free on request.
Künefe Han bakes shredded pastry over stretchy cheese until late in Şehitkamil, and Gaziantep families treat it as the after-dinner second stop.
Order: A tray of künefe with extra pistachio dust.
Tip: One tray feeds two. Order it at the table so it arrives while the cheese is still stretching.
Cumba Künefe on Ali Nadi Ünler Bulvarı serves the Gaziantep cheese pastry in oversized sharing trays, open from breakfast until two in the morning.
Order: Künefe with whole pistachios and a scoop of ice cream.
Tip: Portions are bigger than usual. Share one and add the ice cream rather than ordering two.
Erçelebi Kömürde Kadayıf finishes every kadayıf over charcoal in Sarıgüllük, a Gaziantep dessert room that keeps serving until one in the morning.
Order: Charcoal kadayıf, fired to order rather than reheated.
Tip: Nothing sits ready on a tray here. Expect a ten-minute wait while the kadayıf goes over the coals.
Dayının Yeri makes billuriye and kadayıf to order in Değirmiçem, one of the few Gaziantep counters that still lists the crystalline pastry at all.
Order: Billuriye, the crystalline pastry Gaziantep rarely exports.
Tip: Closed Sundays. Nothing is pre-made, so allow time if you arrive with a group.
Özcanlar Pide & Lahmacun Fırını works a stone oven in Kayaönü, turning out boat-shaped pide and sfiha for the Gaziantep neighbourhood around it.
Order: Kıymalı pide straight off the oven floor.
Tip: Order pide by the metre for a group. It travels badly, so eat it in the shop.
Mösyö Cafe & Restaurant sits beside Kavaklık Park in Gaziantep and runs breakfast, gözleme and live music from early morning through to midnight.
Order: Gözleme with cheese, cooked on the griddle to order.
Tip: The terrace faces the park. Come for late breakfast rather than dinner, the mornings are calmer.
Treff Bistro sits inside Kavaklık Park in Gaziantep with a shaded patio, serving Turkish breakfast alongside pizza, pasta and burgers all day.
Order: Weekend kahvaltı spread under the trees.
Tip: The patio is the point. Indoors in winter it is an ordinary bistro room.
Boğazköy is the campus-side crowd-pleaser in Gaziantep, a big room of pasta, pizza and slow-grilled beef brisket beside Gaziantep University.
Order: Pizza or brisket, depending on how much kebab you have eaten.
Tip: Sushi appears on limited days only. Ring ahead if the sushi is the reason for your visit.