The places in Gaziantep the guidebooks miss.
The places in Gaziantep the guidebooks miss. locals-only counters, after-hours rooms and the spots tourists walk past.
Kahveci Seddar Bey hides in the courtyard of a Gaziantep han rather than on a street front, which is why the two-colour dibek coffee stays a local secret.
Why locals love it: Inside the Gümrük Han courtyard, closed Mondays but open the other six days, with two-colour dibek coffee ground by mallet at the counter.
Tip: Closed Mondays. Come before 19:00, when the han courtyard shuts for the day.
Havara Kitap Kafe is a women-run book cafe in Karagöz, Gaziantep, assembled from reclaimed material and stacked across several quiet levels.
Why locals love it: A women-run book cafe built from reclaimed material in Karagöz, several levels deep and almost never on a Gaziantep visitor list.
Tip: Service is partly self-serve. Order at the counter rather than waiting to be found.
Yusuf Ziya makes burma kadayıf and nothing else from a han window on Suburcu Caddesi, a Gaziantep speciality the baklava salons treat as a sideline.
Why locals love it: A single-product window in a Suburcu Caddesi han making only burma kadayıf, which most Gaziantep baklava lists never mention.
Tip: Midday is when the trays come out warm. By evening the syrup has set firm.
Dayının Yeri in Değirmiçem still lists billuriye, a crystalline Gaziantep pastry that has quietly dropped off almost every other dessert menu.
Why locals love it: One of the last Gaziantep counters still listing billuriye, and nothing sits pre-made on a tray waiting for customers.
Tip: Closed Sundays. Everything is made to order, so allow a wait if you arrive with a group.
Beyoğlu Katmercim stretches its katmer dough in front of the counter on Kozluca Caddesi, two streets from the famous Gaziantep names and their queues.
Why locals love it: A Kozluca Caddesi katmer counter working the dough in front of you, two streets from the famous names and a fraction of the queue.
Tip: Ask for a corner table so the katmer reaches you while the kaymak is still molten.
Muhsinzade grills for the traders of the Külekçi lanes in Gaziantep from six in the morning, and shuts long before the evening kebab crowd arrives.
Why locals love it: A charcoal counter down the Külekçi bazaar lanes that opens at six for the traders and closes at seven, so the evening kebab crowd never finds it.
Tip: The owner will build the plate for you if you do not read Turkish.
İmamoğlu Baklava works out of one small room on Eski Saray Caddesi in Gaziantep, cutting thin trays for a neighbourhood trade rather than the tour buses.
Why locals love it: A tiny Eski Saray Caddesi shop cutting its trays thin and priced below the famous Gaziantep names, with no sign visitors would notice.
Tip: There is nowhere to sit. Buy a quarter kilo and eat it on the walk home.
Ünsal Lokum ve Şekerleme is a Gaziantep confectioner's own trade counter on Altınoğlu Caddesi, selling the lokum and boiled sweets it makes itself.
Why locals love it: A confectioner's own trade counter on Altınoğlu Caddesi rather than a gift shop, selling the lokum and boiled sweets it manufactures itself.
Tip: Pistachio lokum survives the flight home better than baklava. Ask for a box, not a bag.
Akınal Gar Restaurant serves meze inside the working railway station building in Gaziantep, a licensed room hiding behind the platform doors.
Why locals love it: A licensed meze room inside the working TCDD station building, which almost no Gaziantep food guide bothers to list.
Tip: Ask for the platform side. Trains still pass the windows through the evening.
Papirüs Cafe sits inside a restored Armenian mansion in Bey Mahallesi, and its vine-shaded courtyard is the quietest table in old Gaziantep.
Why locals love it: A restored Armenian mansion in Bey Mahallesi with a vine-covered courtyard that stays quiet through the whole morning.
Tip: Come before noon. By mid-afternoon the courtyard is full and the calm has gone.
Katmerci Murat is a family katmer counter on Atatürk Bulvarı in Gaziantep, cheaper and more generous with pistachio than the addresses on every list.
Why locals love it: A family katmer shop on Atatürk Bulvarı where the children work the counter and the pistachio is heavier than at the famous names.
Tip: Add the şam tatlısı if you are ordering for more than two people.