The beginning of December is the end of the year and the clock is ticking down to Christmas and New Year's. It is the time of year for buying presents, planning Christmas and New Year’s Eve and spending money.

The beginning of December is the end of the year and the clock is ticking down to Christmas and New Year’s. It is the time of year for buying presents, planning Christmas and New Year’s Eve and spending money. This week, the Hürriyet Daily News & Economic Review will suggest affordable places to eat out for those who want to save money but still do not want to miss out on Istanbul’s social life.

There is no doubt that Istanbul is an expensive city compared to elsewhere in Turkey. But there are ways to get by in Istanbul without spending an arm and a leg.

Meat

For those who cannot give up eating meat, Canım Ciğerim is the best place to go. One can fulfill up on meat or liver wraps stuffed with green salad. The restaurant, which is in Asmalımescit, is famous for its liver on skewers.

On the first floor of the two-story restaurant there is a big kiln where meat and liver are cooked.

The service is fast and faultless. As soon as the meat is prepared, they are brought to tables. But first the speedy waitresses bring up to six meze-like food, such as onions, piyaz – a cold dish made with dried beans, cooked tomatoes and green pepper – arugula and smashed tomato mixed with garlic and sour sauce.

The last decoration – only until one starts eating – on the table is the pita bread, which is used to wrap the side dishes and meat.

Sitting on straw chairs around small tables, Canım Ciğerim might look quaint, but this restaurant is one of the cleanest places with the most reasonable prices for people who want to eat meat until their stomach is full.

Canım Ciğerim, literally means “my dear liver,” but roughly translates as the English saying “My heart and soul.”

Address: Asmalımescit Mah. Minare Sk. No.1 Beyoğlu, Istanbul

Tel: 0212 252 6060

Soup

Lale is a 42-year-old restaurant located close to Taksim Square. The restaurant has regulars who mostly stop by after a fun night out or early in the morning before going to work. Famous for its soups, Lale is open 24 hours a day. Besides soups with giblets, the place offers lentil, tomato and vermicelli soups as well. But their favorite tastes are those that include giblets.

Address: Tarlabaşı Bulvarı. No.13 Beyoğlu, Istanbul

Tel: 0212 252 6969

Snacks

Fast snacks are popular because life in the city is quick. Under the circumstances, the number of the fast food restaurants has expanded. There is one place familiar to most people. The name is Kızılkayalar Hamburger, founded in the 1970s, and considered a fast and cheap place in Beyoğlu. It offers special Kızılkayalar hamburger sandwiches, döner and juice. The small hamburgers doused in a tomato-garlic sauce have a very alluring aroma and the durum döner is also filling.

The Kızılkayalar Hamburger has existed since the restaurant opened, but the sauce has changed in order to vary the taste and provide novelty to customers. One can also eat fast at the buffet stationed in the restaurant.

Address: Sıraselviler Caddesi, No.6 Taksim, Istanbul.

Daily Food

Fıccın, which opened as a small café at the end of 1996, is a place where the menu changes everyday. The menu is just a small sheet of paper, printed daily, that consists of homemade meals that wet your appetite.

Fıccın starts the day by serving a wide variety of choices for a perfect breakfast and then welcomes you with Circassian tastes for lunch. Fıccın has won numerous prizes for its clean kitchen.

Choices include Turkish food, vegetables, pastas, desserts and both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages on the menu.

Fıccın opens at 7 a.m. every morning. The prices are suitable. They also deliver.

Address: Kallavi Sokak No.13/1-7/1 Beyoğlu, Istanbul

Tel: 0212 293 37 86 - 245 4858

Falafel

A Palestinian father and son have opened a restaurant in Istanbul featuring a Middle Eastern dish that is already one of the top consumed fast food products in Europe and the United States. Falafel, made with chickpeas, is fast becoming popular in Istanbul since the Falafel shop opened its doors in Taksim. The restaurant offers both homestyle table service as well as a take-away counter.

After Azzam Alherbawi, 55, a former elementary geography teacher from Hebron in the Palestinian West Bank thought Turkey was virgin territory for the falafel, he opened the store with his son Yousef. The place offers other dishes, but falafel is a classic that has to be tasted in the shop.

Address: Şehit Muhtar Cad, No.19/1a.



Article & Photo from: Daily News - www.hurriyetdailynews.com