The Grammar of Rakı: From Kumkapı to Asmalımescit

1. 01
   Local

   Start at the Fish Market Stalls

   Begin at Kumkapı's fish market, where the city's wholesale fish market moved in 1983 and operated until 2015. After demolition linked to the Eurasia Tunnel works, the renewed market reopened in 2018 on the first day of fishing season. Inside are eighteen fishmongers and a few restaurants, all right by the sea.

   Kumkapı Balıkçılar Çarşısı sea-side entrance, Istanbul, Turkey
2. 02
   Culture

   Lower Your Voice in the Patriarchate Courtyard

   Visit the courtyard gate of the Armenian Patriarchate church in Kumkapı. The Armenian Patriarchate was founded in 1461 and settled in Kumkapı in 1641. The adjacent Surp Asdvadzadzin Church burned several times; the current stone structure was built in 1828 after the 1826 fire, and its bell tower was added in 1870. This was the center of the communities that shaped the neighborhood's fishing and meyhane identity.

   Kumkapı Surp Asdvadzadzin Patriklik Kilisesi courtyard gate, Istanbul, Turkey
3. 03
   Local

   Walk the Emptied Tavern Street

   Walk the entrance to Kumkapı's old tavern street. In the 17th century, the drinking places here were considered livelier than those in neighboring Samatya, and the district's economy was driven by Armenian and Greek fishermen. That density is gone today: the events of 1955 changed the community fabric, while coastal road and tunnel works altered the street fabric itself.

   Kumkapı meyhaneler sokağı entrance facing the square, Istanbul, Turkey
4. 04
   Exploration

   Climb the Hill Through a Tunnel

   Ride the historic Tünel funicular, opened in 1875. It is the world's second-oldest underground urban rail line after the London Underground. The project was designed by French engineer Eugène-Henri Gavand and entered service on 17 August 1875. Coming from Kumkapı, you arrive at the upper station, whose exit opens directly toward the main district of this evening.

   Tünel Füniküleri upper station exit, Beyoğlu, Istanbul, Turkey
5. 05
   History

   Look for the Mosque That Survives Only in Name

   Stand at the junction that marks the likely site of the lost Asma Mescid, which gave Asmalımescit its name. The wooden mosque was commissioned in the reign of Bayezid II by shipyard caulker chief Yunus Ağa, but no trace of it survives today. According to the Istanbul Encyclopedia, the word 'asmalı' here refers not to grapevines but to the mosque having been built over a public الطريق.

   Asmalımescit Sokak and Minare Sokak intersection, Beyoğlu, Istanbul, Turkey
6. 06
   Local

   Find the Site of the Sold Arcade

   Go to the Balık Pazarı entrance on Sahne Sokak and locate the former site of Krepen Pasajı. It was built by the Levantine Crespin family of Yeşilköy and renamed Krizantem in 1943. Inside were taverns such as Triandafilos, İmroz, and Kadir'in Yeri. When the arcade was sold in 1982, the tavern keepers moved out and Beyoğlu's meyhane center shifted one street away.

   Beyoğlu Balık Pazarı, Sahne Sokak entrance, Istanbul, Turkey
7. 07
   Local

   Measure How Far the Tables Once Reached

   Pause at the entrance to Nevizade Sokak. The first meyhane here was opened in 1982 by an operator who moved after Krepen Pasajı was sold, and by 2000 the street had twenty-two taverns. In July 2011, the municipality removed the sidewalk tables; permitted areas had previously been marked with white lines. The street never returned to the same level of intensity afterward.

   Nevizade Sokak entrance, Beyoğlu, Istanbul, Turkey
8. 08
   Food

   Count the Rules of the Table

   End the evening at Tarihi Cumhuriyet Meyhanesi on Sahne Sokak. The word meyhane comes from the Persian for 'wine house,' while meze comes from maza, meaning taste or tasting. Turkish rakı was registered as a geographical indication in 1997, but the table itself has no official protection status; its rules survive only through tradition.

   Tarihi Cumhuriyet Meyhanesi, Sahne Sokak, Beyoğlu, Istanbul, Turkey

Check opening hours before you go. Hours, access conditions and weather can change.