It starts on September 1st: Istanbul’s
first Festival of Fish, aimed at reviving
the long history and matchless flavors
of the city’s fish culture.
Istanbul, eternal refuge of the world’s
tastiest fish... The Black Sea on one
side, the Marmara on the other, and running
between them the Bosphorus... A paradise
that has been home to hundreds of varieties
of fish ever since mankind first discovered
this geography... From the blue fish that
burst out of Byzantine legend and the
bonito, crowning glory of Ottoman cuisine,
to the humble scad, sustenance of the
poor, and the mackerel, powerhouse of
good health, Istanbul is the main stop
for many a tasty fish!
So why don’t fish, which have been
a major component of Istanbul cuisine
down the centuries, attract the interest
they once did? Why don’t we follow
in the footsteps of this culture, which
comes to us from the depths of the sea,
as closely as we used to do? What if we
did something about it, organized a Festival
of Fish, for example?
Couldn’t we get the whole world
to recognize the Bosphorus’ incredible
wealth of fish?
