Authentic Turkish Cooking Class with a Local Family in Home
Description
Join Leyla in her Cihangir home kitchen for a cook together and eat together experience focused on traditional Turkish home food. After meeting Leyla's home, you’ll settle in and start preparing a multi dish menu side by side, with Leyla guiding each step in Turkish or English. Depending on the timing, the session can be a long Turkish breakfast or a lunch or dinner spread. You’ll cook dishes like soup and a main such as karnıyarık, sarma, dolma, or an oven baked meal, plus pilav, salad, and a few meze style sides. Taste as you go, learn practical tips, then sit down to share the meal you made in a relaxed, friendly home atmosphere. If it fits the day, you can also begin with a short walk in Cihangir before cooking.
Tour Options
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Service animals allowed
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- By booking, you accept this waiver. This experience is not wheelchair accessible. If you have food allergies or dietary restrictions, contact us before the experience at contact@lokalbond.com I acknowledge that participating in this LokalBond experience involves inherent risks including physical activity, travel, and interaction with unknown environments, which may result in personal injury or property damage. My participation is entirely voluntary and I may withdraw at any time. I certify I am in good health and will inform LokalBond of any health changes prior to the experience. I assume all risks involved and release LokalBond, its owners, employees, agents, and hosts from any claims or liabilities arising from my participation. I agree to indemnify LokalBond from any related claims or damages. This waiver is governed by Turkish law. I have read and fully understand these terms and agree to them voluntarily.
Reviews(14)
It was a wonderful experience to get to know Turkey from the inside! Turkish food, Turkish people and having so much fun together! Leyla, the host, is filled with so much joy and makes you feel at home! And the food was really good as well! I would always do it again!
This cooking class was so tasty and lots of fun!! Our hosts introduced us to some wonderful Turkish dishes and made sure that we all felt welcomed and comfortable in their home. The instruction was very detailed and went at a pace that all levels could follow.
Great way to learn more about the people, food and culture. We thoroughly enjoyed our time with Rodja, our host, and getting to here family. We learned so much about her and her experiences as well as the local area. Loved that it was hands on and there were only 4 of us in the class. The food was delicious and Rodja an exceptional host. Highly recommend!
Sezgi, her mom, and her sister were all REALLY lovely hosts. Very proactive teachers, interested in chatting, super friendly. It really did feel like going over to a friend's house on the holidays and just cooking and hanging out with their family. It was nice to see slice of real Turkish life, since the rest of our vacation is so touristy. Also, we did this cooking class on my friends birthday, and they made a special dessert and put candles in it for her and sang. It was so kind and genuine. Also delicious. The only thing I'd note, if you are staying near all the tourist sites in Old Town, their home is a 30-60 minute Uber ride from Old Town, depending on traffic. I didn't realize that till after we booked! But it was definitely worth the trek.
Our host Ozge was a beautiful soul. Kind and generous with her time and knowledge. This was a wonderful way to spend an afternoon especially with Ozge’s lovely puppy Penny and kitten Theo ❤️
This made our host smile! 🐾 Cooking, chatting, and playing with Penny & Theo — always a recipe for joy.
We had amazing evening cooking with Özge! The food was wonderful and the company even better 🫶❤️ We made delicious eggplants with all the sides we could want. Özge even surprised us with an amazing dessert. We highly recommend this class for actually useful cooking tips, insight about everyday life in Turkey and great food.
Özge is the loveliest host! My family and I spent a great evening with her. She opened her house to us and allowed us to have a great Turkish experience. We had fun cooking together and sharing cultures. She thought us some traditional recipes and gave us suggestions to visit the city. We conclude with coffee and cake. It was great! Highly recommended
So glad Özge’s warmth reached you! Stuffed grape leaves and shared laughter — that’s the LokalBond way. 🍇💫
I didn't noticie how the time passed, I had fun stuffing and rolling things. Those things turned out to be very delicious as well. Overall, it surpassed my expectation by miles. I did this to make wife happy but turns out stuffed dolma is the thing for me and I am the happiest.
Dear Tuan, thank you for your lovely review. I had a great time with you & your wife. I am so happy you decided to come at the last minute :)) You are a natural cook; those böreks you have rolled definitely tasted better than ours :)))
I truly appreciated how well-prepared Özge was during our cooking experience. I learned many different recipes from Turkish cuisine, all enhanced by her unique touch. I felt both guided and free at the same time, so I want to express my gratitude to our host for creating such an open atmosphere. My favorite dishes included biber dolması (stuffed peppers) and kabak tarator (yogurt-zucchini mezze). Although I struggled a bit with rolling the cigarette böreks, the taste was still delicious regardless of their shape. Overall, it was a delightful time spent with my partner. We both enjoyed the cooking and dining experience with someone who was friendly and generous!
Dear Ezgi, Thank you for your kind words. You have just made my day. It was such a pleasure hosting you and don't worry you did great job with the böreks. Send Tuan my love and you are always welcome here!
We (my wife and I) had an amazing time with the host. She was funny and genuine and the food we made was actually some of the best food we ate during our whole week-long trip in Istanbul. The host was responsive, easy to communicate with, and very helpful and friendly. She offered recommendations for other things to do in the city as well! Overall, this was one of the best experiences we had visiting Turkey!
So happy to hear that! Özge puts her whole heart into each plate — and it shows. Thanks for being part of this delicious memory. 🍇✨
