Istanbul is deliciously overwhelming and I visit every chance I get, seeking out the best meat, offal, markets, and pickles the city has to offer. You can find my recommendations for food and drink below, as well as on Eater, Food Republic, Australian Gourmet Traveller, and Bon App. Here are some highlights:

• Balat Sahil Restoran: Go for the exceptional mezes and liver washed down with a bottle of triple-distilled Beylerbeyi rakı. The fish and vegetable starters are life changing. Mürselpaşa Caddesi 245 – Balat.

• Şehzade Erzurum Cağ Kebabı: This grilled meat palace is at the entrance of Hocapaşa Sokak. Go for the cağ kebabı, skewered meat cut from a horizontal spit. Hoca Paşa Sokak 6/4 – Sirkeci.

• Asım Usta: The most amazing döner shop in Beşiktaş. Hit up Asım Usta for a pide (stuffed pita-like flatbread) full of sliced meat and wash it down with ayran. Köyiçi Meydanı Sokak – Beşiktaş.

• Tarihi Karaköy Balıkçısı: Tucked away on a back street amongst vendors selling hardware and scuba gear, Tarihi Karaköy Balikcisi may very well be the best fish restaurant in town. Go at lunch when (and only when) Muharrem Usta is working the charcoal and get the grilled sole. Tersane Cad. Kardeşim Sok. 45/A – Karaköy.

• Adana Oçakbaşı: Simply the best place in Istanbul for grilled sweetbreads and Adana kebab (spicy ground meat and tail fat). Bozkurt Mh. Bay Sungur Sokak – Kurtuluş.

• Fatih Karadeniz Pidecisi. Probably the best pide in town. Büyük karaman Cad. No.40 – Fatih.

• Kıyı: I love this old-school and kinda upscale fish restaurant in Tarabya, way up the Bosphorus. Haydar Aliyev Cd. 186/A – Tarabya

• Asmalı Cavit: A meyhane in Beyoğlu and one of the best places in the neighborhood for a traditional meal of mezes and rakı. Asmalımescit Cad. 16/D – Beyoğlu.

• Aşkana Mantı: There are now several locations of this mantı (meat dumpling) palace, but I'm partial to the original in Ulus. Order the classics, çiğ börek, a fried patty filled with meat, followed by mantı drenched in yogurt.

• Çiya: You've read about it. Maybe you've even seen founder Musa Dağdeviren on Chef's Table. You're going to go. But I gotta be honest, the food is just fine. Musa has certainly been critical at spotlighting lost and disappearing dishes from across Anatolia, but as someone who has traveled extensively in rural Turkey, I find most dishes here extremely lacking. Caferaga Mah. Güneslibahce Sk. 48/B Kadiköy (multiple locations on the same street).