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Changes in the Gastronomic Culture of Istanbul
Assist. Prof. Zafer Yenal, from the department of Sociology at Boğaziçi University, will be speaking at the Voyvoda Street Istanbul Lectures on Wednesday, May 26, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. In his lecture titled, the Gastronomic Culture of Istanbul: What has Changed and What Remains, Yenal takes a look at the recent changes in the eating and drinking habits of Istanbul residents.
"Over the last 15 or 20 years," says Yenal, " we have expanded our eating and drinking habits and acquired a taste for 'eating out'. In the past, only some segments of society were familiar with the occasional French or Italian cuisine, whereas today there is a great variety of food for everyone to choose from. Once considered unusual and exotic, Chinese food, for example, is now common fare for higher income groups. But the changes in Istanbul's culinary culture are not restricted to the new diversity contributed by various international cuisines; the fast-food 'epidemic' has conversely triggered a certain uniformity in our eating and drinking habits. As a result, people today, more than ever, assert their personal and cultural identities, or their affiliation to a certain social group, through their food choices. When eating, we don't only consume food; we also consume an image of how we perceive ourselves in society, and how we want others to perceive us."
Yenal, whose reseach interests include consumerism, gastronomy, history and sociology, graduated from the Department of Sociology at Middle East Technical University in 1989, and then earned his Ph.D. from the Department of Sociology at Binghampton University, NY. More recently, he has served as editor for the Istanbul History Foundation's Human Rights project.
For general information on the free lectures program offered by the Museum, call the Ottoman Bank Archive and Research Center at: (212) 334 22 70
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