Sayat Explores Food

I was an an economist, an engineer and an analytics manager once. Cooked in Mumbai, Istanbul, PA, recently @BHSB, @ciatestkitchen and now @LB Eat well, cook good food, and keep in touch. -- Garrison Keillor www.sayattheexplorer.com Follow my instagram at @sayat_ozyilmaz!

[sayattheexplorer]

Sayat getting some tan after harvesting the last patch of yellow beets from the garden. #lauraandsayat #skipstoneranch #istanbulmodernsf #spring (at Skipstone)

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We hardly post food that isn't ours these days. But we saw 0 line at La Taqueria in the Mission and had to eat lunch. Rain really transforms San Francisco. The only city in the world where there is leas traffic when it rains! This is an off menu item, dorados with carnitas! A light snack! #light #snack #carnitas #mexican #chefsdayoff #nachos #lataqueria #dorados #totopos #themission #yummy (at La Taqueria)

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Lamb shanks with wild pistachio jus, nasturtium zhoug over bulgur pilaf with arugula blossoms and rhubarb ribbons! One of our favorite ways to serve lamb! #lamb #shank #wild #foraged #zhoug #yemenite #mesopotamia #food #istanbulmodernsf #loveatfirstsight #homey #sfrestaurants #arugula #menengic #pistachio #rhubarb #sffoodie #sfbucketlist (at Istanbul Modern SF)

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We made sure our tasting plates for the mini-lecture we presented on Monday at UC Berkeley looked like petri dishes. We talked about fermentation and how we consider fermented products we use a fundamental building block for our cuisine. Long live yogurt! We get very academic in some of our discussions around our food at our meals. Well, @haileyleyy discovered this and put us in front of bright food lovers taking a class at their incredible school. Of course the petri dish would have been incomplete without our charred fermented cabbage with tahini sauce and smoked almonds. #yogurt #fermento #pepperpaste #istanbulmodernsf #bayareafoodie #tasting #sucuk #blackgarlic #tomatosauce #nerd #sfeater #sfrestaurants #berkeley #ucberkeley (at UC Berkeley)

[sayattheexplorer]

Winter fattoush! Crown Jewel of Levant cuisine, our salad-crush of all four seasons. Preserved tomato vinaigrette, zahter crutons, rutabaga, spring onions, delicata squash, kale and endive! #istanbulmodernsf More importantly, our bustling dining room with our guests! So in love with what we do! #motivationmonday #winter #spring #vegetables #salad #vegan #vegetarian #fattoush #lebanese #aleppo #istanbulmodernsf #levant #kale #rustic (at Istanbul Modern SF)

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When you sell out an insect 🐜 tasting menu on Oscar night, you know you have a good following and you know you live in a city with a lot of nerds that will resonate your passion for bugs. Lobster with acociles is the first photo, then it's cricket and crab broth with smoky maguey worms 🐛, mosquito eggs over an egg dish, then blue cheesy stink bugs with tempura hibiscus, and a pork cheek taco with toritos which are leafhoppers that roam avocado trees and finally churros with chapulines. This was a non-repeat one time tasting! Thank you @constancecaden @jenny_penguin for the photos Thank you @makersoftrouble and @chirpschips for the inspiration and support! #insects #lobster #arthropod #dreamcometrue (at San Francisco, California)

[sayattheexplorer]

We took half a day off this week! Feeling rejuvenated for another marathon of a week! Photos from Half Moon Bay (🙏@dadsluncheonette), tidal pools and redwood forests! Happy Monday! #sundayfunday (at Purisima Redwoods Open Space Preserve)

[sayattheexplorer]

First sorrel flowers of the year on one of our favorite mezes, Georgian mushroom salad. #ifyouregoingtosanfrancisco #brunch #mushrooms #eatfeastly #istanbulmodernsf #bayarea (at San Francisco, California)

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The only pink on our Valentine's Day table were these macarons. Rose and pistachio. Not bad for our first try! #macarons #chef #sweet #dessert #pastry #istanbulmodernsf #dulce #middleeasternfood #istanbulmodernsf #pink (at Istanbul Modern SF)

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Starting with Easter brunch, we're expanding to Sundays. Sultan's Brunch Saturdays and Sundays, in #russianhill #istanbulmodernsf #brunch #sfbrunch #bayareabrunch #breakfast #turkishbreakfast #yogurt #vegetarianfood #homemade (at Istanbul Modern SF)

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Chickpeas never made anyone happier! Sultan's Brunch, every Saturday! Cocuklar gibi sendik! 📷🙏@jbrahm #chickpeas #breakfast #kurufasulye #kurunohut #brunch #sffoodie #bayarea #istanbulmodernsf #eggs #chefs #husbandandwife #kitchen

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Chef @laura_millan reflecting on Georgian eggplant rolls. Filled with walnuts seasoned with #khmelisuneli (marigold powder, blue fenugreek, and coriander), these 'badrijani nigzvit' are a labor of love. The traditional recipe calls for fried eggplant, we patiently slice, cure, marinate and grill each ribbon to capture all the umami eggplant's glutamates have to offer! This has become an Istanbul Modern classic... @thegastronomegirl 🙏 for the 📷 #eggplant #umami #vegan #vegetarian #istanbulmodernsf #georgian #caucasian #armenian #dolma #rustic #pomegranate #sffoodie #bayareafoodie #brunch #popupdinner #chef #russianhill (at Istanbul Modern SF)

[sayattheexplorer]

This has been one of our favorite desserts to serve! Kaymak ice cream and young pistachio tart. The ice cream is made with sahlep, a Turkish orchid root thickener that gives ice cream a slight chewy consistency. It's intensely milky instantly comforting. The beverage pairing is a wild pistachio beverage from South Eastern Turkey, an old forgotten tradition called menengic. 📷@thegastronomegirl thanks for the photo and the kind words #pistachio #kaymak #icecream #istanbulmodernsf #turkishicecream #helado #gelato #tart #torte #menengic #dessert #sfrestaurant #sffoodie #bayareabuzz #sfbucketlist #comfortfood (at Istanbul Modern SF)

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Use code RESOLUTION15 for $15 off Istanbul Modern brunches, ends 1/31 Link in bio: goo.gl/BvGNWo Jilbir with stewed chickpeas! Warning: Graphic, very hard to resist on an empty (or full) stomach Jilbir is an East Anatolian dish of poached eggs with garlic yogurt. There is some zaatar crunch on top too. The yolk and yogurt come together to make a sauce. Instant comfort food. 📷@maebymaeby 🙏 Find our brunches on www.eatfeastly.com/lauraandsayat or click through link in bio. #bread #egg #chickpeas #eggporn #yogurt #vegetarian #stew #comfortfood #homemade #zaatar #anadolu #turkishfood #kurufasulye #jilbir #brunch #breakfast #yolkporn #sfeats #eatersf #sffoodie #bayarea #russianhill #istanbulmodernsf #mediterranean #california #eatfeastly #vegetarian (at Istanbul Modern SF)

[sayattheexplorer]

Chef Laura plating our new dessert, Georgian honey cake with labne frosting and meyer lemon yogurt ice cream. The lightest, brightest of our desserts rooted in Soviet tradition. Instantly comforting. With 'kesme' or sliced Turkish ice cream. #yogurt #yogurt #yogurt #honeycake #russian #georgian #soviet #ottoman #istanbulmodernsf #honey #miel #sfeats #sffoodie #bayareafoodies #dessert #sweet #eatfeastly (at Istanbul Modern SF)

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Join us tomorrow night for Yaya's Home at 630 in Russian Hill. Link in bio. goo.gl/ydX8id Circassian chicken salad, one of our favorite mezes to serve. The salads traditional white color is alluded to the fair skin of Circassian women. We turn this traditionally pale salad upside down, instead of breast meat we use dark meat . The broth of the chicken is emulsified with toasted bread and nuts to give the salad its characteristic texture and flavor. We fold in pickled currants and candied almonds for texture as well as a bright pop. But what really makes the salad is fresh garlic. What an under appreciated ingredient. Cerkez tavugu, citir cevizli, bol sarimsakli ve kus uzumu tursulu! #istanbulmodernsf #chickensalad #yaya #sfrestaurantweek #sffoodie #popuprestaurant #eatfeastly #nuts #homemade #homecooking #meze #salad #istanbul (at Istanbul Modern SF)

[sayattheexplorer]

New meze on our 10 course feast, foie gras with Persian sour cherries cooked in Greek mavrodaphne dessert wine, and baby hazelnut soil with Urfa pepper flakes. We've been trying to strike the right recipe and we finally put @hudsonvalleyfoiegras on our menus. Thank you for an inspiring visit years ago Chef Jenny Chamberlain! #foiegras #meze #tart #duck #liver #mousse #sourcherry #middleeaster #greek #persian #turkish #mavrodaphne #cherries #visne (at Istanbul Modern SF)