Simit carts (Eminönü square)

Simit arabası (Eminönü Meydanı)

A sesame ring from a red cart: the Istanbul breakfast on the move

Hours

Varies by cart; usually morning to afternoon

Budget

About 20 lira each

Address

In front of the New Mosque, Eminönü square (red carts are everywhere in town)

Simit, a ring of bread crusted in sesame, is how Istanbul eats breakfast on the go. Red carts with glass sides stand on every square, pier and bridge approach, so there's no need to seek one out. Crisp outside, chewy inside, it goes with a çay, or with the gulls on a ferry crossing. For one straight from the oven, try a neighbourhood bakery such as the old simit bakery in Cihangir, where a plain simit was 20 lira in 2026.