Doner Kebab in Istanbul

 
 
 

Vocabulary

urban	lamb (2)	as much as I can
get on	pretty (2)	eat/ate/eaten
nutty	mustard	the one and only
pickle	rotate (2)	blow away (2)
enjoy	satisfying	check out (2)
doner	Ramadan	along the way
juicy	lifetime	choose/chose/chosen
try	spot (2)	bite/bit/bitten
wait	well done	moment of truth
truth	thing (2)	dying to try
entire	generous	make friends
order	order (3)	tender (2)
flavor	medium	French fries
mixed	ketchup	throughout
nice	choice	dream (2)
taste	describe	watered down
sour	glass (2)	pretty much
sweet	exactly	couple (2)
sip	yogurt	compliment
notice	strong	heaven (2)
funky	goal (2)	give it a try
rural	trendy	accomplish

 
 
 
 
 

Video

 

 
 
 
 

Transcript

It’s Trevor James, and today I’m going to Istanbul, Turkey to eat as much food as I can. That’s really my only goal, to eat food and to eat more food. Maybe make a few friends along the way.

Let’s get on the plane. We’re gonna go check out Turkey. So this is the one and only Istanbul, and I’ve come here to accomplish my food dreams.

Let me tell ya, I’m completely blown away by this beautiful city. And you know where we’re going first, rotating meat.

So we’re actually just gonna get a little bit of Turkish coffee here before the doner.

Oh. That is super strong. Really satisfying. It’s almost a little nutty, mmm.

Okay, so the one doner place that we were gonna go is closed for Ramadan, so our second choice is right here. We’re gonna order up a juicy doner.

Let’s go try a bite. This is the spot where the first bite happens. The bite I’ve been waiting years to take.

So this is the moment of truth. Mmm, wow. Whoa.

Wow, look at that meat. Look at that meat in there. It’s so fatty and juicy and tender. It’s just heaven. That is truly what I’ve been dying to try my entire life. They’re pretty generous with the lamb. There’s a lot of nice lamb in there. And I ordered it medium, so not quite as well done as they would usually do, and that’s just what’s bringing out this magical flavor.

Mixed with these French fries, these nice tomatoes, ketchup and mustard throughout, and that pickley flavor that’s mixed throughout is just oh, I’m a new man.

I’ve ordered a cold glass of ayran, which is basically a watered-down yogurt that goes perfectly with the doner.

Let’s give it a try. Oh, oh that is, that is super sour. It tastes exactly like yogurt, pretty much non-sweetened yogurt, a little watered down.

And I can say it just complements this doner perfectly. You have a bite of the doner, a sip of that ayran, and that’s life.

A couple things I’ve really noticed about being here, people are really open. Like, the young people have a good time, and they really know how to enjoy life. I’d say it’s trendy, funky, open, urban, and modern. Those are the words I would use to describe Istanbul. I’m in love with this beautiful city.

So thank you so much for watching these food and travel videos. It’s a once in a lifetime experience for me to be here in this beautiful Istanbul.

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Questions

1. Trevor James came to Istanbul mainly to visit mosques, bazaars and palaces. True or false?

2. The first thing he had in Istanbul was a doner kebab. Is this right or wrong?

3. Was there a holiday in Turkey?

4. How did they make doner kebab? What were the ingredients?

5. Did Trevor like the doner? Was it delicious?

6. He ate the doner while drinking tea. Is this correct or incorrect?

7. Is Istanbul boring and dull; or is it lively, exciting and vibrant?

 

A. I am from Istanbul. I live in Istanbul. I have visited Istanbul. Yes or no? Have you visited Turkey?

B. Have you eaten or tasted doner kebab (or gyros or shawarma)? If yes, where?

C. Are doner, gyros or shawarma popular in your city? Who works there?

D. What street foods or snacks are popular in your city?

E. My friends and I would like to open up and run a food stall or food stand. Yes or no? Would you like to work in a food stall or restaurant?

F. What might happen in the future?