Restaurants in Kadıköy offer free meals to students

ISTANBUL

With more than 20 food establishments in Istanbul’s Kadıköy district opening their kitchens to university students, students can now eat without paying any fees on days and hours specified by the establishments.

Cafes and restaurants in Kadıköy, through an application initiated by a social media account named "Kadıköy Sokak" about two months ago, are offering free meals to university students within the bounds of their possibility. The process, which started when the social media account invited Kadıköy restaurants to support the students, continues with 24 businesses providing free meals.

Prior to this call, some businesses were providing free meals to support students. However, after the call, the number and diversity of supporting businesses increased, from vegan menus to rice, fast food options to home cooking.

Hakan Karaorman, the manager of a cafe in Kadıköy, said that they thought about how they could help students, especially after the pandemic, and said, "University students whose families were far away came to our business. Students had difficulty keeping up with the conditions in Istanbul. We decided to support them in terms of food. We host between eight and 10 students a day on average."

Stating that they do not have daily quotas and that they do not reject anyone, Karaorman said that they provide takeaway service when there is no room in the restaurant.

Feyyaz Keserci, the owner of another business in Kadıköy, stated that they can serve 13 students a day for free.

"When there are more students than our limit, we don't reject them and serve them food. I would love other business owners to join this practice. I wish we could do this all over the city and even the country." Keserci said.

Keserci informed that many citizens who live in other cities and see this announcement call him and said, "They say they want to order food for students. With their support, we are able to serve food to more students."

Musa Yedikardeş, the manager of a fast-food restaurant, said, "We do not reject anyone. They only need to show us their student IDs. Our aim is to support students together with other restaurants. Primary and high school students can also come and eat and choose what they want to eat."