The Entertainment Fleet of the Bosphorus: Tempo Esin SÜZER

If you’re tired of having fun on the shores of the Istanbul Bosphorus, try doing it on top of it. Equipped with sound systems, 21 boats are waiting for you, capable of hosting events for every age group.

A business called Lüfer Tekneleri was born 24 years ago on the Bosphorus. It is, in fact, the story of success, skill, and experience that began with Kemal Hoşgör — or rather Kemal Captain — buying a tiny taka with the money he earned in a season when bluefish were plentiful, and has today turned into floating halls where banquets for a thousand people can be held.

I have never yet come across anyone who says, “I don’t like eating on the Bosphorus.” But being a guest right in its heart rather than watching the Bosphorus from the shores is a completely different pleasure. During such a delightful excursion, we spoke with Cem Hoşgör, the current operator of Lüfer Tekneleri. Cem Hoşgör, together with his brothers Can and Cenk, took over Lüfer Tekneleri from their father, Kemal Captain, and in a very short time developed it into its present form. “My father is a man who spent his life at sea. He fished for years. Later, he began working as a sea taxi service among the yalıs. At that time, the residents of all the yalıs on both sides of the Bosphorus knew my father and liked him as well. At the request of those yalı residents, he began organizing dining events on his taka, and over time this became a Bosphorus tradition,” says Can Hoşgör, describing the beginning of the business.

At that time, there was no other business offering such a service on the Bosphorus. Since the service was of high quality and the setting was Istanbul’s Bosphorus, the requests kept coming without end, of course.