Stakeholder opinions on Antakya street flavors and street flavors within the scope of gastronomy tourism

Culinary culture, which has had a great importance from the past to the present, stands out much more today as the concept of gastronomy. Although the concept of gastronomy is mostly known as cooking beautiful food and producing delicious products, it also bears traces from the history and culture of the region where it is located. Having a rich cultural heritage in terms of gastronomy, three cities of our country have been included in the "Creative Cities" network in the field of gastronomy by UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization). These cities (Gaziantep, Hatay, Afyonkarahisar) find their place in the list with their unique tastes from each other. Hatay, one of these cities, has a deep-rooted culinary culture that has reached from the past to the present with the influence of its religious and cultural richness and natural beauties formed by the fact that it has hosted many civilizations. In the literature review on Hatay province, culinary culture, local food and beverages, UNESCO city of gastronomy, the influence of religious and ethnic structures on Hatay gastronomy, etc. studies have been found on many subjects. However, in the literature review, no scientific studies on the main subject of Hatay street flavors have been found. The aim of this research, which was set out to complete this gap in the literature, is to investigate the street tastes of Hatay province and to reveal the opinions and perceptions of local people, street food vendors and gastronomy stakeholders about street tastes. Mixed (quantitative and qualitative) method was used as the data collection method in the research, and the relevant data collected from local residents, street food vendors and gastronomy stakeholders were evaluated by Triangulation method. As a result of the evaluations of the data obtained, it has been concluded that Hatay Street tastes appeal to people of all ages and come to the fore with their taste. In addition, according to mobile street food vendors, gastronomy stakeholders and local people, street food is seen as a cultural heritage for Antakya. It has been concluded that the three prominent Antakya Street delicacies are Antakya Simidi, Haytali and Damask dessert. In addition, it was found that the product-price perception of street tastes was in a good direction by the participants and was worth the money paid. On the other hand, as a result of the research, the participants remained undecided about hygiene and safety in street flavors. Another detected finding is that the feeling towards street tastes changes significantly according to people's age and marital status. Accordingly, street tastes are preferred and consumed more by young people. What is necessary about hygiene hygiene, customer relations, etc. providing trainings, standardizing the taste, quality and presentation style of street delicacies, as well as dressing mobile street flavor vendors, carts and stands in a profession-specific way are important for the sustainability of street flavors