We’ve been wanting to do a post on the sheer delight that is lamb tandır for a long time but I always forget to take a photo of it whenever we’re at Cin Bal in Kayaköy. As soon as the tandır arrives at the table, we all dive straight in there; testament to how good …
In July and August in Fethiye, okra is in its prime! We love the Turkish word for okra: Bamya. It’s just got a nice sound to it…but that ‘nice sound’ was all it had until we conquered our okra fear. Despite a plethora of okra health benefits, poor old ladies’ fingers are not well loved …
Sometimes, with Turkish food, all is not what it seems. Self-catering vegetarians visiting Turkey will be delighted by the variety and vibrancy of the colours of seasonal fruit and vegetables on the local markets. And whether you are vegetarian are not, the meze fridges of Turkish restaurants tempt people of all persuasions with non-meaty goodies …
These days, Fethiye is considered to be ‘coming up in the world’ amongst a lot of our Turkish friends because three of the world’s major fast-food companies have set up shop in the town centre. The fact that not many people seem to have flocked to these places is completely unimportant. As far as our …
Meze: a savoury food eaten while drinking (esp. alcohol), appetiser, hors d’oeuvre.(1) Meze is an integral part of the Turkish dining experience, it’s our favourite part of the Turkish dining experience, and it’s also difficult to describe. There’s no equivalent in British cuisine. And therefore no literal translation in the English language. As a result, …
Tuesday; Fethiye market day and one of our favourite pastimes. How can food shopping ever be a chore when you’ve got a weekly carnival of seemingly endless rows of market stalls? All packed with the current produce of the season intermingled with the regular staples? The colours, the aromas – citrus in winter, the sweet …
In fond memory of Durmuş amca who passed away in March 2022. RIP. ‘EL-WAJ-EE, EL-WAJ-EE.’ Stick around in any of the Fethiye bars and cafes for only a short amount of time and eventually, you will hear a male voice shouting something resembling that sound. This guy is a Fethiye institution; trundling up and down …
We were chatting with a friend a few nights ago about how Turkey seems to be rediscovering and embracing old traditions. 11 years ago, we came to Fethiye on holiday and smoked a nargile (water pipe), only to be told by waiters, ‘Oh, we have those just for the tourists. Nobody smokes nargile any more.’ …
Rakı: a Turkish institution; the chosen tipple of millions of Turks; sampled by many foreign visitors to Turkey (with varying degrees of success); a clear, 40-45% proof aniseed-flavoured alcoholic drink; transforms into a cloudy, milky-white liquid when water is added; known to many as ‘lion’s milk’; known to us as ‘loopy juice!’ I’ve never been …
We had a post planned for today but it’s going to have to wait for another time as we just have to share this story with you. A lovely (for us) random act of kindness, generosity, thoughtfulness, whatever you want to call it. It’s made our Monday anyway and has confirmed why we love blogging …