Turkish food: the highlights
Appetizers or meze are a must in Turkey, especially since they're one of the few vegetarian options available. Usually a set of cold and warm dishes consists of things like hummus, tomato and spicy spreads, shrimp and calamari, cheese and many other delicious things (that got eaten before any photos could be taken)
Though they are originally meant to be eaten before the main course, we often ended up having it as a main dish. They're really delicious and well, there's only so much space in one's stomach.
Turkish breakfasts are especially tasty, whether you decide to have a menemen (a sort of an omlet with vegetables and sometimes cheese) or a classic Turkish breakfast, you can be sure to get a yummy variety of sweet and savory food, from egg to cake.
Ayvalik toast is a speciality of Ayvalik and comes in three versions, two of which include different types of sausage. Though interesting and definitely worth trying out, we found it a "one time" type of dish.
Ode to Iskender Kebap that originates from Bursa and is worth writing poems about (if you're into that kinda things). Freshly grilled meat and vegetables (or just vegetables) are served on fresh tasty bread along with sour cream and wait for it: hot butter. That's right, after bringing the plate, a waiter will come to pour some of delicious freshly melted butter over your kebap.
I won't exaggerate much to say that this particular kebap was a dominant topic of our conversation on the way from Istanbul to Bursa and back. You won't get much else in that kebap shop but you won't need it either.
Have you ever been in a cafe, where you need to stand and look at the offer for a long time before you can choose what to order? Cafe's Hafiz Mustafa one of those places and it still makes me sad that it doesn't exist outside Turkey.
We've visited Turkey many times and never missed an opportunity for a quick stop at Hafiz Mustafa for one of the delicious deserts and turkish coffee.
Really, what more is there to life?
