This is a part of a travelogue of trip to Turkey
Read the previous ones here:
Please find the earlier links here
Cappadocia
Breakfasts at CCR (Cappadoccia Cave Resorts)
The dining room of the resort where we used to go for breakfast had a stunning valley view. We went there every day for breakfast.
On the last day we requested for an in-room breakfast & they obliged.
The spread would usually be huge but there would be no fillers. Each & every dish that we tasted over these days were seriously prepared by people who knew the cuisine well – something that does not consistently happen in most breakfast buffets in India (including the 5 stars).
Seki restaurant (cappadocia, turkey)
Our travel planner Veena World strongly suggested that we visit this restaurant & we are so happy we did.
Like many others in this area, this restaurant is partly located in a natural cave & the rest are built up using local lava ash & other natural materials.
The interiors are beautiful. They have a period look.
Our server Yusuf had an infectious smile & he was extremely warm. He had the traits of a seasoned waiter.
The culinary experience was Extraordinary.
The amuse bouche was really good but we have no idea what it was. Yusuf tried to explain but we could not understand.
The Inhouse baked breads were just addictive.
We started the evening with Spinach Salad with Soy Sauce. This came as a string recommendation by Yusuf & he was spot on
The salad had Red Onion, Capia Pepper, Green Apple, Dried Fruit and Olive Oil. Excellent everything.
Then we went for the cold Deli Platter – it had Roast Beef, Smoked Meat, Pastrami, Smoked Duck, dry fruits, nuts and Plum Purée. Wow. Each & every item on the platter worked hard to be seen on that platter. Too good.
For mains we had 2 items
26-Hour Cooked Lamb Shoulder With Caramelised Onion, Sautéed Oyster Mushrooms, Mashed Plum and Jus Sauce. The lamb was just so soft & juicy. The flavours of the lamb ruled & significantly overpowered the flavours of other ingredients but was gracious enough to give them some space.
The mushrooms were a good break to the meatiness & ensured that the next meaty bite was appreciated even more.
Duck Confit came with Mashed Potatoes, Grilled Fig, Apple and Cherry Sauce. The duck meat was pure love. That skin on the duck ensured all the juices did not escape. The molten fat gave out a bundle of flavours. The sauce was so good that we licked it till the last drop.
We tried 2 types of raki – Beylerbeyi Göbek raki which turned out to be slightly stronger comparatively but very very flavourful. The Tekirdak rakisi was milder & nice.
Yusuf recommended a pumpkin based dessert & that was so different than most desserts we could remember. A piece of pumpkin processed in such a way that it had crunchy edges but a soft flesh. The pumpkin was not too sweetened. The cream balanced the texture very well. Overall there was a very good balance of salt & sweet in the dessert.
A visual & also culinary memorable experience
Zerdali (avanos, capadocia, turkey)
This was a large restaurant & had a good variety of local food.
So we decided to have Manti. This dish was on our list of local dishes to try.
Manti is a minced-meat filled pasta in a hot yoghurt sauce, cooked with garlic & tomato – small ravioli like dumplings (wheat covering with minced meat filing). The interesting bit is that the sauce is of warm yoghurt, herbs & some freshly ground spices. Wow. We were bowled over.
The tomatoes were used to make a red curried sauce that was added on top. Overall the mango had a Beautiful balance of taste. Very soft & enjoyable manti.
Sulu Köfte – We also had a very good keema kofta kind of dish. The difference with Indian kofta curry are –
1. The kofta balls are tiny.
2. The gravy is watery, thin & very flavourful.
3. Flavours of meat exceeded that of few spices that were there vs a spice heavy flavour in most Indian meatball curries from north to south of india (of course there are exceptions).
The white drink that you see in the picture is called ayran- in simple terms it is the chaach that we get in commercial establishments in India sans the jeera powder or any additional seasoning.
The in-house baked bread came with 2 condiments & olive oil. Quite different than whatever visually similar item I have had so far & really nice as well.
Narin (cappadocia, turkey)
Once again our friends at Veena World suggested this restaurant to us. We loved it.
Bamya korbasi – TRADITIONAL OKRA SOUP – Dried okra, meat cubes, tomatoes, onion with lemon sauce.
This soup turned out to be too good. It had tiny baby okra, approximately 1.5 cm in length. With meat . The thick, flavourful tomato based gravy, was slightly more tart than expected but after a few sips we started really enjoying it. Rate it 4.5/5
Pastirmali Divil – Fried balls made of boiled potatoes, semolina, pastrami, cheese, egg, dill, and spices. Served with tahini and yogurt.
We did not quite understand this dish. Felt like falafel but it was different. Good to taste. Rate it 3/5
It was served on a bed of hung curd
Bonfile saslik / BEEF SHASHLIK
This turned out to be Shashlik marinated in soy sauce. A Mushroom and onion stew was served with mashed potatoes. Loved the excellent juicy & robust flavours and the overall charred feel. Rate it 4.5/5
Narin speciyal / NARIN SPECIAL
Marinated lamb loin and lamb tenderloin, Served with keshkek made with potato, chickpea, chicken, wheat.
Keshkek is an intangible cultural heritage of turkey. It was simply unputdownable. We were full but we finished till the last morsel.
The Lamb had an outstanding flavour of meat. The taste was Robust. We loved the Layer of fat in the meat. That made the meat incredibly juicy, soft. The meat was not melt in the mouth but it had a nice bite, like any good steak. Rate it 4.75/5
Visneli ekmek Kadayifi
Cake baked with cherry sauce, served with thick cream. The cherry sauce was super bold. The cake was moist. The cream balanced this very well. Rate it 4.5/5
Chef kebap restaurant (cappadocia, turkey)
This large restaurant with a huge glass wall, is in the main marketplace.
We ordered Adana kepap. It came with Sumac, onion, grilled tomato, grilled green pepper, lavash. We got to know that at this restaurant, the meat for Adana kabab is minced using a meat cleaver, in the traditional way. Excellent. This was the second best after the one we had at Ross, Istanbul.
Sac tava – a meat dish traditionally eaten by the Shepherds. This was small pieces of meat cooked on tawa & served piping hot on the table. We loved eating this & polished off the tawa till the last drop of sauce.
we also ordered grilled beef kebap. It was like boti kabab of india but it had a different spicing. The meat was very juicy.
We ordered a Shalgam based drink – turns out to be kanji served in north india.
Afara (cappadocia, turkey)
An Indian Chef Subhayan Das (ex Olive Delhi), whom we knew for many years now & is now a friend, r commended that we eat out here.
The restaurant is located in a real cave, formed by lava rocks over millions of years. However one has to climb up the stairs to reach there. My partner had an ankle injury. So we sat at the transparent semi spherical tent.
We ordered a Karisik Meze Tabagi / MIXED APPETIZER platter
We were served Tabule, Mamzana, Muhammara, Yaprak Sarma, Atom, Humus
Babagonoush topped with tomatoes
Each item was just top notch. Rating would be 4.5/5 overall
This turned out to be the best hummus of the trip. second best was at Ross Istanbul
For mains we ordered BEEF RIBS Dana Kaburga
Beef ribs, frik pilaf, teriyaki sauce, apricot puree. The server suggested lamb over beef but we still ordered what looked better in picture.
The ribs were very good but we have had better.
Konya
NKM Nezih Konya Mutfagi
Pide was on our list (with many other dishes) when we landed in Turkey, thanks to a detailed recommendation by Neil Patil of Veena World.
When we saw the list, we turned on the internet. Pide there looked like pizza, just differently shaped. So we were relatively less excited about pide than say Adana kabap on the list. We were wrong. Pide at NKM proved us wrong.
The energy of the NKM boys at the open kitchen, the speed of work, the practised perfection of the fingers were unmissable. We tried minced meat Konya pide & the kepap urfa pide. Both had thin bottom layers of atta & a topping of meat (minced in one & chunks in the other). Wow. The texture of the base was a killer. The flavours of the meat & the juiciness were a class apart. Loved it too much.
Hilton garden inn Konya.
We had 3 meals at the hotel – dinner, breakfast & lunch & we loved all of them. That’s unusual but true.
Following is what we had here:
Etliekmek – minced meat wrapped in pita & skewered. The dish faintly reminded me of moglai porota of kolkata but was actually very different. Etliekmek had layers of meat & thin sheets of pita alternating.
Then we had traditional Konya beef & rice. The rice was the hero & the meat came second!!!! The rice was so good that we finished every morsel of it. It was slightly sticky as it absorbed the starch. It had a lovey flavor & seasoning. The texture was mild chewy in an enjoyable way. Rather, the rice had a bite. Loved it.
Breakfast platter had a lovely assortment of cheese, vegetables (cucumber & excellent local tomatoes) chai & a bread basket.
For lunch we had cokertme kebap – fried potatoes on the base, yogurt sauce & meat strips on the top. This dish reminded us of the Parsi Salli boti in way. Very different taste. The potatoes were thin sliced & went very well.
We also had sautéed meat in a pan with rice. Again fabulous rice & meat cooked in a tomato based sauce. Super happy.
Our Turkey trip ended at Konya, after we stayed & explored the food of Istanbul & Cappadoccia. We kept on searching for dishes that we had not tried yet & constantly found new & exciting food. This country is a food lovers paradise