Food, Food, and More Food

Friday, 5 October

Looking back, it seems like we ate our way through the day!

While mom and Aylin took care of household chores, I spent the morning researching a side trip for mom and me.  Afterwards, the three of us went out for a meandering walk, peeking into the shops lining the streets of Alsancak.  Eventually, we ended up at Dönerci Orhan (website in Turkish) for lunch.  We had never heard of this small chain until now, but its claim of serving “an unforgettable taste of döner (think gyro) since 1975” wasn't too much of an exaggeration.

(In the “it’s a small world department,” we ran into a high school classmate at Orhan’s, but an even bigger surprise was running into Mr Sullivan, one of my high school teachers who had returned to the US long before Mui and I made the move to the States.)

You can order the döner as a wrap, a sandwich, over rice, or over chunks of pİde (pita bread).
If you ask for it to be served with tomato sauce, and a side of yogurt, it becomes an
İskender (which is what I ordered).  This dish is named for a man who lived in Bursa in the
late 19th century; he’s believed to have been the one to originate the dish.  The crowning
touch is sizzling melted butter, drizzled over the meat after it is served to the table.

Of course, afterwards we had to walk off that meal.  So we meandered some more, eventually ending up at one of my favorite places — Tea & Pot (website in Turkish).  I love this cozy little tea shop, and make a habit of going there with mom and Aylin at least once on each visit to Turkey.  This time, I looked up the website and read the brief history … here is a portion that explains the reason why the owners started their small business … roughly translated from Turkish …

It was years ago that we first discovered how a special teapot and a magical presentation makes the flavor of tea delightful.  A warmer with its candle burning, a cute teapot distinctive in its Far East origins, and an aromatic tea — its fragrance wafting in the rising steam.  It was on that day that we had the delightful experience of enjoying a cup of tea from the hands of the world’s sweetest person ... mother Gülnur.

Our love affair with tea started that day and has continued since, increasing with each day.

I ordered the white tea with rose buds; and the mosaic cake that we shared was just awesome.

Mom and Aylin have a chat while I click the shutter to immortalize the moment.
The two ladies in the top right photo are Zeynep and Nİhan, the owners of Tea & Pot.

The feasting did not end at tea time.  Tonight was Mui’s and my turn to host everyone for dinner.  We asked Aylin and Murat for recommendations for a good seafood restaurant, and from that list, we selected Bizim Gazino (website in Turkish) (literal translation would be Our Casino … but this place is not a casino in the English sense of the word).  It is located on the waterfront in Narlıdere, a surburb of İzmir.  Murat took us three women to the restaurant and went to pick up Mui and his mother from the beach house where they are staying.  While we waited for them, we were entertained by a colorful sunset over the bay.

Taking advantage of a balmy evening, we opt to dine al fresco on the patio.

Nothing like a colorful sunset to add joy to the end of the day.

One of the nice things about seafood restaurants in Turkey is that you get to select your own fish from the display case.  Many of them also provide a case filled with meze dishes (Turkish tapas).  We sent Murat and Mui to do the honors; and I tagged along to take photos.

Take your pick and they will grill the fish …

… and don’t forget the meze … sometimes I think this is the best part of a meal in Turkey.

The meze have been delivered … it’s up to us to eat it.

Murat is fish-carver extraordinaire — not a single morsel is wasted.

It was a delicious dinner, with three desserts for everyone to share.

Thanks once again go to Murat for the people photos.