Eat Like Ushi

On the morning before taking the ferry from Kadikoy to the airport, I made a dedicated hunt to find baklava. Luckily this slightly obscure place located semi-behind another cafe was found and the pistachio everything came into view.

I ordered a few different things, all variations on a theme - the dark green roll with a shiny covering, the soft green middle with pastry sides and the logroll pastry cylinder with nuts in the middle. I think my favourite was either of the first two as they had the most pistachio and syrup taste to really make the treat worthwhile. The finer nuts make a nicer texture than the harder full ones in the cylinder.

They aren't expensive. Try them all!

Pistachios and sugar are combined to form these wonderful pastry offerings.

I couldn't decide what I wanted so ended up with the slice of pie looking one. The pistachios are crunchy and the pastry is dense kataifi and not as sweet as it looks.

It wasn't as glorious as I'd hoped but a good snack after wandering around the Blue Mosque.

Unfortunately my fading memory and the space of time means that I forgot to attach my thoughts with these photos when I uploaded them.

Basta! is a modern take on the ever present (in the world) durum/doner kebabs. The way Jimmy Grants (http://eatlikeushi.posthaven.com/jimmy-grants-melbourne-01-2014) transformed and modernised (even though the recipe is more traditional) souvlaki in Melbourne, Basta! has done the same in Istanbul. The chefs have Michelin-star experience and therefore bring the quality and prices along.

There isn't a lot of seating inside and there isn't any English translation of the menu. The staff try (with some difficulty) to explain what some of the items are, but in the end you'll probably be safe picking any of the durum. It was a mid-afternoon snack between lunch and dinner - perfect for the smaller size (but better in quality!). The hummus is a specialty of the venue also and if I had more stomach space or hadn't chosen the Sucuk durum, I would have ordered one of those too.

- Sucuk (homemade lamb chorizo, hummus) YTL21;
- Dana (smoked rib, pickle, mustard) YTL21.

Both were delicious with the quality of the grilled meats and sauces potently coming through. Even though I liked the thicker chunks of smoked rib meat, I was surprised to prefer the lamb chorizo. Maybe it was the spiciness or the hummus - either way I'd be keen to stop there if I ever find myself in Istanbul again.

Before driving off to Dalaman airport, a perfectly timed lunch at Fethiye fish market turned out to take longer to drive through some traffic and find an appropriate parking space, after a police car moved us along from a bus zone. Luckily there's a carpark near the waterside and then the fish marketeers can show you their wares.

After ordering your seafood, they clean it and prepare it before taking to a restaurant of your choice (or their's since who knows which one to go to...) and they cook it for a minimal fee. In our case we went to Recep's Place which was across from the fishmonger. Additional salads cost extra but the meal is cheap.

Seaweed and bean salad and zucchini flowers were all lovely. The zucchini flowers didn't have much seasoning and so the flavour and cheese stood out. Surprisingly the prawns had no flavour despite being grilled. I don't really know why and I like eating the heads for maximal prawn-ness also. The squid on the other hand were lovely with slightly creamy insides. I don't mind it but others may think it's undercooked.

I'd go back but I'd find somewhere different for prawns. I suppose I was drawn to that place because it was one of the few that had prices on the seafood to know what I was paying.

The Asian side of Turkey has a few coffee shops in close succession to get the mornings started. I don't drink coffee but the smell comes from the pure black offerings there which are strong and bitter. We did ask for a little milk just to temper it and I hope the hipster barista didn't get upset.

On the other hand I enjoyed trying salep, a warm drink made from orchid root, milk and cinnamon. It's similar to a horchata I suppose but probably closer to drinking a rice dessert (without the rice). It's quite thick and very sweet. Full of energy for the day ahead.

The roaring fire in the restaurant actually endeared us toward the place. It was a cool October evening after the rains had passed in the recent couple of days. However sitting near the fire turned out to be a poor choice as the smoke intermittently got in the way. People also occasionally throw in the odd piece of paper which certainly doesn't help the smoke aspect at all.

Luckily the food is pretty good.

- Lentil soup 8TL - hearty soup with the lemon lifting it out of the realms of normality;
- Trout 18TL - nicely charred, not the most succulent but it's ok;
- Shrimps casserole 25TL - not as exciting as the remarkable version at Inci (http://eatlikeushi.posthaven.com/inci-restaurant-oludeniz-10-2017) but still a flavoursome dish;
- Kunufe - this lovely dessert of kataifi and stringy cheese soaked in syrup is a warm chewy and crispy way to end any good meal.

I actually wanted to go to Limon, but it didn't have a fireplace so I was overruled. The menus are generally similar so I'd give that one a try next time just to see what the difference is. Otherwise the meal at Cirali was certainly satisfactory.

For some reason the early-afternoon weekday in Cirali in October meant that this bakery had very little offerings left. I'm not sure if it's because all the range had been snapped up earlier in the day or if it was just quiet season for them.

The pastries were decent, the thicker crusts a little dry. Nonetheless close and convenient and great for the quiet beach across the road.

The TA #1 in Cirali is a pizzeria. It does seem a little odd given the predominance of Turkish pizza (aka pide) all over the place and the good quality of it too. Looking around the small eating street of Cirali, the other restaurants do seem to be very similar if not practically identical. Some have open fires, all serve traditional Turkish cuisine, and there really isn't much else.

Simge has a nice outdoor relaxed atmosphere with a definite win for the pictures along the back wall of the restaurant. The seating in the booths isn't the most comfortable with my giant legs being squeezed upwards but it'll do for the meal.

Stuffed vine leaves were a nice starter with a tangy cover. They weren't anything particularly special, just standard and fine.

The pizza has a thinnish crust and the toppings on the Smoked Aubergine (mozzarella, smoked aubergine, charred peppers, feta, parsley) YTL27 all played their role nicely. I can't say it's tastier than a good pide, but it's definitely a change.

There was something unsual about the pasta dish which I'm struggling to remember. Something along the lines that they use soy sauce for it and it tasted sweet. Either way it was fine to eat and in flavour, but just a little unexpected.

As the cool and rain continued, Enistenin was recommended by the staff at Hotel Sonne and was conveniently located a tiny walk across the road. The off season left it quiet but there were still a few groups of Turkish families enjoying their meals. The sight of kebabs in the glass and the grill behind it showed clearly what the specialty was. Additionally a pide oven in the courtyard belied another hidden talent.

We wouldn't have ordered pide if we'd known they'd give us a complimentary garlic, cheese and dill bread/pizza hot and fresh from their oven. It was lovely and soft with mild garlic flavour. When the cheese & egg pide arrived (20TL for 1 serve) it almost seemed to be excessive in the amount of bread but the quality continued and the milder flavour of egg made it possible to finish.

I asked the difference between the lamb kebabs favoured by sultan, the special with lamb, the eniste special and the ensite kebap. The answers I recall were essentially that the sultan was served on mash, the special served on tomatoes and onion and garlic, the eniste special on vegetables, and I suppose the kebap is plain.

I opted for the eniste special and the base was aubergines and onions. The meat on top was large butterflied sections of meat with herbs and vegetables within the mince. It was beautifully tender and savoury and made for an excellent sandwich on the even more bread (although this was cold) served.

The pouring rain meant that Kas wasn't going to be enjoyed for the weather or the scuba diving I had hoped. The food enthusiasm also dried up funnily enough and so the view of rotisserie chicken made for a simple lunch.

It was very nicely flavoured, pretty tender, and served with rice and salad. Cheap and easy.