Turkish breakfast is more than a meal in Türkiye–it’s a vibrant part of the culture. Called the “golden meal,” it’s a mosaic of dishes and flavours that represents the community, with time to sit down and reconnect over a culinary experience.
As I’ve heard from many people, Turkish breakfast is a must-try experience when you visit Türkiye, and while the tradition is about the local flavours and cuisine, it also represents the culture through the conversations and the atmosphere. It’s such an important part of Türkiye and Turkish culture that UNESCO is considering it for the Intangible Cultural Heritage List.
Turkish Airlines recently invited me to a special Turkish breakfast at Soho House in Toronto, with chef Chef Isil Okcu flying in from Soho House Hong Kong to share the incredible meal, and it was one of the best meals that I’ve had all year.
Stepping into the dining room, there were so many scents in the air, from Turkish coffee to spices, and the smell of fresh breads and pastries.
The tables were covered in plates of food already, and as we sat down, they brought out more, hot from the ovens and stoves.
A traditional Turkish breakfast, or kahvaltı, features a number of essentials, and you should try as many as you can. The word kahvaltı literally means “before coffee,” but I was happy to have some coffee with breakfast, too.
Across Türkiye there are a number of regional variations on what you’ll find at Turkish breakfast, but a few essentials are common everywhere.
For one thing, there are cheeses, like Ezine, a creamy white cheese, Konya’s blue mould cheese, or Van’s herb-infused varieties. Black or green olives are also common, since Türkiye is one of the world’s top five producers of olives and olive oils, served seasoned with olive oil and herbs; as well as fresh vegetables and fruits, like tomatoes, cucumbers, and melon.
Eggs are also served in one of a few dishes, in either Menemen (scrambled with tomatoes and peppers), sucuklu yumurta (fried eggs with spicy sausage), or the social-media-famous çılbır (poached eggs over garlicky yogurt), which was one of my favourites. I also really enjoyed the fried eggs served with sucuk, a spicy Turkish sausage.
And of course there are pastries and breads, like simit (sesame-crusted rings), poğaça (savory stuffed pastries), and gözleme (flatbreads with fillings).
To finish off the meal, there are a few sweet plates, like honey paired with clotted cream, homemade jams, and marmalades, and of course, fragrant black tea in tulip-shaped glasses, or one of my favourites, Turkish coffee, often served with a piece of Turkish delight on the side.
I loved the experience, and the chance to hear from Chef Okcu, as she chatted about the dishes. It is also easy to see why the meal is such a vital part of the culture. I’m looking forward to enjoying it in Türkiye one day.
Thanks to Turkish Airlines for the experience. Considering all of the awards they have received for their dining onboard, and everything that I’ve heard about their lounges, they deliver exceptional Turkish hospitality to the world.
Photos by W. Andrew Powell/The GATE.