From Turkey With Love

Day 28

I have been given a pharmacy of meds to fight this viral infection. So if this post seems garbled, just know…one of the side affects reads “may cause hallucinations.” I’ve caught myself writing words backwards (for instance, I wrote sprow for words a moment ago). They said nothing about it causing dyslexia. Hmm.

I have skype set up so I can call anyone in the US. This weekend I’m gonna try and catch up with everyone I was unable to call before now. In a couple of weeks I’ll probably get around to creating a phone number so you guys can call me too.

Our adventure to Kiskalesi continued with a delicious trip to Cafe Rain where the food was…amazing.

Our appetizers were simple and refreshing. Shephard’s salad, fresh-made bread, and Borek Cafe Rain style. If you remember from the Adana video, the Borek from Adana is far different from this one. Cafe Rain’s looked like mini egg rolls. The Borek was fried instead of baked and the flavor was just a bit different.

Borek, What was left of our Shepherd's Salad, and Homemade Bread

For the main entree, I had the insanely good Rain Special (chicken with eggplant, onions, peppers, cheese, cucumbers, and a divine sauce that made me wish I had a second or third stomach). Both Drell and Gray love the fish. I wasn’t quite that adventurous yet.

Rain Special, my meal

Gray chose the grilled fish. The roasted garlic smell was absolutely divine.

Grilled/steamed Fish. Boyd said it was his favorite.

Drell chose the fried fish. It looked delicious!

Fried Fish. Drell said it was his favorite.

For dessert they served Chai (the tea) and Watermelon. The refreshing desserts (tea and fruits, usually) are complimentary.

Dessert on the house. Chai tea and watermelon.

And now, my friends, I’m going to bed. Hope you enjoyed it!

Peace, I’m out.

Day 14

It was delicious! Carrots in fresh lemon juice. Absolutely refreshing.

You’ll have to forgive the graininess of these pictures.We were in very low light and I had to blind people with my flash in order to get any of these pics. I promise the food looked far more appetizing in person. *sigh* I should have really paid attention to my husband and his photography tips from his own food blog.

For Drell’s birthday we went to a sushi place called Frend’s. That’s right, I said sushi. Unfortunately, however, THE sushi guy was on a two week vacation so we had to order off the main menu. I promise you I was NOT disappointed. They brought out a delicious flat bread layered with Mediterranean flavors. Before I could taste it, however, the waiter brought the condiments and asked that I please try the bread with them first. Who am I to ignore a waiter’s request when it comes to food? They should know better than me. The first one was a garlic mayo. Delicious, but I’m not much of a mayo girl so I tried the other. It was ketchup but sweeter than any ketchup I’ve ever tasted. It was fabulous with the bread, and I never thought I’d say that! LOL.

It was time to order and I’m creative when I go out. Several people had been there and were giving suggestions. “Try this, it tastes like Chinese food,” or “this tastes just like a stir fry from back in the states, only with curry!” I just came from the states so I’m not homesick for those flavors. Yet, anyway. So I pointed to something that seemed impossible to say and asked…has anyone tried this? They all said no. I asked the waiter to pronounce it for me. He couldn’t do it either, but he did tell me it WAS chicken so I said why not. It was called Champselyees. The bit of research I’ve done tells me it’s either a recipe based on the Avenue des Champs-Élysée which is a famous avenue in Paris, France named after the Greek Elysian Fields (home of the blessed dead…should I have worried?) OR it’s based on a kickass cocktail that has about a thousand different versions. Either way, it was delicious.

Chicken sauteed with red peppers, mushrooms, onions, spinach, and a little something with a kick made the main course absolutely mouth-watering. The menu described the dish as “with spinach, very sharp.” I suppose very sharp means a bit on the hot side. At 11.50 ytL, it was also very affordable.

They also brought wine glasses with carrot slices and lemon juice. Lemon, the waiter told me, makes the raw food clean. He’s not the first to tell me that, and while I know it does destroy bacteria, it also made those carrots refreshing. I can’t help but wonder if my husband will make his own version. I’ve heard they make them with cucumbers as well.

For dessert we received a complimentary fruit platter with all sorts of decadent selections. Fresh grapes, mango, honeydew, and a few fruits that I only know the Turkish name for.

The pictures I took of the main dish look terrible, so I don’t think I want to post them.

Drell enjoyed his 26th birthday among twenty or so friends and I got out and tried a taste of the culture.

Oh…did I mention? Frend’s is an oasis camouflaged by…a gas station. Only in Turkey.