CESME PENINSULA Turkey
Head to Turkey’s western coast, for clear blue waters washing up on sandy beaches, Ottoman heritage and historic towns with flagstone streets and cuisine that combines the best of Turkey and seafood fare
Potent flavours, aromatic foods and lively cafés along the cobbled lanes and busy harbour-fronts of the town of Çeşme and neighbouring Alaçati are the magnets that pull visitors to the Çeşme Peninsula, an hour’s drive from Izmir, on Turkey’s western coast. They also come for the soft-sand beaches and nearby islands as a shimmering blue sea is only ever a few kilometres away. The local architecture – Çeşme’s imposing 16th-century castle and surrounding Ottoman-era townhouses, and Alaçati’s distinctive stone houses – displays a complex and interesting past, just like peninsula’s gastronomic offerings.
Food is an outdoor thing here. You can snack on buzlu badem (iced almonds), erik (green, sour plums) and boyoz (quoits of sesame-coated bread) from street vendors; or savour mezzes of lightly smoked aubergine dip, radish tops, tiny börek (pastries filled with fresh goat cheese, herbs or shrimp), içli köfte (patties of meat, bulgur and walnuts fried in a brittle semolina shell) on a restaurant terrace. Head for Kumrucu Şevki for kumru, a toasted sesame-seed-bread sandwich filled with suçuk (spiced beef sausage), grilled cheese and tomato, served hot, with pickles.
Or, if it’s ice cream time, Rumeli’s pastanesi (patisserie) in Çeşme bazaar is the one. Ask for sakiz, ice cream flavoured with mastic, the resin of a bush that grows only on Chios, a Greek island that’s just a short, daily ferry-ride away. Mastic, once valued as a toothpaste for the women of the Constantinople sultans’ harem, also flavours drinks and gives Turkish delight its springy texture.
Passing along the tip of the peninsula, head for the quayside tables and fish fresh off the boats at Dalyan. In the small harbour, a fishermen’s cooperative lands and auctions its catch – grouper, red mullet, lobster, scorpion fish, silver gilt bream – every morning. Blue flag beaches stretch either side of Çeşme and, from the harbour, ferries and gulets (small sailing boats) leave frequently for the nearby islands – Eşek (nicknamed 'Donkey Island'), Blue Lagoon – as well as the Ilica hot springs and mud baths and rocky beaches to the south.
East of Çeşme, in Urla, some dishes reflect a Greek past – artichokes stuffed with rice, oğlak (kid goat in a pot) – and a liberal use of olive oil. There’s a special olive here, hurma, which is left on the branch until ripe so it can be eaten without curing. Try Turkish grape varietals such as white bornova misketi and red boğazkere in the Urla Winery urlasarapcilik.com.tr (booking essential) and stroll around the town, with its reminders of the Ottoman way of life, from street barbers to bakers selling bread through the window. Beğendik Abi begendiabi.com on a pretty square, is the place to discover the flavours of güveç (a stew named for the pot it’s baked in) or lor (soft curd cheese) with mulberry compote and aşure, a frumenty made with a mix of 16 grains and dried fruit.
In Alaçati, pretty bougainvillea cascades over the houses and boutiques and bars line colourful, flagstone streets. The marina is home to some very grand private yachts and offers many water sports. Near the centre, there’s a Saturday farmer’s market, and in the quiet side streets you’ll find small hotels – O EV o-ev.com The Zeytin Konak alacatizeytinotel.com and The Stay Warehouse thestay.com.tr converted from part of a brewery and surrounded by pines. Dining in Alaçati is alfresco and relaxed: hot paprika, cumin and herbs flavour dishes; pomegranate sauces dress balik (grilled fish) or salads of purslane and mallow; a sweet tooth is indulged with tahini puddings, lokma (fried sweet dough), kataïfi (shredded filo pastry) filled with cheese and pistachios, and rich kaïmaki (similar to clotted cream). And in one of the many alluring pavement cafés you’ll find the most memorable flavour of all: Turkish coffee, ‘thick, black as hell, strong as death and sweet as love’, as the Turkish proverb goes.