Turkish Meze (Appetizers)

Imagine a feast featuring dozens of delicious and varied crudités, salads, pureés, pickles, vinaigrettes, cheeses, fruits, fritters, böreks, vegetables and meats.

That's Turkish meze (MEH-zeh).

Waiters may bring a huge tray piled high with plates and ask you to indicate the one's you want. Everyone at the dinner table indicates favorites. Each little plate holds enough for two or three people to have a portion or four or five people to have a sample. Most plates cost US$1 or $2.

A toast of beer, wine or raki is proposed, and the feast begins.

Fresh Turkish bread scoops up the pureés, supports the cheeses, and counters the tang of pickles and salads laced with fresh lemon juice.

Soon the table is covered in plates. People order more. The plates stack up two and three deep. Hours have passed.

When you're so full you positively can't eat anymore, your Turkish host orders the main course! After that come the desserts/sweets and Turkish coffee.

It's just a typical Turkish evening.

Unfortunately for foreign visitors used to dining as couples, meze is best when shared in a big group. A couple or foursome can have an excellent dinner ordering four to six plates of meze, but the dozens typical on big Turkish dining tables would be overwhelming.

If you really want to experience Turkish meze, get a big, congenial group together and plan to spend the entire evening eating and drinking.

Turkish Kebaps

Turkish Wines

Turkish Beers

Turkish Raki

Turkish Food & Drink

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Stuffed vine leaves (dolma), Istanbul, Turkey

Above, stuffed vine leaves (yaprak dolmasi), just one of dozens of Turkish mezes.
Right, sidewalk tables are a favorite place to spend a few hours consuming meze and drinks. This is Seyhbender Sokak in Beyoglu, Istanbul.