Keyif: The Turkish Art of Chilling

Maybe surprisingly, Istanbul has a huge wealth of opportunities for the consumption of alcohol. However, the best place to chill out and socialise with friends in Istanbul is not necessarily down the pub. The numerous cay bahcesi, or tea gardens, throughout Istanbul and the rest of Turkey are the perfect places to escape the madding crowds or the midday heat and relax, drink copious amounts of sweet cay, smoke nargileh (water pipe), play backgammon, and eat snacks such as gosleme, which is a savoury filled pancake perfect for chopping up and sharing at the table.

Locals don’t usually bother with the apple tea often served up to tourists by hopeful carpet salesmen. Instead, most (including us of course) opt for Turkish black tea served sweet in a rather elegant tulip-shaped glass.

Next is the nargileh: the water pipe is brought to your table, filled with the aromatic tobacco (usually apple-flavoured), and hot coals are placed on the top to keep it burning. Each smoker is given their own little mouthpiece so that you don’t have to have any of your mate’s tea-flavoured saliva with your smoke. The trick is to keep it going by not taking too long between each toke, but you don’t smoke it like Chich and Chong; slow and steady wins the race here.

The gosleme are usually prepared by a couple of old ladies in a little booth. One cuts and rolls out the dough, and the other one fills it with your choice of fillings, folds it over, and cooks it on the hot plate. The waiter then slices it up and brings it to your table, and you’re away.

When the pipe dies out, and you know you’ve had far too much tea (use the toilet before you leave, or that will be your next mission!), it’s back onto the frenetic streets of the big city, suitably relaxed and ready for anything!

Barclay