Enjoying a Turkish Village Breakfast near Bodrum

On the weekends when we lived in Turkey, I loved going to have a traditional Turkish breakfast – where the meal is like an event.

And if you ever get to experience a Köy Kahvaltısı (village breakfast), especially with a group of friends, the meal can last for hours and feature dozens upon dozens of Turkish specialties. On my recent trip to Bodrum, I experienced exactly that at Etrim Doğa Restaurant & Köy Kahvaltısı, located in a tiny, traditional Turkish village up in the hills about a 40-minute drive from the main city. The meal is cooked by the sister of Engin Başol, who owns the attached Etrim Turkish Carpet cooperative with his father (more about that business in another post).

  

In Etrim, you are served a fabulous, traditional, Turkish village breakfast with the warm and generous Turkish hospitality that I miss so much. There’s no menu, and the dishes keep coming out of the kitchen. Plus, you are sitting in a tranquil setting with the fresh country air and perhaps a few (really) free-range chickens pecking at your feet.

A Turkish village breakfast is meant for sharing with friends!

Just look at the spread we enjoyed!

Lokma is a Turkish fried sweet dough that is covered in a simple syrup. I guess you could call lokma a kind of doughnut or sweet fritter as we would in the United States. Lokma is often served as a dessert (sometimes garnished with cinnamon, sesame seeds or coconut) or as an accompaniment to coffee.

Zeytinyağlı Taze Fasülye – Mediterranean-style green beans and tomatoes cooked in Turkish olive oil.

çiçek dolması are courgetti/zucchini flowers that are stuffed with aromatic rice with herbs and onions. These stuffed, edible flowers are a specialty in the Aegean region of Turkey. I love them!

One of my favorite Turkish treats are sigara börek – cigar-shaped savory Turkish pastries stuffed with feta cheese and herbs, and cooked until crisp. Delicious!

Otlu börek – a new-to-me Turkish pastry is delicious baked pastry made from thin sheets of  yufka (phyllo dough) and layered parsley, dill, green onions and a mixture of wild greens.

Ezme – a delicious spread of tomatoes, onions, peppers and herbs with a red pepper paste. Spread a generous dab of this on some freshly baked bread.

Fresh tomatoes, sliced cucumbers, black and green olives, spicy green peppers and Turkish cheeses.

Zeytinyagli Sarma – Stuffed grapevine leaves with aromatic rice, although the filling sometimes changes and different herbs are used.

And of course, rounding out all this amazing food is unlimited glasses of hot çay (Turkish tea).

As you can imagine, going out for Köy Kahvaltısı is a leisurely activity and best not to be rushed. You could easily spend a whole afternoon in the village of Etrim when you visit Bodrum!

Location:

Etrim Doğa Restaurant & Köy Kahvaltısı

Etrim Mahallesi köyü
Pınarlıbelen, Muğla, Turkey 48400

Best to call ahead to make group reservations.  +90 532 602 6769

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(I was the guest of Etrim Doğa Restaurant & Köy Kahvaltısı with a group of Turkish bloggers, but all the opinions expressed here are my own.)