Saudi Gazette

JEDDAH — To celebrate the flavors of traditional Turkish cuisine, an authentic Turkish Food Festival has been organized at Tea Garden Restaurant, InterContinental Jeddah on Sunday.

InterContinental Jeddah embarked on a culinary journey with specially flown in chefs from InterContinental Istanbul, to grace the occasion for 7 consecutive days of December.

The festival with a theme of “Matbaqna-Matbaqkum” “Our kitchen is your kitchen” opened on Sunday evening and was well attended by guests and diplomats. The 7-day food fest showcases a variety of tastes and flavor that each region provides to Turkey.

There was a galore of dishes cooked in a variety of cooking style, range of flavors and unique tastes. Turkish Consul General in Jeddah Dr.Akif Menevse attended the opening of the Turkish Food Festival.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr.Akif Menevse said “today we are celebrating Turkish food festival hosted by intercontinental Jeddah, specialties of this event are live cooking, barbecues, fried brinjals, shawarmas and traditional Turkish desserts.” In these seven days, we are trying our best to exhibit the best of Turkey cuisine.

He said “Turkish food is very famous, whoever has love to turkey will definitely loves Turkish cuisine, will come and have it during fest.”

Dr.Akif Menevse made an announcement that the government of Turkey is planning to invite some media personalities and notable businessmen to exhibit the food habits, culture, tourism and natural beauty of the country.

“We want to conquer hearts of the people through our food, they can visit turkey if they love food.

He added “the chefs came from Turkey and brought lot of spices and other stuff from Turkey which they are going to use and showcase a real Turkish delight to the people of Jeddah.”

The 7-day fest will display everyday different flavors of Turkish cuisine, he added.

Media men and diplomats were greeted with Turkish lentil soup with mint and garlic, traditional tomato sauce and Yoghurt soup with rice and mint, which were a refreshing start, followed by an array of authentic Turkish dishes. Guest chefs served their favorite delicacies, including variety of kebabs along with roasted lamb and bread.

Visitors ended their culinary journey with Turkish coffee and delicious traditional dessert with a mesmerizing live Turkish music performance. Later students of Turkish international school Jeddah presented a traditional dance performance.

Be it the spice bazaars of Istanbul, the country’s rich traditional heritage or the appetizing cuisine, the festival is sure to transport the land of the Turks in all its grandeur and it also offers guests an opportunity to explore the unique Turkish taste every day.

Guests can enjoy the Turkish dinner buffet for SR210 per person, inclusive of water and choice of Turkish coffee or Turkish tea.