In the last few years videos have become extremely popular with the likes of Youtube, Tiktok, Instagram etc. Previously with the photos it was only about one particular frame where we had to just visualize. But now we have clips showing you a lot more, takes you on a small journey. This change has been very influential for food exchange. We come across a few hundreds of clips with different food, exploring places all across the globe, the scenes behind the preparation and a lot more everyday. I’m sure that each one of us get tempted to try the authentic ones that we see. At the moment the only drawback is that we cant taste them from the clips, who knows, maybe we have that provision too some day.

When we were under a lockdown, I used to watch a lot of reels where turkish desserts were on focus. Be it the baklava, kunafeh , lokum , halva and a lot more. Our trip to turkey during the vacation was cancelled due to the lockdown and I’m not sure when would the next chance open.

Brief:

For now we have , everyone of us can experience some true authentic turkish delicacies that are made by the celebrity Chef Eyup kemal sevinc , the man himself at Hyatt Place, Banjara hills, Hyderabad. Chef Eyup has tonnes of experience and is hailed as a star back in Turkey. The Turkish Consulate along with turkish Airlines have curated a fest showcasing their cuisine, a class where you can learn a few recipes and a chance to win a trip to turkey if you dine it during the Turkish food festival.

I was at the food preview on the 22nd and will be sharing a few dishes I got to try. At first we had a small brief about what was being planned, a session with questions answered by Chef Eyup, Consulate General of Turkey Mr. Orhan Yalman Okan, General Manager Mr. Animesh Barat and Executive Chef Sammya Majumder.

FOOD:

Moving to the food, we had the tables pre set with appetizers. There was Lakerda which was cured bonito fish, Zeytinyagli Enginar which was artichokes braised in olive oil, the artichokes used were canned as its very very difficult to source fresh ones. We also had Visneli Yaprak Sarmasi which are Grape vine leaves stuffed sour cherry and rice. Interchangeably used as dolma or sarma sometime as dol-ma means stuffed thing and sar-ma meaning wrapped thing. The vine leaves are fibrous and the rice and sour cherry had a slight mushy texture. We also had the beetroot hummus. I did miss out on a couple of appetizers and salads as I got in quite late and only a few dishes were on our tables by then.

Moving onto the soup, we had Ezogelin Corbasi which was soup made with red lentils, the same giving the soup the body and thickness. It had heat from pepper and is meant to be spicy.

For the mains we had two brilliant dishes put on one plate so that we could try a bit of both. Kuzu tandir was roasted lamb that was cooked beautifully, subtle flavours on the lamb by itself. It was accompanied by au jus and some sautéed vegetables. The Perde Pilavi is chicken stuffed with rice, raisins and nuts. This is encased in a pastry and cooked in its own juices. The result was extremely moist and tender chicken. If I’m not wrong this is the dish you’d be learning if you attend the class on 28th June.

For the desserts we had sampler portion of lemon pudding and baklava. The lemon pudding was maybe set with agar agar , not sure but it has the texture to just hold and melt as soon as you put it in your mouth. It was refreshing, sour and mildly sweet, a perfect accompanying dessert to the rich Baklava. This was undoubtedly the best Baklava I’ve had.

They also had a Turkish ice cream counter which is always crowded everywhere you see because of their serving style and skill. I had the dark chocolate with brownies which was really good. Turkish coffee was also available but I haven’t tried it.

I did miss quite a few dishes including shawarma, salads, non vegetarian appetizers etc. which I’d love to try if I get another chance only dedicated for true culinary experience.

Details and Pricing:

The Turkish food festival has already begun and is going on till 3rd of July. They have Set Menu for lunch which is priced at 1200++ which would have around 15 dishes from appetizers to desserts. The menu keeps changing on a daily basis, so it would be different whenever you’d walk in.

The Dinner will be in the form of a buffet priced at 1599++ where you’d have a dedicated Turkish section apart from their regular dinner buffet menu.

Not just this, everyone who dines with them can stand a chance to win stays at Grand Hyatt Istanbul or Park Hyatt Istanbul along with two way flight tickets by Turkish Airlines.

If you are interested to attend the Cooking workshop along with Chef Eyup and actress Mehreen Pirzada you can register yourself. This includes a 2 hour cooking class and a special lunch with Chef, the class is priced at 3000++ and the timings are 11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.

For further details you may reach them at 040-67801230 or drop a message here (Hyatt Place hyderabad).