Food Lovers in Jeddah now have the unique opportunity to taste exotic Turkish food at the Turkish Food Festival, which is being held at Rosewood Hotel Jeddah from Jan. 7 to Jan. 20, 2016.

Executive Chef Amjad Ghandoor and Sous Chef Tahir Guneysu are preparing more than 150 traditional Turkish dishes with an aim to introduce Jeddawis to traditional Turkish food with a modern touch.

Turkish cuisine is largely the continuation of Ottoman cuisine, which in turn borrowed many elements from Greek, Central Asian, Caucasian, Sephardic Jewish, Middle Eastern, and Balkan cuisines.

Turkish cuisine has in turn influenced those and other neighboring cuisines, including those of Central and Western Europe. The Ottomans fused various culinary traditions of their realm with influences from Levantine cuisines, along with traditional Turkic elements from Central Asia (such as yogurt and mantı), creating a vast array of specialities — many with strong regional associations.

On entering the venue, I was greeted by a gentleman dressed as an Ottoman Sultan, who understandably attracted much attention from guests and their cameras.

There were around seven live stations serving hot delicacies such as Turkish pies, Manti, Turkish ravioli, Sac Tava (sautéed meat), Iskender kebab, Turkish lead beef doner kebab, served with hot tomato sauce over pieces of pita bread generously slathered with melted butter and yogurt, freshly fried Sigara and Pacanga Boregi, freshly stuffed pastry dough, and Ozi (Pilic Topkapi stuffed chicken with oriental rice).

I was happy to sample some of those dishes. At the Gözleme (savory Turkish flatbread) station, two women were busy making fresh bread stuffed with marinated cheese, sautés, spinach and mashed potatoes.

I started by tasting the Ezogelin soup, which due to its special spices had a unique taste and was unlike any other soup. There were 30 types of salads on offer. Another section had pickled vegetables such as olives, chillies and lemon along with many exotic sauces to choose from. After enjoying the salads, I moved on to try the kibbeh and hot mezza cheese inside puffed pastry.

Secuklu Kurufasulya or Turkish baked beans prepared in earthenware caught my attention. I thought it was healthy and had flavors so distinct from any of the other baked beans I have had. The beans were melt-in-your-mouth soft. Other dishes cooked in earthenware were the Sebze Turle (vegetables) and Chicken Tas Kebab.

The spread consisted of a variety of scrumptious Turkish delicacies such as Sicek mezeler/hot mezze, kibbeh, Turkish vegetable pakora, spinach fatayer, Chafingdish, pan fried fish fillet, lamb cutlet with roasted vegetables, grilled chicken leg, oven baked pasta, stuffed capsicum with prawns, and aubergine kebab with roasted potato and garlic thyme.

I tried the special Turkish Fatira or pie which looked like a pizza with meat on top. It was baked in a special oven right in front of me.

The shawarma meat or Iskender kebab was served hot on a plate with various sauces and chilly to enhance the taste. I also tried the Sac Tava, which was also prepared then and there. This dish of sautéed meat was served with different spices and oils.

For main course, I tried a rice dish topped with whole lamb. The meat was tender and juice while the rice was garnished with a variety of spices and nuts, rendering a rich flavor to the dish. A selection of over 20 different types of bread and dried fruits, Turkish dates and cheese was popular with the guests.

Food aficionados with a sweet tooth had plenty of options to choose from. The main attraction was a handmade ice cream — the ice cream maker filled the ice cream into a cone and struck a bell with it. That did not have any affect on the ice cream as it stayed in one piece.

Live stations served Lokum Turkish delight (Turkish candy with starch, sugar and nuts, covered with confectioner’s sugar), Dondurma or traditional Turkish ice cream, Halka Tatlisi (Turkish donuts), and cakes.

I particularly liked Asury, a healthy Turkish sweet. It is made of various grains such as wheat and corn. It has a soft texture while the nuts give it a crunchy taste.

A selection of oriental desserts included Turkish Baklava (filo dough with nuts and syrup), Sekerpare (semolina cookies in syrup), Revani (semolina cake with syrup), Kadayif (shredded filo dough with syrup), Sütlaç rice pudding, Kazandibi caramelized milky, Pişmaniye Turkish traditional dessert.

Fresh Turkish spring water was served in earthen jugs.

Overall, it was one magnificent experience that is hard to miss.

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