Kendin Pişir, Kendin Ye & Alfresco Alla Turca



via turkeysforlife.com
Cin Bal in Kayakoy

 Happy 4th of July! Since picnics and family barbeques are in order today, here's a Turkish take on the matter.

Me: Pack up a bunch of food. Trek to a scenic place. Unpack the food. Remember that I forgot to pack such and such. Usually, it's an essential item - like napkins, forks, the bottle opener... and if I wanted to grill something on a real charcoal fire...well then, I guess I forgot the matches or the starter sticks, or something like that.

Kendin Pişir, Kendin Ye (literally: You cook it, You eat it) is the Turkish solution to my headache.

At first I thought it was odd to have a restaurant where you cook your own food, but basically the idea is this: someone else gets everything ready and I just show up. So instead of the above routine, imagine this:

Get group of friends and family together in the car. (Half the battle - maybe meet everyone there?) Drive to scenic place. Order meat from the butcher on site. Choose side items freshly made by village woman who cooks better than grandma. Start a tab for drinks. Have already perfect hot coals brought to the grill at your table. Grill like a pro. The best part? The staff cleans up after you! :)

Eating & Drinking - Kendin Pişir Kendin Ye - Cin Bal Lonely Planet