---

Turkish Breakfast in Kadikalesi

Kadikalesi is a quiet little corner of the peninsula. If you’re not paying attention you can travel the road between Gumusluk and Turgutreis and miss out on the village life, local restaurants, and sandy beaches hidden down the side streets.

The main hub of activity is down the side street by the little latticed mosque, opposite the Kadikalesi taxi rank and turning for the Armonia Resort.

I still remember our first visit to Kadikalesi about 9 years before this patio area was paved. It was early in the morning, and as we started out across the sea we were startled by a small flock of sheep running onto the beach.

Something tells me that the sheep have lost their visitation rights.

Yunuslar Karadeniz

Yunuslar Karadeniz is a cafe and bakery that is open year round, and is one of Kadikalesi’s long-standing restaurants. It’s name translates to Black Sea Dolphin.

All seating is outside overlooking the bay, and the setting entices you to stare out to sea and day dream, while the tide ebbs and flows onto the narrow strip of sand.

I’ve been to the Cotto Cafe for Turkish Breakfast, which is one of the low-key restaurants on the narrow lane leading to Yunuslar Karadeniz, but it’s been closed for a while and I’m not sure if they’re opening up again. So I decided to give Yunuslar Karadeniz a go.

I’ve visited Yunuslar Karadeniz a number of times of over the years, but it’s always been to have a beer or coffee, and watch the sun go down. During the summer it’s a beautiful spot to watch sunset.

Turkish Breakfast

There were three or four tables of customers all lingering over breakfast when I arrived. But there are lots of tables here so distancing wasn’t a problem.

I went ahead and ordered Turkish breakfast, tea and a sahanda yumurta (fried egg).

Breakfast was well presented and tasty and enjoyable. As they have a cafe and a bakery, I was expecting a selection of pastries or boreks with the breakfast—but no.

There’s two key types of Turkish Breakfast – the Köy Kahvalti, and the Supreme Köy Kahvalti. The difference is that the Supreme is more extensive with a greater selection of side dishes, and includes dolma or böreks. Depending on the restaurant a Köy Kahvalti may or may not include an egg.

The breakfast at Yunuslar Karadeniz was definitely in the Köy Kahvalti camp.

There’s something very reassuring and primal about reaching for a covered bread basket, and feeling the heat radiating off the bread. That’s a good sign, and even better that the bread wasn’t the basic white bread that the shops sell for 1.50TL.

As well as three different types of cheese, they served black olives, cucumber and tomato, honey, butter, orange jam, a spicy red pepper paste, and a mystery tomato based .

I love it when you get a new element in a Turkish breakfast—something you haven’t tasted before. And for this breakfast it was the tomato based mixture, which was sun-dried tomatoes, pickled and sliced green olives, and sweet corn mixed with a tomato paste. I dipped my fork in for a sampler to figure out what it was, and devoured the lot.

Cost for Breakfast: 35TL (2020)

For the price, this breakfast was ideal, but I’ve been spoilt and got used to eating Supreme Köy Kahvalti. It would have been good to have that option of ordering different types of breakfast so that I could have tasted a selection of böreks form their bakery.

The setting and service were great. No complaints.