Cliff(y) Goes Dining

Serving chewy beef balls since 1920! This review on a famous eatery serving local grilled meatballs shall be the last one for this extremely hectic month. Established in 1920, the eatery somehow escaped my attention when I was doing a research prior to flying to Istanbul, Turkey. I discovered it from a travel guide while waiting for my friend to buy souvenirs at one of the gift shops around.

A wide array of fresh and juicy fruits in a small, comfy hotel! Sultan Palace Hotel (3*) is a small, but comfortable boutique hotel located within the old city of Istanbul, Turkey. Its close proximity to many famous landmarks is the reason why my BFF and I chose to stay there for three nights. 

Have you heard of the dish known as 'Sultan's Delight' before? On the first day of exploration in Istanbul, Turkey, my BFF and I immersed ourselves in the old city. Aimless walking was pretty much the agenda for the evening. We wanted to visit a particular terrace restaurant, but failed to locate it. Hence, we ended up dining at the topmost floor of Blue House Hotel.

Cool, refreshing Turkish ice cream near Hagia Sophia! It's time to talk about the food I had in Istanbul, Turkey. Let's start with something chewy, elastic and thick. These are the three adjectives that I can think to describe Turkish ice cream, known as dondurma (lit. freezing) in its country of origin. Not far from the famous Hagia Sophia is a stall serving such a delicacy of various flavours.

A substantial picnic box for an hour flight! I purposely didn't buy a return ticket on Atlas Global as I'd wanted to give Turkish Airlines a try for the first time in my life. For an hour flight, I was amazed by the offerings. Flights of the same duration from Singapore to Kuala Lumpur (and vice versa) by Singapore Airlines or Malaysia Airlines only offer peanuts and drinks in the economy class.

A place where sweet wins over savoury, I guess... It was hard to say goodbye to Izmir, but that wasn't the end of the Turkey trip. Before going back to Istanbul, my BFF and I grabbed a quick bite at Cakes & Bakes past the immigration control at Adnan Menderes Airport.

Addictively crispy cheese and herb roll! October is here! I really hope I can finish this series of eateries in Turkey before I fly off again in December. Anyway, Hotel Baylan - Basmane (3*) is the last hotel in Izmir where I stayed with my BFF before we flew back to Istanbul.

Smooth lotus paste infused with jasmine so fragrant! Today is 2015 Mid-Autumn Festival! This is the fourth time I'm going to write about mooncakes in this blog, and apparently I've never written a single thing on traditional baked ones. Hence, a few days ago, I decided to get some from Bakerzin.

An incredibly fresh grouper, ending with an amazingly special dessert! Let's continue with our adventure in Izmir, Turkey. The evening at Izmir was spent at Konak Pier, which includes a long stretch of marina for a pleasant walk. Out of the innumerable eateries there, my BFF and I decided to give Kordon Yengec Restaurant a visit, which is one of the most highly rated restaurants there.

A happy marriage between peach and salted egg yolk! Let's take a short break from Turkish food as it's Pikachu's and my birthday! In spite of the current not-so-good situation I'm currently facing, I took a bit of time off in the afternoon for a simple celebration with my BFF. Tart Blanc is a small café tucked in a row of shops in Millenia Walk with its unsurprising, unmistakable white interior.

Have you ever tried General Tso chicken? :P It was time to leave for Izmir, Turkey by train. My stomach was growling throughout the whole journey, waiting to be fed. Upon arriving at the city, my BFF and I quickly made our way to the next hotel to check in and put down our things. SushiCo was the destination for our late lunch, a seemingly popular chain of restaurants serving Chinese, Japanese and Thai cuisine.