Breakfast in Turkish is kahvaltı, and a typical Turkish breakfast includes ekmek (bread), peynir (cheese), zeytin (olives), domates (tomatoes), salatalık (cucumber), yumurta (eggs), bal (honey) and plenty of çay (tea). The general word for food is yemek, which also means “meal”, “dish” and the verb “to eat”.
Breakfast is a big deal in Türkiye, especially at weekends, when it can stretch over hours with dozens of small plates. The word kahvaltı is usually explained as coming from kahve altı, roughly “before coffee”: the meal you eat before your coffee. This guide covers the breakfast table, tea vocabulary, everyday food words, the grammar you need to order and ask, and the phrases that are said at every Turkish table.
Pronunciation hints are rough English approximations: uh stands for the Turkish ı, ö and ü are as in German, and ğ lengthens the vowel before it. To hear the real sounds, use the Turkish alphabet tool.
The breakfast table (kahvaltı sofrası)
| Turkish | Pronunciation hint | English | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| ekmek | ek-mek | bread | |
| simit | see-meet | sesame bread ring | Sold on the street in the morning. |
| poğaça | poh-ah-chah | soft savoury bun | Often peynirli (with cheese) or zeytinli (with olives). |
| börek | bö-rek | filo pastry | With cheese, spinach or minced meat. |
| gözleme | göz-leh-meh | stuffed flatbread | Cooked on a griddle. |
| peynir | pey-neer | cheese | |
| beyaz peynir | beh-yahz pey-neer | white cheese | Brined, similar to feta. |
| kaşar | kah-shahr | mild yellow cheese | Also kaşar peyniri. |
| zeytin | zey-teen | olive | siyah zeytin (black), yeşil zeytin (green) |
| domates | doh-mah-tes | tomato | |
| salatalık | sah-lah-tah-luhk | cucumber | Hıyar in some regions. |
| biber | bee-ber | pepper | Green peppers, mild or hot. |
| yumurta | yu-mur-tah | egg | |
| haşlanmış yumurta | hahsh-lahn-muhsh yu-mur-tah | boiled egg | Soft-boiled: rafadan. |
| sahanda yumurta | sah-hahn-dah yu-mur-tah | fried eggs | Cooked and served in a small two-handled pan. |
| menemen | meh-neh-men | eggs scrambled with tomato and pepper | |
| sucuk | su-juk | spicy beef sausage | sucuklu yumurta = eggs with sucuk |
| bal | bahl | honey | |
| kaymak | kai-mahk | clotted cream | Bal kaymak is a classic pair. |
| tereyağı | teh-reh-yah-uh | butter | |
| reçel | reh-chel | jam | vişne reçeli = sour-cherry jam |
| pekmez | pek-mez | grape (or other fruit) molasses | |
| tahin | tah-heen | tahini | tahin pekmez = tahini mixed with molasses |
| zeytinyağı | zey-teen-yah-uh | olive oil | |
| çay | chai | tea | |
| süt | süt | milk | |
| meyve suyu | mey-veh su-yu | fruit juice |
Two breakfast styles you’ll see on café menus: serpme kahvaltı (a “spread” breakfast of many small plates for the table) and köy kahvaltısı (a “village breakfast” with homemade-style products). In supermarkets, the section with cheese, olives and jams is called kahvaltılık (breakfast foods).
Tea vocabulary
Tea (çay) is served all day, not only at breakfast.
| Turkish | Pronunciation hint | English | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| çaydanlık | chai-dahn-luhk | double teapot | Water boils in the lower pot; tea brews on top. |
| demlik | dem-leek | teapot (the top part) | |
| bardak | bahr-dahk | glass | Tea is drunk from small tulip-shaped glasses (ince belli bardak). |
| fincan | feen-jahn | cup | For coffee. |
| açık çay | ah-chuhk chai | weak tea | More hot water. |
| demli / koyu çay | dem-lee / koh-yu chai | strong tea | |
| şeker | sheh-ker | sugar | Kaç şeker? = How many sugars? |
| tavşan kanı | tahv-shahn kah-nuh | perfectly brewed tea | Lit. “rabbit’s blood”, for its deep red color. |
A small custom: to signal you don’t want another glass, place your teaspoon across the top of the glass.
Everyday food words
| Turkish | Pronunciation hint | English | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| öğle yemeği | öy-leh yeh-meh-ee | lunch | |
| akşam yemeği | ahk-shahm yeh-meh-ee | dinner | |
| çorba | chor-bah | soup | mercimek çorbası = lentil soup |
| et | et | meat | |
| tavuk | tah-vuk | chicken | |
| balık | bah-luhk | fish | |
| pilav | pee-lahv | cooked rice (or bulgur) | Uncooked rice is pirinç. |
| makarna | mah-kahr-nah | pasta | |
| sebze | seb-zeh | vegetable | |
| meyve | mey-veh | fruit | |
| salata | sah-lah-tah | salad | Not the same as salatalık. |
| tatlı | taht-luh | dessert; sweet | |
| su | su | water | |
| ayran | ai-rahn | salted yoghurt drink | |
| yoğurt | yoh-urt | yoghurt | |
| Türk kahvesi | türk kah-veh-see | Turkish coffee | sade (no sugar), orta (medium), şekerli (sweet) |
Tastes
tatlı (sweet), tuzlu (salty), ekşi (sour), acı (spicy or bitter), lezzetli (tasty), nefis (delicious), taze (fresh), bayat (stale). If you don’t want chilli, ask: Acı mı? (Is it spicy?) and Acısız olsun, lütfen (Without chilli, please).
Grammar at the table
- With and without: -lı/-li/-lu/-lü means “with”, -sız/-siz/-suz/-süz means “without”: peynirli börek (cheese börek), sucuklu yumurta, şekerli çay, şekersiz kahve, soğansız menemen. See adjective suffixes -li and -siz.
- Food compounds: in mercimek çorbası, kaşar peyniri, meyve suyu and Türk kahvesi, the second word takes -(s)I. These are compound nouns.
- Is there …? Bal var mı? (Is there any honey?) Ekmek kalmadı. (There’s no bread left.) See var and yok.
- Specific vs any: Ekmeği uzatır mısın? (Could you pass the bread?) uses the accusative because it’s a specific loaf on the table; Ekmek ister misin? (Would you like some bread?) doesn’t.
- “Some of”: the ablative works like “some of the”: Bal kaymaktan da al. (Have some of the honey and cream too.)
- To have breakfast: kahvaltı yapmak or kahvaltı etmek: Pazar günleri geç kahvaltı yaparız. (On Sundays we have a late breakfast.) Kahvaltıda ne yersin? (What do you eat for breakfast?)
- I’m full: Doydum. The past tense describes a present state, as with acıktım (I’m hungry, lit. “I got hungry”).
Phrases you’ll hear at every table
| Turkish | English | When |
|---|---|---|
| Kahvaltı hazır! | Breakfast is ready! | Calling people to the table. |
| Sofraya buyurun. | Please come to the table. | Host to guests. |
| Afiyet olsun. | Enjoy your meal. | Said to anyone eating, and in reply to eline sağlık. |
| Eline sağlık / Elinize sağlık. | Bless your hands. | To the person who cooked. |
| Ekmeği uzatır mısın? | Could you pass the bread? | |
| Bir çay daha? | Another tea? | |
| Yeter, teşekkürler. | That’s enough, thanks. | |
| Doydum. | I’m full. |
Afiyet olsun and eline sağlık are explained in depth in essential Turkish expressions.
Dialogue: weekend breakfast at a friend’s
Zeynep: Hoş geldin! Gel, kahvaltı hazır. Welcome! Come on, breakfast is ready.
Tom: Hoş bulduk! Vay, ne güzel bir sofra! Thanks! Wow, what a lovely table!
Zeynep: Buyur, otur. Çayını nasıl içersin, açık mı, koyu mu? Here, sit down. How do you take your tea, weak or strong?
Tom: Açık olsun, şekersiz lütfen. Weak, please, without sugar.
Zeynep: Menemen de yaptım. Soğanlı mı seversin, soğansız mı? I’ve made menemen too. Do you like it with onion or without?
Tom: Fark etmez, ikisini de severim. Ekmeği uzatır mısın? I don’t mind, I like both. Could you pass the bread?
Zeynep: Tabii, buyur. Bal kaymaktan da al, çok taze. Sure, here you go. Have some honey and cream too, it’s very fresh.
Tom: Eline sağlık, her şey çok lezzetli. Thank you for cooking, everything is delicious.
Zeynep: Afiyet olsun! Bir çay daha? Enjoy! Another tea?
Tom: Yok, sağ ol, doydum. No thanks, I’m full.
Whether menemen should contain onion is a long-running, good-natured debate in Türkiye, so Zeynep’s question is a real one.
Common mistakes
- Confusing salata and salatalık. A salad vs a cucumber.
- Kahvaltı yemek. Say kahvaltı yapmak or kahvaltı etmek.
- Missing the double meaning of acı. It means both “spicy” and “bitter”; context tells you which.
- Peynir ile börek. Use the suffix: peynirli börek.
- Using pilav for raw rice. At the shop or market you buy pirinç.
- Asking for tea in a fincan. Tea comes in a bardak; coffee in a fincan.
Mini-quiz
- Say “cheese börek”.
- Say “tea without sugar”.
- Translate: “Could you pass the olives?” (to a friend)
- Ask “Is there any honey?”
- What do you say to the person who cooked?
- What is the difference between pilav and pirinç?
Answers: 1. Peynirli börek. 2. Şekersiz çay. 3. Zeytinleri uzatır mısın? 4. Bal var mı? 5. Eline sağlık (or Elinize sağlık). 6. Pilav is cooked rice; pirinç is uncooked rice.
Next steps
Take this vocabulary out of the house: our guide to dining out in Turkish covers ordering and paying, and the bazaar shopping guide helps you buy cheese, olives and vegetables at the market.
