Things to do in Cappadocia (Kapadokya)
-
Göreme Open-Air Museum
One of Turkey's World Heritage sites, the Göreme Open-Air Museum is an essential stop on any Cappadocian itinerary and deserves a two-hour visit. First an important Byzantine monastic settlement that housed some 20 monks, then a pilgrimage site from the 17th century, the cluster of rock-cut churches, chapels and monasteries is 1km uphill from the centre of the village.
Follow the cobbled path until you reach Aziz Basil Şapeli, the chapel dedicated to Kayseri-born St Basil, one of Cappadocia's most important saints. The grate-covered holes in the floor were the graves of the chapel's architects and financiers; the small boxes contained less-affluent folks' bones. In the …
reviewed
-
A
SOS & Sultan Restaurant & Café
A cheapish option that offers belly fuel rather than gourmet meals.
reviewed
-
B
A'laturca
Style meets substance at this elegant eatery. The menu here has been thoughtfully and creatively designed and the food is exceptionally well prepared. We enjoyed the classic meze selection and were very impressed by the succulent A'laturca-style lamb şiş kebap served on a perfectly cooked ratatouille. Other visits have introduced us to the delights of the chicken şiş kebap and the wickedly rich Kayseri mantısı (ravioli with garlic yoghurt and spices).
The restaurant has a number of eating areas, the most popular of which are the upstairs terrace and the quirky downstairs garden with its brightly coloured beanbag seating. Highly recommended.
reviewed
-
C
Orient Restaurant
Göreme's most atmospheric restaurant swoons under the weight of its own reputation as coupled-up diners nestle behind an extensive wine list. Juicy steaks, tender veal clay pots and a stack of flavoursome pasta dishes head the impressive, meaty menu. It's easy to order poorly though, as the cold mezes are oily, and the fish is dry. A safe bet is the decent three-course set menu (TL20). Service is delightful.
reviewed
-
D
Nazar Börek
This expat and industry hangout joint on the canal serves simple yet delicious meals, and the atmosphere is eternally fun and friendly. Fresh plates of börek (filled pastries), gözleme (savoury pancakes) and sosyete böregi (stuffed spiral pastries served with yoghurt and tomato sauce) are presented by jovial men with can-do attitudes. The canal-side chill-out area is where you'll get the skinny on local people and places.
reviewed
-
E
Göreme Restaurant
The live Turkish music played here every night tends to lure diners off the comfortable floor cushions and onto the impromptu dance floor around the low brass tables. The food is nothing special, but it's well priced and the menu includes 'world kitchen' items such as green curry chicken, stir-fried noodles with vegetables and falafel sandwiches. Beer and rakı (aniseed brandy) flow freely and service is good.
reviewed
-
F
Fırın Express
Simply the best lahmacun (very thin Turkish pizza) and pide in town are found in this local haunt that also does take away (paket) by the boxload. The cavernous wood oven fires up meat and vegetarian options and anything doused with egg. Traditional stews are also available but we suggest an ayran (yoghurt drink) and a çoban salatası (sheperd's salad) for a delicious bargain feed.
reviewed
-
G
Mercan
Geared towards the bus-tour trade, Mercan doesn't have the best food in Göreme by a long shot, but still has a pleasant terrace where you can sit and eat while gazing over the town.
reviewed
-
H
Cappadocia Patisserie
Close to the otogar, this place brings in cakes, pastries, baklava and ice-cream from Nevşehir and serves them with cappuccino or fresh orange juice.
reviewed
-
I
La Padella
La Padella's chef-owner previously worked at Göreme's well-regarded A'laturca, and it shows. The menu showcases many of the same dishes, but offers them at prices that are considerably cheaper. We heartily approve!
The menu (presented in Turkish and English) includes favourites such as soğuk salata tabağı (mixed cold meze plate,and kapaturco tavuk şiş (chicken kebap served on a bed of eggplant, tomato, onion and peppers. A beer costs a bargain-basement around €2 and service is extremely friendly. Highly recommended.
reviewed
Advertisement
-
J
Local Restaurant
This reliable upper-echelon eatery stands on its own en route to the Open-Air Museum, and stands out for its wholesome continental meat dishes including stews, steaks, lamb shanks and tavuklu mantarli krep (chicken and mushroom pancake). The white tablecloths and stone-walled terrace provide some consolation for indifferent service.
reviewed
-
Karanlık Kilise
The stunning fresco-filled Karanlık Kilise, is the most famous of the Open-Air Museum's churches. It took its name from the fact that it originally had very few windows. Luckily this lack of light preserved the vivid colour of the frescoes, which show, among other things, Christ as Pantocrator, Christ on the cross and the Betrayal by Judas. The church was restored at great expense, which partly explains the extra fee to visit it.
However, the charge is also intended to keep numbers down in an attempt to preserve the frescoes. It's worth every lira.
reviewed
-
Tokalı Kilise
When you exit the museum, don't forget to cross the road and visit the Tokalı Kilise , 50m back down the hill towards Göreme on the right. This is among the biggest and finest of the Göreme churches, with fabulous frescoes in the two main chambers, and two smaller chapels (one underground). Entry is via the 10th-century 'old' Tokalı Kilise, through the barrel-vaulted chamber covered with frescoes portraying the life of Christ.
The 'new' church, built less than a hundred years later, is also alive with frescoes on a similar theme.
reviewed
-
K
Şömine Cafe & Restaurant
This popular restaurant on the plaza is as sophisticated as the Ürgüp dining scene gets. Choose a table on the outdoor terrace or in the attractive indoor dining room, sit down and admire the pristine napery and quality tableware, and then make your choice from the large menu. Most people choose a salad to start and then move on to a kiremit (meat dish baked on a tile in a traditional oven), accompanied by crisp, freshly baked lavash bread.
The food is good but doesn't quite live up to promise of the décor.
reviewed
-
L
Ehlikeyf
Competing with nearby Şömine in the sophistication stakes, and suffering from the same flaws, Ehlikeyf occupies a sleek dining room with a wavy ceiling. Dishes such as the fabulous Ehlikeyf kebap (steak served on slivered fried potatoes, garlic yoghurt and a demi-glace sauce; TL19) arrive on glass plates; a gloved waiter wielding a carving knife accompanies the testi kebap. The large, well-spaced tables with leather chairs are comfortable for spending an evening, but the bill at the end of it will be as ambitious as the presentation.
reviewed
-
M
Ahra
This is undoubtedly the most atmospheric restaurant in town. Located on the first floor of a beautifully renovated old house on the road to Mustafapaşa, it has an intimate feel and simple but attractive décor. The simplicity extends to the excellent menu, which features home-cooked dishes such as sulu köfte and Kayseri mantısı. You can celebrate your good fortune at being here by ordering a bottle of local wine.
reviewed
-
N
Red Red Wine House
Stay close to me-e-e! In a former stable with arched ceilings, this seductive local feels like an ancient bootlegger's secret mixing den decorated by lovers of adult contemporary. A steady chain of guests smoke fruity pipes and sip increasingly palatable Cappadocian wines; hot, cold or shimmering at room temperature. It's open year round to honour the memory of former visitor Carlos Santana, whose spirit continues through live music most nights.
reviewed
-
O
Dayının Yeri
In a new location near the bridge, this shiny, modern ocakbaşı (grill restaurant) is one of Cappadocia's best. The kebaps are sensational and the pide is just as good. Don't even think of leaving without sampling the freshly prepared künefe (strands of cooked batter over a creamy sweet cheese base baked in syrup; TL4), cooked on little hobs near the tables. No alcohol is served.
reviewed
-
P
Mahperi Hunat Hatun Complex
Among Kayseri's distinctive features are several important building complexes that were founded by Seljuk queens and princesses, including the austere-looking Mahperi Hunat Hatun Complex, east of the citadel. It comprises the Mahperi Hunat Hatun Camii (1238), built by the wife of Alaattin Keykubat; the Hunat Hatun Medresesi (1237); and a hamam, which is still in use.
reviewed
-
Refectory
A few steps from the Yılanlı Kilise, don't miss the Refectory , with its long dining table and benches cut from the rock. At the end of the table is a trough in the floor that was probably used for pressing grapes. Attached to the refectory is a larder, where you can see storage shelves carved into the walls, and a kitchen. Another smaller, nameless church here retains a rock-cut iconostasis.
reviewed
Advertisement
-
pottery workshops
Tour groups tend to find themselves shopping for pots in vast warehouses on the outskirts of town. It's much more enjoyable (and infinitely cheaper) to patronise one of the smaller pottery workshops right in town, most of which will happily show you how to throw a pot or two. These are located in the small streets around the main square and in the group of shops opposite the PTT.
reviewed
-
Q
Archaeological Museum
If you have half an hour to spare, wander through the park to the small Archaeological Museum, a minor magpie's nest featuring finds from nearby Kültepe (ancient Kaniş, the chief city of the Hatti people and the first Hittite capital). The largest city mound discovered in Anatolia, Kültepe yielded the area's oldest written documents. Many relate to commerce, such as the Assyrian clay tablets and envelopes from 1920 BC to 1840 BC. Other exhibits include a stunning sarcophagus illustrating Hercules' chores, a Bronze Age mother goddess idol, child mummies, Roman and Hellenistic jewellery, hieroglyphic inscriptions relating to King Tuthalia IV and a decapitated but imposing s…
reviewed
-
R
Beyazsaray
Across the road from Öz Urfa Sofrası, this frantically busy place serves İskender kebaps that are nearly as good as those served at Elmacioğlu İskender et Lokantası. Best of all, it has a takeaway counter at the front where you can grab an absolutely delicious chicken döner sandwich for a mere around €1.55.
reviewed
-
S
Cappadocia Kebap Center
This tiny, friendly joint is a great place for a fast feed. You can enjoy a chicken döner kebap sandwich for a mere TL3 or acılı ezme (spicy tomato and onion paste) kebap sandwich for TL4, accompanied by chips (TL3.50) and a beer (TL3.50) or fresh orange juice (TL3).
reviewed
-
Elmacioğlu İskender et Lokantası
Ascend in a lift to Kayseri's best restaurant, with waiters sporting bow ties and big windows overlooking the citadel. İskender kebaps are the house speciality, available with köfte or in 'double' form (TL13), and other dishes include pastırma pide (TL8.50). Recommended.
reviewed
