Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
How to Eat & Drink Like a Local
When to Eat
Cypriots generally eat three meals daily; dinner is the main meal.
A
Breakfast
Eaten around 8am; normally a combination of olives, grilled or fresh haloumi (in Greek; helimi in Turkish),
bread and tomatoes and, of course, coffee. It's a wonderful combination to start your day.
A
Lunch
Usually eaten at around 2pm or 3pm; meals don't usually last for more than an hour or so. Sunday lunch is the
exception: on both sides of the island, this is when you will find entire families gathering, either at home or in restaurants,
and staying for a good three to four hours, eating, drinking and chatting.
A
Dinner
Generally eaten late, from around 9pm, which is when restaurants start to seriously fill up. This is the meal
where the meze is typically served. Always shared between at least two - it's usually more like 10 - and dishes are passed
around vociferously, so don't be shy to ask if you're dining with Cypriots and want to try something from the other end of
the table.
Where to Eat
The taverna is where Greek Cypriots go to eat whenever they don't eat at home, and there
is one in every Cypriot town and village. A taverna can be a no-frills village eatery, or a
more upmarket restaurant with a leaning towards the traditional. The
psistaria
specialises
in souvlaki, while the
psarotaverna
mainly serves fish.
The
kafeneio
is central to any self-respecting Greek Cypriot village's existence. Tradi-
tionally,
kafeneia
serve coffee and snacks of haloumi, tomatoes and olives, and are frequen-
ted only by (older) men.
Meyhanes
are Turkish taverns where you can enjoy meze, meat, fish and anything else,
swilled down with plenty of
raki
. In the North, a
lokanta
is an informal restaurant and a
restoran
is a more upmarket version.
Hazir yemek
('ready food') restaurants specialise in
dishes that are best eaten earlier in the day when they're fresh. You'll see signs for
kebapči
(kebab shops) and
oakbaş
(fireside kebab shops) where you can watch your kebab being
prepared.
Don't miss the
pastanes
(patisseries) selling sugary treats, such as
kiru
(biscuits), cakes
and sweet, sweet baklava. Beware of the difference between
pasta
(pastry) and
makarna
(noodles).
Cheap Treats
