What is this cloudy thing ?

Back in university, together with my dear friend Başak, who, like me, has since devoted her path to food and drink, we hosted a rakı night for a group of Erasmus students. I still remember how the British students described it:

“What is this cloudy thing?”
”The cloudy thing?”

Rakı… This anise-scented, cloud-like spirit. But more than the drink itself, it was the long hours spent around the table with friends that defined it. It is not a drink you sip alone; it is a drink that demands a table. And not just any table, but one laid with endless mezes. Hundreds of small dishes, each born for this spirit. And though its intensity often overpowers the food, we drank it gladly, and still do.

So when Donkey Republic invited us to create a summer party, the first image that came to my mind was the meyhane table.

Because meyhanes are not only about food or drink. They are about friendship. They are about sitting for hours, laughing, singing, remembering. A rakı table is not shared with just anyone, it has its own rituals, its own unspoken codes. Even the way glasses are clinked carries meaning.

I remember one night, Başak and I laughed as we tapped our glasses against the table for the absent friends we wished were there. Tradition says you must tap at least once for those missing. That night it was only us, and the absences were many. We sadly laughed as we kept tapping.

I was never much of a drinker, but the very first alcohol I ever tried was rakı, while listening to a clarinetist. As the clarinet played, tears welled in my eyes. Rakı was that kind of drink, I thought, it plays with your emotions. It brings old stories to the surface, helps you digest the past, and loosens your tongue to speak.

Last night, we laid another long table. This time with my dear friends Anna Sophie and Julia. We cooked together, but instead of sitting at the table, we served those who did. And the joy we felt was no less than theirs.

This morning I thought again of that phrase: the cloudy thing. Yes, this cloudy thing… Hiding secret little meanings like friendship.

It is like the way a team you’ve worked with for years can become like family. Work is “just work,” we say, but in truth, it takes up most of our lives. And sometimes colleagues become friends. Without that, work would be unbearable.

Even when designing our menus, we always return to the idea of friendship. Each dish carries a piece of Turkey’s many cultures.

We added midye dolma, stuffed mussels, for instance. Its story alone inspires me: a dish brought into our cuisine from Rhodes and Crete, perfected by Armenians and cherished by Assyrians migrating from Mardin. At its core, it’s nothing but a humble ode to the mussel itself. Today it’s sold as simple street food, but bringing it back to the table excites me endlessly.

We also added smoked mackerel. For every Istanbulite, mackerel holds a special place. They say old fishermen once dried glittering mackerel along the Bosphorus like pearls. And here in Denmark, though the country is surrounded by the sea and fish is not a daily staple, their mackerel is so delicious it could make anyone fall in love with fish. How could we leave it off the menu?

Then come the yogurt mezes with carrot and eggplant…
Meyhane-style pilav, this time inspired by Danish wheat, turned into a buttery rice dish.
Chicken skewers… and so many smiling faces all around.

I have always felt incredibly lucky to inherit such a culture, and now I have the chance to share it with others. In our tradition we say, “bite your tongue,” to keep bad energies away…

I hope this table we set becomes only the beginning of many more. For we found immense joy in it, and I hope the Donkey Republic team felt the same.

Şerefe…
Nesrin Eren