Hidden Flavors of a Historic City: EDIRNE
music Welcome to Edirne! music Edirne is located about 2.5 hours from Istanbul by car, near the borders with Greece and Bulgaria. It’s a bright day, and although we arrived a bit later in the morning—around 11.00 am We were ready to explore the city full of culture, architecture and flavor beginning from Tahmis Square.
It is already quite lively with people walking around the smell of the food starting to fill the streets. -As we head toward Eski Cami or The Old Mosque I spotted a man selling Ottoman Candy a colorful Ottoman candy with flavors like strawberry, vanilla, kiwi, and lemon. They even offer lemon juice to drizzle on top for a tangy twist. I am in Grand Edirne Mosque "Eski Cami" from 15th. century One of it's remarkable futures is dome with 999 different motives Also, I love it's calligraphic desigh all over the mosque. Let's take a look
These bold, black Arabic letters are not just decorative they’re powerful verses and names of Allah, the Prophet Muhammad, and early caliphs The contrast of the dark ink on light stone, flowing across the walls, creates a feeling that’s hard to put into words You can’t help but slow down, take a breath, and simply take it all in The mosque has 9 domes supported by 8 massive pillars, creating large open space. And this is the cover of the Kaba.. I'm sorry This is the cover of the Kaba I didn't want to leave the Mosque. It is so beautiful. But,
We have another one, which is the biggest one. This is the oldest one from early 15th century. And now we are heading to the Grand Selimiye Mosque built by Architect Mimar Sinan To catch the Noon Prayer performance. And it's right across the street. Look: Wow, everyone is waiting (something not usual in Turkiye) Thank you! As we walked through the Selimiye Mosque square, the adhan—the call to prayer—began to echo through the air.
We passed through the bustling bazaar area of the mosque complex, where I saw shops with Edirne towels, handmade soaps with fruity scents, and all sorts of local souvenirs. Smell it. It is original smell of the fruits and we have the original seed of the fruit inside. He says it has real seed of the peach. Apple, it is artificial but you smell it.
I couldn't stay long though, I rushed to the mosque to catch the noon prayer. I knew this was a special moment I didn't want to miss. Well things didn’t quite go as I expected. The mosque was under renovation, and there was only a small area open for prayer.
Still of course it was a special moment to be there. Unfortunately it is under renovation for a long time. They say it is gonna end, in the end of the year 2025. But we will see, I don't know. You can't see much, just a little space to pray. So it is kind of a reason to come back for us.
We are visiting Turkish Islacim Art Museum, next to Selimiye Mosque. This museum is a hidden gem in Edirne, showcasing incredible examples of Ottoman craftsmanship— Weaponary, caliigraphy, textile, glass, woodwork costumes and jewelry. Look at this leather bag. These Zamzam bottle are made of dried cloves, ..all telling the story of centuries of Islamic art and culture. looks like they were cooking in big amounts when you see this pot. but they have smaller ones too, all looks like copper.
People in the Ottoman times were usually eating bulgur wheat, compared to the Palace people eating rice. and I see all the beans here, chickpeas, lentils, "erişte" pasta, white beans and this looks like couscous I'm not sure. “After taking a moment to sit in the peaceful inner yard and snap some photos with the beautiful Selimiye Mosque in the background, We headed over to the archeology and ethnography Museum it's just a short three four minute walk from the most complex. The museum is a fascinating mix of ancient artifacts and cultural exhibits,
howcasing eternity history from prehistoric times to the ottoman period and Beyond beautiful time to visit because Edirne is very hot during the summer. and look at this beautiful tree. I don't know its name but it looks gorgeous. It smells absolutely beautiful and its like lailac, write if you know. This was the best moment and favorite shot I filmed, what do you think? local music After a quick pause to pet this adorable cat napping on the bench, we made our way back to Tahmis Square, eager to find the best place in Edirne to try tava ciğeri—a local delicacy of fried liver that’s a must-try here.”
We found a huge line at the most famous spot for tava ciğeri, so I asked the people waiting if it was worth it. This is the most faomus one. Last year I waited and didn't regret it. I was sorry that I was full early. It was very good.
Thank you! - Let's look how it is? - Let's check the other one. - How long would it take approx. - Around 25 min. As you saw the line it was too crowded. they said you can wait up to like 30 minutes.
Then they offered us a place without waiting. because my daughter still having a little bit problem. But then I didn't want to do that because we will be in front of the line. We are looking for another place to try. The second place we checked without realizing was the same place we visited over 13 years ago.
I asked if I could film, while they are frying the liver. They said you can't film while frying the liver. So I decided to skip that place too. Luckily, my daughter found a nearby spot with great reviews and a more relaxed vibe. we are walking through pedestrian if I'm saying correctly, road. Along the side we have the shops and we are looking for another small eatery specializes in "ciğer tava" and my daughter found from Google. We gonna check that.
It turned out to be just what we were looking for.” Lets go in.. Can I film? Is it OK? - ı think you use spices? - There is no spices, we just wash and drain So that is how they make it. These is liver, finely sliced. Arter it is coated with flour and deep fried and ready to serve with peppers.
- How many? - Two! Mehmet Yaşin was here. OK, finally we are tasting famous Edirne ciğeri, liver These are dried peppers, we have only three of them but probably they are hot. Thats why they just out three, you can have more if you want. Some tomatoes and onions as a side and beautiful fresh bread.
Our ciğer is 200grams. let me show you. OK, let's have. With the name of Allah. You have to shake the ayran. It is very soft. Doesn't have any spices but you add from here as you see my daughter. We have "kekik" thyme, chili flakes. (I didn't coundt the hot peppers they served. I shouldn't have use the chili flakes:)
Thats is why they put less, why did we use this pepper. The other one is enough. The peppers are very hot. But it has its own taste, delicious. IT seems like less on the table but it is very hearty meal. You get the taste of the liver. Right? There are not many things but you taste liver itself. My daughter says, normally we fry potatoes with it and goes really well. They could have serve that. But this is a meal that you fill yourself with the main dish only kind of.
-It is two liver and two ayran right? - Yes 700TL - Are you Kazım Usta? - Yes. - Nice to meet you - Thank you! YOu can use this _ From where are you coming? - Istanbul, I have a food channel. - We are Edirne's first liver lokanta. Its been 62 years. - Yes that is great. - Ilhan usta - Ok from father to son, great. Thank you!
We didn't taste the hayrabolu dessert. We had our ciğer tava at the first ciğer tava restaurant in Edirne from Kazım and İlhan Usta. It was nice but they are very busy, family business. They are father and son. Look behind me. Since we are close to Bulgaria. They write everything in two languages. it is very interesting.
Well we had planned to try Hayrabolu dessert somewhere else but we couldn't find any place. Later I learned they serve it only in restaurants so we must have miss our chances. Looks like in this city you have to wait on the line for everything. Here they are waiting for waffles.
Back at Tahmis square we ended with a sweet treat with tasting and buying Edirne's local specialties. It is afternoon prayer time I am trying to catch the performance at the beloved Eski mosque. It’s not necessary to pray exactly with the imam—there’s a time range for each prayer—but I really enjoy being there during the prayer time. The calm recitation, the peaceful atmosphere… it helps your soul relax after a busy day. so far I loved being here in Edirne. I thought like half a day would be enough. We didn't come as early as he planned. But it's really beautiful.
In order to feel the city, you have to be calm. when you visit this mosque for example stay inside, don't rush. This is something I can't alway do because I am plannin g my next stop, filming etc. We try to feel the city but not always possible. But you have to come my friends.
We couldn't see the Selimiye Mosque but even this mosque is beautiful to spend time around and come back always. We are now heading to the third big mosque in the same area. I am going to show you in a moment. It looks beautiful. We bought from the desserts but not kavala cookies because it has margarine in it. And I know how to do it. It is very similar. We will do it together inshallah. Before heading toward the Tunca River and Karaağaç, we made one more stop—Burmalı, or the Three-Balcony Mosque. I know it might seem like a lot of mosques in one day, but each one is truly remarkable in its own way.
These structures have stood here for centuries—this one was built in the mid-15th century—and they’re all within walking distance, making it easy to explore the city's rich spiritual and architectural heritage. Its name comes from the unique minaret with three separate balconies spiraling up—something quite rare for its time. Even more fascinating, each balcony has its own internal staircase, allowing people to ascend without crossing paths. It’s a beautiful example of early Ottoman innovation in mosque architecture. The exterior is more gorgeous looking then interior.
Since the sun is setting, the lights make it looks even more stunning. Now it’s time to leave the city center and head toward one of Edirne’s most iconic views— the Tunca River and the historical Ottoman bridge, just in time for sunset. As we made our way through the busy streets, we passed by little shops and market stalls.
I spotted some local cheeses that looked really tempting—Edirne is known for them— but unfortunately, we didn’t have enough time to explore We continued walking to our car, parked in a free municipal lot—a nice convenience— and after about a 10-minute drive, we arrived first at the Tunca, then reached the beautiful Mecidiye bridge and Meriç River The Meriç River, also known as Maritsa, is one of the longest rivers in the Balkans. It forms part of the natural border between Turkey and Greece. Flowing peacefully through Edirne, it’s especially beautiful at sunset. The bridge we’re on is called Mecidiye Bridge, built in the mid-19th century .
With its graceful arches stretching across the water, it’s not only a great place for a stroll but also a perfect spot to take in the view as the sun sets behind the city My friends! Behind me you see the worlds largest frying pan. Actually they cooked 600kg. of liver in this pan to set a world record in Guinness. Our last stop was the Karaağaç district—just a 4-minute drive from the Meriç River. It’s a charming neighborhood, known for its peaceful cafés tucked under leafy trees and its historic train station, now home to Trakya University. Unfortunately it is closed. We didn't now we can visit inside. Anyways. that’s one more reason to come back! After a full day of exploring mosques, museums, and local flavors, Edirne truly left us with beautiful memories. It’s a city where history, culture, and daily life come together in such a meaningful way.
Thanks for joining me—don’t forget to subscribe to Turkish Food and Travel for more stories and flavors from Turkiye. See you in the next adventure
2025-04-17 09:14
