Hakiki Turkish Ice Cream & Baklava

The large glass windows of Hakiki display the pots used for making Turkish ice cream by hand. Husband and wife Nev and Zeyneb Bagriyanik make everything themselves; baklava,Turkish delight (pistachio, hazelnut, rose, molasses), cookies, sweets and ice cream.

Nev uses the pulling and stretching technique used by street venders in Turkey. His ice cream is a goat’s and cow’s milk blend, with a wild orchid root called salep, which provides the texture, stretchiness and chewiness – like nougat or taffy. The ice cream is served in a cup, cone or plate – which is the traditional way of eating it, with ice cream churned until it is stiff and eaten with a knife and fork.

You can order the ice cream with a sprinkling of pistachios, with flavours such as hazelnut, molasses and tahini with halva chunks; and baklava. Caramelised fig and walnut; and rockmelon and feta are also on the list.

Coffee is made using the traditional Turkish method, with a metal pot, heated on hot sand and simmered until the coffee is rich, dark and full of flavour. You can enjoy it straight or tweak it to your liking with milk, cardamom, cinnamon or mastic options, all served in beautiful Turkish silverware. Turkish apple tea is also popular, as is fresh pomegranate and sour cherry juices.