“Coffee should be black as hell, strong as death, and sweet as love” – Turkish Proverb
Turkey and Turkish coffee. Perfect association. After all, we are well-known coffee drinkers in the Balkans (where we also belong just a little). Bosnia and Serbia were part of the Ottoman Empire anyway. And the first cafes in Europe were in Vienna.
Legend has it that coffee was brought to Vienna by the Turks during their conquests. When they retreated, they left sacks of coffee beans in front of the Vienna walls. The rest is history, as they say.
And so, whenever I’m in Istanbul, the first thing I do is go to Hafiz across from Taksim. Strong coffee, a cube of “rahat-ı folkum”, all accompanied by a glass of water.
Şekerci Hafız Mustafa was founded by Hacı İsmail Hakkı Bey in 1864 in Istanbul Bahçekapı during the reign of Sultan Abdülaziz Han and was then taken over by his son Hafız Mustafa.
It should not be forgotten that Hafız Mustafa 1864 is a cafe and pastry shop. They offer everything from baklawa to muhallebi – pudding. My favorite is ashura – Noah’s pudding.
And so I sit on the sidewalk, watching passers-by, drinking strong black coffee and enjoying the morning coolness.