r/TurkishCoffee

Hello! I was recently given these by a friend and told they were basically a Turkish instant coffee. I know one is banana flavored and the other is hazelnut. From what I can translate and read on the back I'm supposed to mix with water and maybe creamer, but it doesn't tell me how much water. Is anyone here familiar with these and may be able to tell me the right way to make them?

Please feel free to delete if this isn't the right place to ask about these.

Happy weekend,

​I'm kicking off our weekly weekend cup-sharing with a very personal one. I sculpted the little pink roses on this cup myself, and of course, I had to brew a perfectly frothy coffee to match.

​Now it's your turn. Whether it's a cup with a special story or just your everyday favorite, I'd love to see what you are drinking out of today. Go ahead and create your own post to share your beautiful cups with us, and let’s enjoy the weekend coffee vibe together in the sub.

Most of us know Turkish coffee made it onto UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage list back in 2013. But honestly, I always assumed they were just recognizing the brewing method. Turns out, it's a lot deeper than that. They recognized an entire social tradition that basically invented the modern café.

I put together a quick timeline that made the whole history click for me.

According to historical records, two Syrian merchants named Hakem and Şems opened Istanbul's first public kahvehane in Tahtakale around 1554. Think about how revolutionary this was at the time. It was a public space where anyone, regardless of their social background, could just sit, sip coffee, and debate politics, literature, or religion for hours. We take it for granted now, but back then, it was a completely new concept.

Naturally, the authorities weren't thrilled. These were independent spaces where people talked freely, away from the state's watchful eye. Over the 16th and 17th centuries, several Ottoman sultans actually tried to ban coffee and shut these places down. Spoiler: the culture won. People just kept going back.

Then there is the whole European connection. We all know the legend of the 1683 Siege of Vienna and the abandoned coffee sacks. But when coffee firmly established itself in Central Europe, they didn’t just adopt the drink. They adopted the entire Ottoman social model. The whole idea of a café as a place to meet, debate, read the paper, and hang out for an afternoon came straight from the kahvehane. Even the word traces the trade route from Arabic qahwa to Turkish kahve, which then became coffee, café, and Kaffee.

When you look at the 2013 UNESCO inscription, the key word is culture. It's not just about the fine grind or the foam. It’s about hospitality, community, and traditions like kahve falı. The social experience is the coffee.

It’s pretty amazing that this tradition is almost 500 years old. Coffee trends come and go, but the core idea of slowing down, sharing a conversation, and making time for someone else has survived empires and bans. Every time you slowly brew a cezve and sit down with a friend, you're literally keeping that tradition alive.

Do you feel like modern cafés still carry that old Ottoman kahvehane spirit, or have they turned into something totally different today?

Ben beğendim yeni galiba bu