Sefik Dikyar's Baklava to die for!
Tuesday 29 April 2014
Sefik Dikyar is originally from Turkey, and he produces the best Turkish baklava, and other specialties, I have seen this side of the Bosphorus.
As is often the case in Ireland, Sefik met his wife Liz at a wedding. It was 2004 and she had gone to Bodrum for the marriage of her cousin to a Turkish man.
"The groom's uncle was to be a witness at the wedding but he forgot his ID, so I stepped into the role. After the ceremony, the photographer wanted a photo of the two witnesses, who were Liz and I. After the photo, we stayed chatting and it went from there. We got married in September 2005 and then I moved to Ireland to be with her," says Sefik. Ten years on, they have a daughter, Leyla.
Sefik grew up in Tire in Izmir in western Turkey.
"Growing up, I always had an interest in food and cooking and picked up all my methods from helping my mother who always made baklava, gozleme and borek," explains Sefik.
To me, baklava is food of the Gods. It is a rich sweet pastry made from dense layers of filo pastry filled with chopped nuts and drenched in honey or sweet syrup. You don't get it widely in Ireland – particularly freshly cooked.
Borek, meanwhile, are savoury filo pastries filled with feta or sirene cheese, or maybe vegetables or mince. Gozleme is a hand-rolled dough, again filled with all sorts of tasty things, from chopped lamb to smoked seafood, cheeses, mushrooms, various vegetables but always very tasty. Fillings vary from region to region but Sefik's recipes are absolutely traditional and were handed down from his grandparents.
"When I was 17 years old, I got a job in a pastry shop in Tire. There I also learned how they made their baklava and I worked selling pastries. After that, all my work was in hotels and restaurants in Kusadasi and Bodrum. During those years I picked up lots of information on different foods, how they are cooked and the ingredients used," Sefik explains.
Once Sefik arrived in Ireland, he immediately found work as a waiter in Limerick. He has worked in Texas Steakout, Market Square Brasserie and is currently working in Brasserie One at 1 Pery Square.
"I found when I came to Ireland that I really missed the tastes from home. One of the first things I started making was baklava with either apple and cinnamon or pear and almond. I would also make yayla, which is a soup made from natural yogurt, rice and mint.
"Something else I do every day is cacik, which aids digestion and is made from cucumber, natural yogurt, salt, garlic and dill. I would also cook other Turkish food such as mezze selections, kofta, shish kebabs, pilav, dolma and so on and, anytime there was a party or occasion, lots of my wife's friends and family loved the food and would say I should do it professionally."
This encouraged Sefik and gave him the confidence to think that a food business could work so he went to the Limerick City Enterprise Board for some advice.
"They recommended that I should start in my local market and build up my customer base. I started trading in the Limerick Milk Market last year with the baklava and also cooking gozleme and borek for breakfast or lunch.
"I make the gozleme with filo pastry and spinach and feta cheese or beetroot and goat's cheese. The filling I use in the borek is potatoes and onion, leek, dill and crushed cheese, or spinach and feta cheese. When I started here, it was with a couple of trays and then it just expanded and expanded with demand."
Sefik also has amazing Turkish Delight, Turkish coffee and Turkish Apple Tea, crushed chillis and more.
"I love talking to my customers about my culture and background and hearing stories about old Ireland, too. This is the best part of the job."
Baklava, borek and gozleme are €1.50 a piece.
Sefik Dikyar (085) 138-4425
First Published in The Sunday Independent