Relevant facts.

Gaziantep, also known as “Antep” is located in southeastern Türkiye. It is a city of rich history and vibrant culture. Known for its delicious cuisine, ancient sites, and bustling markets, Gaziantep offers a unique and unforgettable experience for visitors. Gaziantep is the sixth-largest city in Türkiye and boasts a rich history dating back over 5,000 years. Its fortress, perched on a hill in the center of the city, dominates the city, the Zeugma Mosaic Museum hosts an impressive collection of mosaics notably unearthed from the nearby antic site of Zeugma. The city’s traditional handicrafts, such as copperware and silk weaving, are highly valued, reminding that the city was located along the historic Silk Road. You can witness the skilled artisans at work when you visit its labyrinthine bazaar as well as mini-mountains of spices and graceful garlands of dried chilies.

What makes the Creative Field of Gastronomy special?

One of the real treats of the city is its incredible food. The city is widely regarded as the culinary capital of Türkiye and is the only city whose cuisine is synonymous with and recognized by its name “Gaziantep’s cuisine”.

Gaziantep is the bud for the pistachio industry and you won't walk a block without seeing a baklava shop. Gaziantep people are very proud about their baklavas, protected by the EU as an authentic food (the only Turkish foodstuff to achieve that honor). Take a bite of this fluffy pastry filled with crushed pistachios and kissed with honey and discover that it is quite possibly one of the finest indulgences in life! 

How the designation is being managed?

The designation is being managed by the Gaziantep Metropolitan Municipality, which has already coordinated the UCCN nomination process for two years. The Municipality's Foreign Affairs Department serves as the city's coordinator, collaborating with public and private institutions.

Gastronomy traditions.

The people of Gaziantep love their food and like to share it with their families. Local traditions are deeply rooted and each one is associated with a particular dish, such as “yuvarlama”, a local home-made dish that is often served to guests and always on Eid al-Fitr mornings - which marks the end of the month-long dawn-to-dusk fasting of Ramadan. Restaurants are often open all day non-stop; some are open very early in the morning (from 7 a.m.) and others open until very late (until midnight). Gaziantep's inhabitants can therefore always find a place, outside their homes, to satisfy their small or large cravings!

When you’re in Gaziantep, you may share a breakfast with the locals around a “beyran”, a lamb and rice soup or a liver kebab. For the sweet tooth, the choice might be “katmer”, made from thin pastry with a filling of ground pistachio and plenty of clotted cream.

For lunch, of course, you'll find the inevitable “döner kebab” on every street corner, but for a typical local quick meal you must opt for “lahmacun”, a kind of very thin pizza topped with minced meat and vegetables, available throughout the day in specialized bakeries. Vegetarians will enjoy the "nohut dürümü," a flatbread sandwich filled with chickpeas and raw vegetables seasoned with paprika flakes and lemon.

If you prefer a more substantial meal in a restaurant, try “ale nazik”, one of Gaziantep's dishes which benefits of a certified designation of origin, a minced meat kebab on eggplant and yogurt purée. As kebabs can be eaten throughout the day, so you can repeat the experience for dinner by opting for a seasonal kebab, such as "keme kebabı" with minced meat and mushrooms. Are you a meat-free person? The various restored caravanserais offer a wide range of options, including mezze or rice-stuffed vegetables, various types of cheese, and so on.

Of course, the day ends on a sweet note with a bite – or more! - of the Gaziantep's famous baklava, which comes in an infinite variety of flavors. Hospitality is top-notch in Gaziantep, and you may even be invited to share a family dinner washed down with ayran (a yoghurt and water-based drink), followed by "zerdeli sütlaç", a rice pudding topped with a layer of saffron jelly, or various cookies, all served with a large samovar of tea! 

Iconic local products.

Türkiye has a rich biodiversity due to its location at three important regional bio geographical junctions. Gaziantep also boasts fertile farmland that supports this biodiversity. Antep pistachios have been around for 4,000 to 5,000 years, and the region is home to nearly 50 million pistachio trees. Pistachios are eaten fresh (“ben fıstık”) or dried and are a staple of local cuisine, including pastries, baklava, chocolate, and other sweets, as well as savory dishes. When the tree blooms, pistachio sprouts are used to make pistachio jam; they are also used to make spreadable paste.

Other local products include tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, cucumbers, radishes, “haylan” (a type of zucchini), winter pumpkin, hairy gherkins, tarragon, mint, and safflower (“haspir”). The region also produces apricots, cherries, apples, white figs, pomegranates, plums, melons and persimmons.

In Gaziantep, during the summer, many products are dried, canned, or packaged for year-round use. Thus, vegetables are consumed fresh or dried, such as the red pepper, which is stuffed (dried in the summer and rehydrated in the winter), concentrated as a paste, or in powder/flakes form. Vine leaves are pickled and used to make stuffed vine leaves, which is a very popular dish.

Gaziantep's residents enjoy meat, especially sheep. This meat can be found in most cooked dishes in cubes, sliced, minced, and other forms, and it is an important part of local cuisine. It has a distinct flavor because the majority of the animals graze in the hills around Gaziantep, where they are fed native plants such as thyme or meadows. 

Local stakeholders.

The Gaziantep Chamber of Commerce is the highest institution that organises Gaziantep's restaurants and other professional food manufacturers and marketers. This institution assists members in improving the quality of their products and provides quality support to businesses by increasing and expanding capacity.
The Chief Federation of Turkey, through its Gaziantep branch, GASPER (Gaziantep Gastronomy and Chefs' Association), works to promote social rights and professional knowledge among chefs.

Gastronomy main events.

GASTROANTEP, or the International Gastronomy Festival, is an initiative that is part of Gaziantep's 2016-2019 action plan for implementing the UNESCO Creative Cities Network mission. It started in 2018.