'Rakı-Balık'

'Rakı-Balık' literally means Rakı-Fish in Turkish. 'Rakı' being the most popular alcoholic beverage in Turkey, it is also a popular drink in north shores of Mediterranean; it is 'Uzo' in Greece, 'Grappa' in Italy and 'Pastis' in France. It is an anise-flavoured spirit. In Turkey Rakı is mostly consumed with food, almost like a ritual. You go to a 'meyhane' (tavern) sit down at a table, first you are served 'meze' (tapas), then the main course (usually a grilled meat, chicken or fish) accompanied by several types of green salad, after that the dessert, and in some cases a glass of beer to 'polish'. Finally, 'Rakı-Balık' refers to a 'Rakı' ritual where you eat grilled fish as the main course. If you 'do' 'Rakı-Balık' they will serve you warm tahini halva as a dessert, it is a tradition. Turns out that tahini helps dealing with the heavy-metals that comes with the fish and detoxifies the liver. Also eating halva is a funeral tradition in Turkey, so it is also memorizing the dead fish you just ate ; )