For Turkish breakfast in Ankara, choose a shared spread when the meal is the morning's main activity and a single plate or egg dish when sightseeing comes first. Café des Cafés offers clearly priced individual choices; BigChefs publishes a larger breakfast with a two-person minimum. Tea, hot dishes and portion rules deserve as much attention as the headline price. [1][2]
Understand the meal before ordering the largest version
A Turkish breakfast commonly combines savoury and sweet foods: cheese, olives, tomatoes, cucumber, bread, eggs, preserves, honey and kaymak, the thick cream served with it. Serpme kahvaltı describes a spread of separate small dishes rather than one uniform plate. Black tea is a central accompaniment. [3]
That range is part of the appeal, but it can also create an ordering mistake. Two people who mainly want eggs and bread do not necessarily need the fullest spread plus extra hot dishes. Ask what the breakfast already includes before adding an omelette, sausage or another bread basket.
For a first experience, choose contrasting elements rather than trying to sample everything: a salty cheese, olives and fresh vegetables, one hot egg dish, then honey with kaymak. This is an editorial ordering suggestion, not a fixed sequence or rule of etiquette. Eat in the order you enjoy.
Menemen is an egg dish cooked with tomatoes and peppers; sucuk is a spiced sausage that can appear with eggs or as a separate addition. Börek is a filled pastry, while simit is the sesame-covered bread ring. Read the actual filling and preparation rather than assuming that every pastry or egg option is vegetarian. [3]
Café des Cafés: useful individual choices on Tunalı
Café des Cafés is at Tunalı Hilmi Caddesi 83/A in Kavaklıdere. Its published schedule starts at 09:00 on weekdays and 09:30 on Sunday. That makes it an option for a relaxed city morning, not a dependable solution for a very early airport departure. [4]
The restaurant's currently linked breakfast menu, uploaded in June 2026, lists a breakfast plate at TRY580 with two teas. It also lists a sports breakfast plate at TRY490, menemen at TRY450 and a simitçi plate at TRY350. These are menu examples, not a claim that every combination includes a drink. [1]
The value of the full plate is partly its inclusions. Comparing TRY580 with TRY450 for menemen alone is not yet an equal comparison if you intend to add tea and sides to the egg dish. Ask what accompanies the hot dish and calculate the meal you will actually order.
For a lighter start, the simitçi plate pairs the bread with cheese and vegetables. For a long morning, the larger breakfast plate may be more convenient than assembling multiple small extras. Neither is automatically better: appetite and the rest of the day should decide. [1]
A useful two-person plan is to order individually when your preferences differ. One person can choose eggs while the other chooses a plate, rather than buying a large shared spread and leaving half of its contents. Ask about substitutions before ordering, especially when a named plate includes meat or dairy you do not eat.
BigChefs: a shared meal with explicit conditions
BigChefs' published Dolu Dolu breakfast has a minimum order for two people. Its listed components include several cheeses, eggs, sucuk, breads, sweet accompaniments and either filter coffee or unlimited brewed tea. The menu also offers smaller breakfast and egg options. [2]
The two-person minimum matters for a solo traveller. A prominently photographed shared breakfast is not necessarily a portion you can order at half the listed commitment. Ask for an individual alternative rather than assuming the kitchen will scale down the large spread.
For couples or friends, agree on the hot dishes before adding anything. A spread that already contains eggs and sucuk may not need a separate large omelette. If your group prefers savoury food, ask whether a smaller selection is possible instead of paying mainly for sweet items that will be left untouched.
One verified Ankara branch is BigChefs at Merkez Ankara AVM, on the ground floor. The centre lists it as operating 10:00–22:00. That establishes a location and general operating window, not the breakfast kitchen's last-order time; confirm that separately for a late brunch. [5]
This branch suits a meal already connected with the surrounding district or the shopping centre. It is less persuasive as a cross-city journey solely for a chain breakfast when an equally suitable meal is close to your accommodation. Include transport in the decision, not just the amount printed beside the food.
What a published online price does - and does not - tell you
Liva Shop provides another useful price reference, with online breakfast products such as Ekonomik Kahvaltı at TRY490 and Liva Özel Kahvaltı at TRY640 in the retrieved catalogue. Those are online product listings; they do not establish the current table-service price or inclusions at every Liva branch. [6]
The distinction is important because travellers often arrive with a screenshot from the wrong sales channel. A delivery product, a takeaway box and a restaurant breakfast can have different portions, packaging, drinks and service arrangements. Compare like with like before concluding that a restaurant has increased the price unexpectedly.
For any venue, establish whether the quoted sum is per person, per plate or for a whole shared order. A hypothetical TRY600-per-person spread for two costs TRY1,200 before extras; a TRY600 two-person platter costs half as much. That example explains the wording problem and is not a quoted offer from the restaurants above.
Ask specifically about tea. Two included glasses, unlimited brewed tea and an individually charged tea are different products. Turkish coffee or a speciality coffee should not be assumed to replace included tea without an extra charge.
Make breakfast fit your Ankara day
For a museum morning with timed transport, keep the order simple: one plate or one hot dish, drinks ordered at the same time, and no distant breakfast detour. For a leisurely weekend, make the shared meal the main plan and leave the next activity flexible. The point of a longer breakfast is lost when everyone watches the clock.
Dietary requirements need a conversation about ingredients, not only the dish name. Cheese, cream, eggs, sesame and wheat appear throughout the published breakfast examples, and meat can be part of a plate that otherwise looks mostly vegetarian. Explain any allergy directly and ask about preparation rather than relying on a translated menu heading. [3][1][2]
The most useful first breakfast is not necessarily the most elaborate. Order enough variety to understand the meal, check the minimum portions and drink rules, and leave with time and appetite for the rest of Ankara. A smaller, well-chosen breakfast can be just as satisfying as a table covered with dishes.
