As part of the 10 November Commemoration events of the Great Leader Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, a menu consisting of Atatürk's favourite dishes was served at the Eastern Mediterranean University (EMU) Tourism Faculty Tower Restaurant on Tuesday, 9 November 2021, at 12:00. EMU Rector Prof. Dr. Aykut Hocanın, Vice Rectors, Deans of Faculties, Chair of Atatürk Research and Application Center (ATAUM) Assist. Prof. Dr. Turgay Bülent Göktürk and faculty members attended the organisation.
Delivering the opening speech of the event, EMU Rector Prof. Dr. Aykut Hocanın thanked all those who contributed to the organization of this event, marking the start of the commemoration activities and the invitation of the Faculty of Tourism, the achievements of which they are proud of. Prof. Dr. Hocanın stated that this event was extremely important for EMU in highlighting the meaning and importance of the day, that Atatürk's vision and thoughts guide them, and that they saw a different side of Atatürk through this event, held for the first time in the TRNC. Chair of EMU ATAUM Assist. Prof. Dr. Turgay Bülent Göktürk, on the other hand, stated in his speech that this event, taking place for the first time, excited them, and that, besides Atatürk's military and administrative features, this event demonstrated another personal feature of Atatürk. At the end of his speech, Assist. Prof. Dr. Turgay Bülent Göktürk thanked the Faculty of Tourism for organizing and hosting the event.
“He Enjoyed Eating Traditional Turkish Food”
In his speech, EMU Tourism Faculty Dean Prof. Dr. Hasan Kılıç welcomed all those attending with excitement and happiness and evaluated Atatürk's life in terms of food and culture. Prof. Dr. Kılıç said, “We see the tradition of sitting at the table for a long time in Atatürk. Today, in modern societies, people sit at the tables for a long time. They argue, have fun, and get things done. Ataturk did the same. He used the table as a tool to solve the country's problems. In addition to white bean stew and rice, he loved traditional Turkish dishes as a Turkish person. The fact that he maintained the Turkish tradition in the dishes is a proof of his not breaking away from the traditional Turkish culture.”
Within the scope of the event, the menu prepared by the Gastronomy and Culinary Arts students together with their instructors consisted of white cheese, melon, roasted chickpeas, lettuce, fava, yoghurt and pastry, Thessaloniki pastry with spinach, beans, rice with butter, rice with turkey, okra with meat, ayran, lemonade and semolina halva. At the invitation, the menu presented to those attending included Atatürk's eating habits, the story of his favourite dishes.
