Boza

TechniqueFerment

Boza, millet fermented with water and sugar into a thick drink you eat with a spoon, dusted with cinnamon. A winter thing, from autumn to spring.

Also on our table

A glass of boza, the fermented millet drink, with cinnamon, and leblebi, roasted chickpeas, on top

Vefa Bozacısı

Turkish · boza shop · Vefa, Istanbul

Vefa Mah., Vefa Cad. No:66, 34134 Fatih/İstanbul

İbrahim Vefa began making boza, a fermented millet drink, here in the 1870s, and the family has kept the shop ever since. It's the taste of an Ottoman winter, still made the old way.

The proof, in the house's own words

Why the boza

Strong evidence

Technique
Millet left to ferment until it's thick enough for a spoon.
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Tradition
Three generations of the same family, making the same boza.
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Peak timing
A winter drink, the house says, as it was in Ottoman Istanbul.
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