Delegates arriving for COP31, the UN Climate Change Conference held at the Antalya Expo Center in Antalya, Türkiye, from November 9 to 20, 2026, will spend two weeks eating in one of the Mediterranean’s main farming and tourism regions. The World Leaders’ Summit runs on November 11 and 12. For the delegations, business groups and press hosting working dinners and receptions around the talks, the local table offers more than the standard hotel buffet.
A cuisine shaped by trade, mountains and the sea
Antalya Metropolitan Municipality describes the city’s cooking as a reflection of the cultural heritage built up over centuries by the people of the region. Its official guide to Antalya cuisine says that, as a trading and tourism city, Antalya absorbed influences from Arab and African cooking, that the Yörük culture of the mountains has had a large influence on the kitchen, and that the cuisine has a strong relationship with seafood.
The municipality also notes that almost every kind of vegetable and fruit can be grown in Antalya’s soil, and that greenhouse farming is well developed in the western districts. That produce is one reason vegetables, legumes and fruit preserves feature so heavily on the official list of local dishes.
Dishes to look for
The municipal guide lists more than 35 dishes it describes as specific to Antalya. The best known is tahinli piyaz, a piyaz dressed with tahini, which the national tourism portal GoTürkiye features as Antalya piyazı. Other savory dishes on the list include enginarlı Girit kebabı (Cretan-style kebab with artichokes), kabak çiçeği dolması (stuffed squash blossoms), taratorlu börülce salatası (black-eyed pea salad with tarator), hibeş, humus, keşkek, serpme börek and tas kebabı.
Soups include kulaklı çorba, also called mantı soup, and darı çorbası. For dessert, the list includes tahinli kabak tatlısı (pumpkin with tahini), muz tatlısı (banana dessert), Arap kadayıfı and yanıksı dondurma.
Preserves are a local specialty. The municipality lists jams made from bergamot, turunç (bitter orange), lemon blossom, eggplant and watermelon rind. GoTürkiye’s Antalya food page highlights citrus jam and the Finike orange alongside gözleme and seafood dishes such as fried calamari and shrimp casserole. GoTürkiye also invites visitors to smell the orange blossom that surrounds the city in spring, a reminder that citrus is part of Antalya’s identity as well as its farm economy.
Practical notes for hosts
With many delegations planning side events and dinners, a menu built around the dishes on the municipal list is an easy way to reflect the host city. Legume, vegetable and tahini dishes such as piyaz, börülce salad and stuffed squash blossoms can suit plant-forward menus, while seafood reflects the coastal side of the region’s cooking. Hosts should confirm ingredients with caterers, since recipes vary by district and by cook.
For more on the host city, see our practical guide to Antalya for COP31 delegates.
