Our Dig Dinners

Ever wondered what a bunch of archaeologists eat when they’re spending all day in the dirt?

In short: quite a lot.

At Boncuklu we get four meals a day: first breakfast before we start work at 7am, second breakfast at 10am, lunch at 1pm and dinner at 7pm. First breakfast is optional – just a cup of coffee to get you going is also a popular choice.

Breakfast is a traditional Turkish breakfast buffet. On offer are tea, bread, lots of different types of olives, eggs (boiled or scrambled), tomatoes, cucumber, yoghurt, jams and honey, and every few days, sucuk (Turkish sausage). Turkish Nutella is particularly sought after by hungry archaeologists!

Lunch (like breakfast) is prepared by two local Turkish ladies who live in the village. Lentil soup makes a regular appearance, as do stuffed eggplant and capsicum, pasta, green beans with rice, and more. Fruit and salad are always included, sometimes even made with veggies from our garden.

Dinners are prepared by the wonderful Lucy, who somehow finds the time in between working on the small finds from the site. We’ve had dinners spanning roast veggies, improvised-but-tasty mushroom stroganoff, curry, baked potatoes, köfte, and of course a range of salad and dessert fruit. About once a week we have pide night, baked locally in the village and unanimously loved.

And of course, you always know exactly when mealtimes are, because our resident stray kitten starts miaowing from under the cupboards in the dining area like clockwork!

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