Izmir isn’t my favorite place for dining in Turkey. In fact, during our four-night stay last week, most meals left me disillusioned, disappointed, and distraught. Among the city’s highlights were its breakfast pastry, boyoz, a flaky savory bun served with oven-baked hard-boiled eggs. They were number one on my hit list after reading this post about Dostlar Boyoz Fırını on Istanbul food. Mamma Parla, Rita, and I paid a visit after a quick bite at the nearby gevrekçi.

We queued up and ordered 4 plain boyoz and 2 with spinach, with a side of eggs. The slow-cooked eggs were peeled after being smacked against the granite slab above the oven.

I was invited to take a few photos as the boyoz baked. Before I knew it, I was whisked away to the studio were they were being made a few blocks away. The preparation reminded me of the thin dough used for katmer, but I was assured the process and results were quite different. Here’s how boyoz is done, step by step, before landing on your table at Dostlar Boyoz Fırını.