A Touch of Spice

A Touch of Spice
Directed by	Tassos Boulmetis
Starring	Georges Corraface Ieroklis Michaelidis Renia Louizidou Başak Köklükaya Tamer Karadağlı
Music by	Evanthia Reboutsika
Cinematography	Takis Zervoulakos
Edited by	Yorgos Mavropsaridis
Distributed by	Capitol Films Village Roadshow
Release date	2003 (2003)
Running time	108 minutes
Country	Greece Turkey
Language	Greek Turkish English

A Touch of Spice (Greek: Πολίτικη Κουζίνα (Politiki Kouzina), Turkish: Bir Tutam Baharat) is a 2003 Greek film directed by Tassos Boulmetis and starring Georges Corraface as the character of the adult Fanis Iakovides. The character of Fanis Iakovides as a child is played by Markos Osse and the supporting role of Fanis's grandfather, Vassilis, is played by Tassos Bandis.

The original Greek title is Πολίτικη Κουζίνα (Politiki Kouzina) which means Cuisine of the City and refers to the Cuisine of Constantinople. However, in the film's promotional material [1], the word Politiki of the title is depicted in capital letters, therefore allowing an alternative reading of the title, due to the lack of punctuation, as Πολιτική Κουζίνα (Politiki Kouzina) which means Political Cuisine signifying the important role that politics played in the lives of the main characters.

The Turkish title, "Bir Tutam Baharat" means "A Touch of Spice".

Fanis Iakovides, professor of astronomy and astrophysics, recalls his childhood memories from growing up in Istanbul. When Fanis was 7 years old, his grandfather Vassilis was an owner of a general store with a specialty in spices. He was also a culinary philosopher and his mentor. Fanis grew very attached to his grandfather who would assist with his homework using imaginative techniques. For instance, Vassilis would teach his grandson the planets of the Solar System by showing an illustration of it and replacing the planets with spices. Cinnamon took the place of Venus since according to Vassilis, "like all women, cinnamon is both bitter and sweet". Fanis also fell in love for the first time in his grandfather store's upper floor with a young Turkish girl, Saime.

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