Unsurprisingly, no recommendations so far!
But equally surprising, Hungry Onion is available here, whereas all social media platforms and Media companies are banned.
No photographs either.
But on the menu today was
Chicken Toronto Raptor
Who knew? I could describe it, but wouldn’t it be more fun to let our members speculate on what they would serve as Chicken Toronto Raptor?
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Toronto Raptors as in the NBA basketball team? 
Batter-fried chicken then?
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If it was ‘batter’ then it would be Toronto Blue Jays. But excellent idea - totally wrong.
And the restaurant staff had no idea why the name.
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You mean the government won’t let you take any pictures in the country?
Chicken kebeb?
No pictures can be uploaded or downloaded - I can’t see them in ANY posts.
Chicken Kebab - logical - except kebab is called Kebab here.
Well it must be some kind of a thing. weird. https://www.tiktok.com/discover/How-to-do-the-Toronto-Raptors-chicken-nugget-box
Also, there is a chicken restaurant called raptors chicken in abu dhabi (same longitude, sort of) https://www.instagram.com/raptorschicken
finally, there seems to be this association in some folks minds between chickens and velociraptors - NOT raptors
Ill share this, dont want to go any farther down this rabbit hole https://greenfirefarms.com/indio_gigante.html#:~:text=Greenfire%20Farms%20-%20Indio%20Gigante&text=This%20legendary%20breed%20is%20the,gap%20between%20chicken%20and%20velociraptor.
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I’m picturing chicken feet.?
I have to admit, I know nothing about Turkmenistan; I’m interested to read any reports you manage to dispatch.
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Some type of poultry offal?
Have been without internet, so haven’t responded.
Just left Turkmenistan for Uzbekistan, where Internet is 'allowed". Will respond when I have time.
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Looking at the raptors logo, I think that’s the most creative response.
Visitors to Turkmenistan are REQUIRED to use a guide, so I used his services to enquire about the dish. Turns out the chef knew nothing about the Raptors specifically (although In Turkmenistan, 3-on-3 basketball is the popular version). He just liked the name - which is why Chicken Karamazov Brother is also on the menu!
These dishes are available at Uzum Cafe in Ashgabat - where we actually had the best food of our sojourn.
The Chicken Toronto Raptors dish itself seems to be a local creation. It consists of a Chicken breast base which is flattened (schnitzel?), topped with a mound of what seems to closely resemble the inner contents of ‘Chicken a la King’ (but no pastry) and then the mound is draped with more very thinly sliced chicken breast - the entire dish being roughly (American) football shaped - or possibly resembling a brain, as the two draped pieces have a slight break where they join. This is baked (the bottom is browned) and topped with a Bechamel sauce before serving. To break the white on white, it was garnished with lettuce.
Absolutely no discernible connection to Toronto raptors!
It was actually inoffensive - good quality ingredients, some texture variation - and at about $4 US pretty good value, although still the weakest dish I tried there. Plus they exchanged dollars at the best rate I found anywhere.
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I followed you down that chicken hole. Fascinating! Only lacking the Turkmenistan flag on the countries where they are produced.
Just reading up about Turkmenistan:
You and @FlemSnopes may run into each other inside Uzbekistan…!
Note that article was 2018, the president has changed ‘voluntarily’ since then (in favour of his son).
Still no media of any kind (social or otherwise), and inflation is certainly an issue (which means the US$ is worth maybe 5 times the official rate on the street market).
But the good signs are a multitude of small shops and cafe/restaurants. We didn’t see any overbearing police presence (except around ‘official/Government buildings’).
But I’ll give an overview of the food scene when I have time. I doubt too many readers will need that ‘urgently’.
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Summary of Turkmenistan Food
Note: This is mainly about Ashgabat.
Outside there it was mainly versions of ‘hand-held pies’ such as pasties, samosas, or Samsas/somsas. There were also some softer versions equivalent to dumplings or pierogies.
However, almost everywhere these were round, and larger than their more common equivalents; probably saucer or side plate in size. This led to a more crispy biscuit-like edge, although the centre was softer (or soggier in the wetter versions).
Typically, the choice was ‘meat’ or ‘vegetable’. These may be seasonal, but while we were there the main fillings were minced beef or pumpkin (Asian, not North American).
Both types were mildly spiced but were served with a spiced vinegar that, to my palate, improved both.
Within Ashgabat there was more diversity, although I’m not sure it was the locals that were ‘dining out’. It’s easy to identify tourists - EVERY visitor must have a ‘guide’ - although within Ashgabat this is not enforced - except you can’t enter the country ‘easily’ unless you’ve made advance arrangements [once we had the necessary ‘invitation’, we could arrive early and wander around, although even the duration of that alone time had to be pre-approved]. Most of the ‘non-tourist’ diners seemed (to me) to be Russian - and certainly at Uzum Cafe they had a Cyrillic menu as well as the Latin one.
The main protein was chicken, with a fair amount of beef (steak is quite popular). A few places had lamb (although I never saw any sheep - but many goats). Places clearly cater to vegetarians - most sides are ordered separately - the main exception being rice dishes - and certainly one place boasted “30 different types of rice” but I didn’t enter (ran out of time) so don’t know if it was different types of rice or just 30 rice dishes. Certainly rice is extensively cultivated.
I found the potatoes tastier than in North America (Europeans are used to a wider choice). The fries (ubiquitous) seemed to be made from a potato that resembled a russet, although slightly wetter.
Italian cuisine was widely represented, although the cheese here is pretty mild. I preferred the smoked version. Spicing is definitely more subtle.
A busy restaurant is not always a ‘good thing’. I don’t think many cooks are practiced at multi-tasking, so dishes are cooked sequentially - if it’s busy you’ll wait a long time. And sides come ‘when it’s their turn’ - if somebody else has ordered them, then all ‘fries’ in the queue get cooked together - so you may get your fries long before (or after) your other dish(es) arrive.
But, on the positive side, everything seemed fresh. Clearly, eat what is ‘in season’ - which applies everywhere, not just Turkmenistan.
In particular, the melons were superb - and both plentiful and cheap. Multi varieties, with the most common being a large football (American) shaped musk-melon with a pale green flesh. If there’s a ‘national fruit’ it has to be the apple. A couple of varieties seemed to dominate, but neither showed enough acidity for my taste - different textures, certainly, but lacking flavour balance. Various juices are offered and the cherry was particularly good (although I didn’t see any fresh cherries, so either out-of-season, or imported). The ‘corner stores’ stock many of the snacks familiar world-wide (including the colas and other soft drinks). Chocolate(s) and cookies covered in chocolate were everywhere - although, in the heat, the chocolate melts quickly. One discovery was a sparkling pomegranate drink - imported from Afghanistan.
Realistically, credit cards are useless - either not accepted or, if feasible, make no sense as the ‘official’ exchange rate is 5+ times the street rate.
And limited access to the outside world. Internet exists in places but ALL media sites are blocked/limited. Even if accessible, no pictures can be uploaded or downloaded. I could see the ‘headings’ in emails, but couldn’t open them to read the body of the message.
But locals were friendly and welcomed tourists - we felt safe everywhere, although the streets were eerily empty in the ‘shiny areas’ - to meet the locals, need to visit a market where the locals buy food and essentials (mostly imports).
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