Born in Istanbul in 1985, Chef Fatih Tutak has spent the best part of his career to date outside Turkey, working in some of the most globally renowned restaurants.
He attributes his career choice to the feeling of pleasure and joy that his mother’s delicious cooking brought to the family table. This in turn led him straight to culinary college in Mengen – a town in Bolu Province on the main road between Istanbul and the capital, Ankara – and famous throughout Turkey for training the finest chefs in the country.
After working his apprenticeship in some of the country’s best hotels and restaurants, including the Ritz-Carlton Cam in Istanbul under Paul Pairet and his avant-garde approach to cuisine, his focus turned east. Until that point, for all he had learned and honed as a young chef, Fatih began to view gastronomy through a global lense. Knowing very little about the great cuisines of SE Asia, China and Japan, he left his native Turkey and headed east. He hoped that by immersing himself in other cultures outside his professional comfort zone, he could refine his own definition and understanding of gastronomy, while further developing his skill as a chef.
A culinary odyssey followed through the kitchens of China’s great port cities of Qingdao and Beijing and the island city-state of Singapore. During this time, his drive and evident talent earned him first a four-month stagiaire in Tokyo under Seiji Yamamoto at 3 Michelin starred Nihonryori Ryugin and then to Copenhagen at 2 Michelin starred Noma under Rene Redzepi, before returning east again to Hong Kong. By now, as he built on the techniques and skills he so desired as a chef, he began to understand the immense part culture and history had to play in gastronomy.
A move to Thailand was next in 2015, opening The Dining Room of The House of Sathorn in Bangkok as Head Chef. In just two years he had become Director of Culinary Operations and led his talented team to international accreditation, both in Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants (No.36 in 2017) and a Michelin plate in the Thailand Guide 2018-19.
It was here that circumstance would play a pivotal role in his career. During the development of a private dinner for an expat Turkish guest, Fatih created a dish he called ‘From my Mom’, which was his take on the Turkish dumpling, manti. The guest’s emotional response to that dish, made him realise just how important it had now become for him to further explore the food from his home country and look at it with a fresh perspective. He developed an entire menu ‘Innovative Turkish Cuisine’ and introduced it to The Dining Room.
In contemplating this new perspective, it became clear to Fatih that to really understand Turkish food, both for him and as a concept, he had to become close to it again and surround himself with the produce from its land. He returned home in February 2019. “I needed to smell, touch and feel the real Turkey; to be part of the people again – the only way to feed my mind and heart was to go back”.
Turkey is a land uniquely placed. Sitting astride two great continents, Europe and Asia, it boasts an ancient history from antiquity and the spice routes, to a multiplicity of culture from its different communities. This coupled with the diversity of its land and native produce, meant Fatih was able to pull on many inspirations. With the depth of experience he had now gained, he was able to thread together all the strands that make up Turkish food culture and envision a new culinary landscape.
He started looking to source traditional ingredients that have fallen out of favour, even with locals for example: he has dry-aged meat from a native duck that took him back to Ottoman history for inspiration. He also began to reimagine entire dishes, such as beef kavurma, using an open fire and oven to create a depth of flavour through longer cooking times, rather than traditional frying. He added playful touches to classic flavour combinations, such as lamb, freekeh and yoghurt. Working closely with farmers, fishermen and spice dealers, Fatih started to weave a story through the food – “A dish must touch the heart,” he explains, “so I had to respect that and leave alone those everyone had eaten since childhood. That meant starting from scratch – to focus in on the ingredients themselves using the techniques we have now, while referencing the old ones and creating something unique.”
He opened TURK Fatih Tutak in December 2019. The opening of his restaurant is not only a return to his home city, but also an exploration into the history and understanding of his own cultural heritage, memories and the nostalgic journey into why he became a chef in the first place.
Fatih’s cooking is not to reproduce what has been done before, but to research, explore and be inventive. He expresses the same limitless passion within the boundaries of respect, creating refined reinterpretations of traditional flavours and building a new language in Turkish cuisine.
What is your speciality as a chef?
New Turkish Cuisine. My goal is to progress Turkish cuisine and explore areas that I have never been to before.
What do you think is going to be the next big thing in the food world?
Vegan and vegetarian cuisine will be the next big thing by necessity. I think people will try to be healthier and choose what they eat more carefully. I love cooking with vegetables; they are fun to play around with when discovering their true character. I hope to see Turkish food being viewed in a new light as a trend too. Turkey will show the world that their incredible products, ingredients, and culture are more than just what they think they know.
How do you balance between creativity, passion for food and cooking, and running a restaurant? And which part of running a restaurant is most challenging for you?
If you don’t have a passion for cooking, you cannot be creative; if you don’t have this tool, you cannot run a restaurant. These go hand in hand.
I have many challenges in the restaurant, but the biggest challenge is people. Everyone is so different. We have to create a friendly working environment for everyone. We want everyone to have the same quality of life at work and passion too. My team understands we are working towards one goal together. I never worry because I trust them. I like to think I’m a good teacher.
What sets good chefs apart from great chefs?
A good chef is a master and someone who leads his team and runs the business, doing his job daily. A great chef is a person who carries a lot of responsibility for others, for his employees, their future and the future of gastronomy. They have to not only be a chef but a mentor and game-changer.
What is your philosophy on food and dining?
I always cook with massive respect for the ingredients. My approach is very product-based, using local ingredients to inspire me. My kitchen staff must understand this. We need to research our ingredients to use them at their optimal point. I call it “Cooking with Time”, meaning that timing is everything – so should we be using that product now or next season? Do we cook it, pickle it, smoke it, age it? Time dictates how we approach the all-important ingredient. All my global experiences have impacted my current style. I respect the traditions and culture of Turkey and feel that they inspire me and teach me. However, I must also use these to drive my country’s cuisine forward! As a nation, we can’t stand still. Our flavours are clear, refined, yet intense. We try to show our deep culture and heritage at TURK.
What advice do you have for young chefs who are just getting started?
Based on my life experience, ‘don’t give up’. As a chef, I’ve always been born from my breaking point. It’s a difficult life, and you must have a target goal to achieve, and you should always dream big.
TURK is a homecoming for Chef Fatih Tutak – looking towards the future by deeply respecting the past. It is a restaurant that embodies the journey of its talented chef and subsequently one of Turkey itself. Through his in-depth research of historical and traditional cooking techniques, Fatih showcases a clear understanding of Turkey’s finest produce, creating dishes with playful imagination.
The menu is À La Carte, divided into four sections and although it changes daily, there are key dishes and ingredients that feature. The tarhana for example – a soup traditionally made from fermented grains and dairy, but here reinvented using wild native mushrooms found 40 km from the restaurant. TURK brings together east and west, the past and the possibility of the future and reflects the exciting duality that is Turkey and its culinary culture.
The interior of TURK is one of elegant warmth: a space to feel relaxed whilst surrounded by the finest in contemporary design – from bespoke ceramics and furniture, to evocative artwork. Designed with simplicity and clean lines throughout, guests are immersed by the same craftsmanship that defines the very heart of Turkish culture. Its large open kitchen and fire offer an ambiance of immediate escapism from the city outside, immersing guests in the atmosphere of cooking; from up-close-to-the-action, at-counter dining, to the calmer setting of the main room.
From the point of reservation, guests are treated to true Turkish hospitality, of being invited into one’s home.
