Tastes of Istanbul in Paris

PARIS

Obsessed with the Olympics, I try to follow every game live in my comfy chair at home. At a rare moment when I checked Instagram, I saw a post of a young Turkish chef based in Paris, but currently running a restaurant named Songes at St Rémy de Provence, saying that she was about to leave for Paris for two weeks for an exciting project. She did not reveal any further information. Knowing her closely in person, I bugged her asking what the exciting project was about. She finally gave up and said she would be catering for the receptions at the Istanbul House in Paris. Formerly I have also seen Istanbul’s Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu’s post that they will be having a two-day event on Aug. 7-8, transforming part of Palais Galliera to Istanbul House to promote the city as a potential candidate for 2036 games. Palais Galliera is the Fashion Museum of Paris, a venue heavily visited by top models and celebrities during the Fashion Week, otherwise a popular must-visit monument housing exciting exhibitions throughout the year. Currently, there are two exhibitions, titled “Gabrielle Chanel - Fashion Manifesto” and “Fashion on the Move # 2” — the latter with a theme focusing on the body in movement and the role of special clothing in physical and sports activities, obviously in parallel with the Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Coming back to the young 28-year-old chef, her name is Ecem Karakuş, a graduate of Özyeğin University, Gastronomy and Culinary Arts Department in Istanbul. She has been across the globe since her student years, taking every occasion to work as an apprentice to famed chefs, such as Gaggan in Bangkok and the once-legendary In Situ in San Francisco. In my phone she is recorded as Ecem Heryerde, instead of her surname, with a nickname I call her, meaning she is everywhere. Changing her phone number several times according to the country she’s working, the last one is recorded as Ecem in Paris. Since 2022 she has been based in Paris and worked as a chef in Bleu Bao, and currently running a restaurant in St. Remy de Provence named Songes featuring her own take on Turkish cuisine. The restaurant is owned by the group Recevoir which also runs the restaurant Les Petites Mains which will be open until October in the Palais Galliera. When the Greater Municipality of Istanbul picked the Palais Galliera for the Istanbul House event, the story unfolded when the group suggested Karakuş as a chef, impressed by her bio and performance for the receptions. Informed at the last moment, Karakuş compiled a menu over a sleepless night, totally inspired by the exquisite cuisine of Istanbul.

Now, here I have to give a brief on what Istanbul cuisine stands for. Istanbul is a unique city that has been the cradle of countless cultures throughout history. As the capital of three empires, Istanbul cuisine is a unique blend of flavors, filtered from the depths of history and passed down from generation to generation by diverse cultures being home to multi-ethnic and multi-religious communities that have lived on the same land for centuries. Istanbul has always been like a magnet for traders and the best of the best products always came to the natural harbor of the Golden Horn. It is a known fact that great kitchens always evolve around imperial kitchens and Istanbul cuisine is no exception, but different from other imperial palace kitchens, what was cooked in Topkapı Palace, and later at the Dolmabahçe Palace, was immediately reflected in homes. That is because families of officers working for the palace were also served the food cooked in the palace kitchens, a brigade of cooks providing thousands of meals every single day, sending the meals with an army of carriers to homes.

Previously, I worked on the Istanbul cuisine concept for a restaurant opening in Istanbul, penning also the manifesto, and together with my friends Özge Samancı, a food historian, and Levon Bağıs, a wine expert, we toiled compiling a list of dishes reflecting the culinary heritage of the imperial city that has been home to diverse cultures. Samancı is also very aware of the Parisian gastronomic scene, as did her doctorate at Sorbonne University, on late Ottoman gastronomy. She also happens to be the mentor of Karakuş from her student years, so the link was established instantly. Over a series of discussions late at night, Karakuş came up with a menu with her own interpretations of iconic dishes of Istanbul. Well, this was real news, and as everyone knows, the only secret that a journalist can keep is the one he or she does not know yet. So, inevitably I wrote to my journalist friend Oray Eğin, my dining pal whenever and wherever possible. Eğin also pens restaurant reviews just for his own interest, amusing himself by writing about places he enjoys or grilling harshly chefs he finds overrated. Based in New York, he is currently in Paris for a few months, more focused on food rather than the Olympic games. I just could not resist passing the information to my foodie friend, and as an investigative journalist, he contacted Karakuş at once, even sneaking into the kitchen to have a taste of dishes to be served at the reception. He was astounded by what he tasted, amazed by the choices and by the touches of the young chef, so skillfully executed. As Eğin has already written his scoop article, with his permission, I’ll be quoting his comments on the dishes. Apparently, he particularly liked the tarama, the iconic fish egg meze of Istanbul tables. In his words, he describes the plate: “This might be the best tarama I've ever had. The consistency is perfect, the smoked cod adds a different dimension, and the parsley oil on top gives the perfect freshness. Karakuş swirls the oil around like a marbling pattern. But the real star is the "tagète réglisse" herb, which looks like dill and resembles licorice in taste, with plenty of an aniseed flavor. This herb first fills the palate with anise and then gives a sugar rush. It's like drinking a glass of rakı!” Tarama and rakı are all time companions, a perfect match, so it appears that the chef has hit the target on that. He writes further admitting that swept clean two plates, making the chef offer a jar to take home. He politely refused, fearing that he would gulp the whole lot in one go. Among the dishes the only dish that has a touch of the Australian chef Jared Phillips of Les Petites Mains. It will be his lamb dish, paired with the warm eggplant puree with bechamel and cheese, an influence of French cuisine to Ottoman cuisine. The most courageous attempt of the chef was to make the famed chicken breast pudding, that will make its first debut in Paris. Eğin says, he even liked the poppy seed studded revani, an Ottoman rich cake drenched in syrup, a sweet he normally detests. Topped with a Turkish tea-infused cream with speckles of crushed black tea, it was a triumphal creation. It seems that this will be a great tasting, deserving a gold for Ecem Karakuş, a talent to be recorded for the future!