Live from Turkey - Part 1

If somebody would have asked me to describe the destination I was about the visit in short on forehand, my description would not have been correct at all. Last Monday I felt like I arrived in an oasis of peace and luxury with an exotic atmosphere like you find in the Caribbean.

Last Monday I arrived in Gloria Hotels & Resorts together with my family, for them it is a holiday. We were welcomed with a delicious cocktail by a large group of people, which implied shaking a lot of hands. The afternoon was dedicated to a tour through the resort which is about 2000 hectare in total. The tour was really impressive. The resort offers a golf course with 45 holes, and at least 15 restaurants which are operated by 1100 employees.

After the tour there was one thing on my mind: this is true luxury. And you get used to it pretty easily. But, unlike my family, I’m here for business reasons. When I woke up on Tuesday morning I realized that I had to start working, although it doesn’t feel like working at all. One of the restaurants, Restaurant Select Villa, located in the middle of the golf courses, organizes a culinary event for the duration of 17 weeks together with Dutch Michelin chefs. This week it is my turn the present my culinary pieces of art to Turkey.

We agreed to meet in the kitchen around noon. After we discussed the menu we visited the freezers and fridges to check the ingredients. Because I’ve been working as a guest chef before, for example during the yearly culinary fair in Hotel Okura Tokyo, I was prepared that the ingredients would we different as we are used to in Holland. You always have to take some time to get used to somebody else’s kitchen. Like I expected, also in Turkey were some surprises. The whipped cream has a completely different fat percentage for example. The potatoes have less starch and the coconut has a very dry structure. When you experience this you realize how lucky we are in Holland. Both the local products and the products we import are of very high quality.

But we will definitely not complain. We are guests, and you sometimes need to improvise when you are working outside of your own kitchen. But I actually see these things as a fun challenge, it makes you creative. So we started working full of enthusiasm with an outside temperature of 36 degrees in the sunshine. Together with 4 Turkish colleagues, using lots of non-verbal communication, I prepared everything for Wednesday. This is the day the Ciel Bleu event starts. What makes this cooperation special is the fact that our Turkish colleagues also see the event as a training week and they are professionals. Everyone is very interested in my unique take on French cuisine and they try to learn from me as much as possible. The Turkish are very proud of the organization they work for, which is beautiful to witness. This pride can be seen in the different areas of the resort, which results in great hospitality.

At this moment I’m going to enjoy my final night off. I’ll be back soon with part 2 of my experiences in Turkey. I’ll describe the visit of the owner of Gloria Hotels & Resorts and the Dutch Embassy of Ankaraven. Of course I will show you some pictures.

Sunny greetings from Turkey,

Onno Kokmeijer