The main dining room at Taksim
For March, our featured partner is the Turkish fine dining experience, Taksim. Located in San Francisco, Taksim is a restaurant specializing in classic Turkish dishes with a modern twist. We interviewed co-owner, Serkan Sozen to share the story of Taksim and what to expect when you visit. Read on to learn more and be sure to visit Taksim for an exquisite dining experience.
Please introduce yourself and tell us how you ended up in the restaurant world.
My name is Serkan and I’m the Co-Owner of Taksim. When I moved to the US from Turkey 7 years ago, I started out as a busboy to make a living. What I did not expect was that the daily hustle and hospitality of the service industry would inspire me to start my own business. A few years later, I began managing restaurants, including Lokma, which is owned by my current business partners. One day, through a conversation, I shared my dream with them about wanting to start my own business. Together, we missed the authentic flavors of homemade cooking in Turkey, and were inspired to open a restaurant to offer classic Mediterranean flavors through a refined, contemporary approach, and hence — Taksim was born.
What makes Taksim special and different from other restaurants?
Taksim is special because we are offering something that has not been done before. We take classic, traditional home cooking across the Mediterranean, and transform them into modern, refined dishes. One of my favorite dishes at Taksim is our branzino, which comes with an anchovy rice pilaf, also known as hamsili pilav in Turkey. While it is eaten as a comfort food in Turkey, here at Taksim, we pair it with our crispy-skinned branzino and salted sea beans, for a perfect balance of texture and flavor.
Comfort food turned modern: Taksim’s Branzino
How do you approach hospitality and customer service?
We believe strongly that by valuing and supporting our employees, we will be able to offer the best hospitality and customer service. If our employees appreciate their work environment, it will have a positive impact on our customers.
Share one random fact about Taksim.
Taksim is actually the name of a town in Istanbul, which features 19th-century architecture and houses international shopping chains at the same time. Just like our food, it blends the old and the new!
What is your favorite Andytown coffee?
The Papua New Guinea Pataro Gasaki, Drip Grind. I especially like its taste of citrus and hint of sweetness.
Where is Taksim located?
564 4th Street, San Francisco, CA, 94107
What are your socials/website?
