Gamze Cizreli: You Must Be Passionate About What You Do

BigChefs Founder and Chairman of the Board Gamze Cizreli, who is a very successful example for the sector, and the entrepreneurship story that opened up to the world from Turkey. BigChefs We talked about the brand. Cizreli made special statements to HORECA Trend Publication Coordinator Elif Akın Yüksel…

BigChefs has managed to become an international restaurant chain with tens of branches in Turkey and around the world. What do you think made BigChefs different?

In fact, there are many features that make us different. First, our architecture. We have a structure that tries to offer home warmth to our guests. We try to present that warmth with details such as bookshelves, carpets and fireplaces. Our menu is one of our strengths. There is both a rich selection and a chemistry that combines the local and the global in the same pot. The “think local act global” that we have always advocated shows itself here as well. One of the factors that make us different in our presentations, our presentations, which we diversify according to the country we are in, but have a unique touch, are highly appreciated.

It may not be possible to maintain quality and standards in cafes and restaurants that are growing and branching rapidly. What kind of strategy do you have in BigChefs at this point? How do you manage to maintain quality and standards?

We have established an inspection and training mechanism to maintain quality. First we established an education department, we called it “big talent”. Managers and teams are involved in this program. We have both internal training and external training support. Subjects such as body language, personal development and communication are included in our training.

After giving this training, we continue the audits with the coaches responsible for this training. Our support team from the center is increasing day by day, together with the regional manager and regional chiefs responsible for its supervision and training. We inspect them with routine checks. Including unexpected, unannounced checks. Already, social media is now an important data source for complaints. With our stafino system at the tables, it is possible to create instant communication and solve the guest's problem without leaving the branch.

When it comes to cafes and restaurants, "taste" is one of the most important issues we focus on. One of the sine qua non of a delicious meal is good ingredients. Are you having trouble finding good materials in Turkey? Do you have any problems during the supply phase?

Especially with the pandemic, there were various breaks in the supply chain. Our country is rich and diverse in terms of food. Although we experience supply shortages periodically in some products (procurement of red meat before Eid al-Adha), we do not have a big problem. The issue that we attach the most importance to and that we try to achieve with difficulty and that we strive to get better with each passing day; the issue of the supply of products from female suppliers. Although we experience periodic problems regarding the continuity of the quality of the products we purchase from female suppliers, logistics and actually deadlines, we quickly overcome them with the mentorships we provide.

The quality of personnel in the service sector is also a very important point. In order to improve the experience of customers, the interest and knowledge of service personnel is very important. What are you doing at this point?

BigChefs We provide our employees with a development-oriented working environment that works together for the same purpose, trusts each other, and communicates within the framework of love and respect. We develop sustainable and success-oriented strategies in terms of training and development of personnel with brand and company orientation, corporate culture trainings, communication and guest relations trainings and technical trainings specific to positions. We always prioritize employee happiness.

We convey our own values ​​to our employees through trainings. We train visionary teams that have sectoral awareness in the food and beverage industry and prioritize guest satisfaction. While giving importance to employee experience and development, we embrace values ​​such as customer satisfaction, employee/team training, social benefit, sustainability, local production, women's employment, global vision, innovation, empathy and experience in all our brands and branches. We prioritize team motivation and happiness, and support our employees with the social activities and trainings we organize. In particular, it is not enough for our branch employees to have deep knowledge of the menu. At the same time, communication skills should be developed so that they can meet the expectations of the guest. In this sense, investing in personnel is one of our top priorities.

Cafes and restaurants have become one of the most preferred socializing places in recent years. The menus have changed and diversified. For example, in the past, there were no gluten-free, vegetarian food alternatives on the menus. How have customers' expectations and demands changed since the day you set off?

Environmental factors also change the face of the food and beverage world. Production methods that emit less carbon and produce less waste are increasingly becoming standard. Even guests began to demand smaller portions to avoid waste. This brings waste-sensitive service policies. Vegan and vegetarian options are still very few. 3 percent in Turkey. It is still on the rise in the world, but it still has a long way to go in Turkey. The next generation, millennials and GenZ, will demand more of this diet and this rate will increase in the coming years, but it is still going slowly.

Vegetarian, gluten-free and vegan options have been on our menu for a long time. We update our menu both according to the expectations of our guests and with the principles of sustainability.

You are one of the important successful women entrepreneurs in Turkey. What would you like to say to entrepreneurs who are just at the beginning of the road? What do you think they should and should not do, especially in the service sector?

First of all, I recommend that they do not repeat the existing, it is also critical that they find a brand new and original concept for themselves. They definitely need to be supplying from closer places and geographies in order to be zero waste, sustainable and reduce their carbon footprint. When planning the menus, it is always a plus to plan accordingly. Locality is a very important issue. I recommend them to focus on local and original cuisine. Ethnic cuisines are also very on the rise, they can look into these areas. But above all, you must be passionate about what you do. I do not believe that a brand that you do not add your soul to is sustainable. If you follow the right resources, it will be easier for you to reach the information that is the power of our age. It is very important to follow the current, what the world is doing, and to follow the trends in what direction.

France has an important place in world cuisine. In recent years, Japan has gained a lot of appreciation for its cuisine. Unfortunately, Turkish cuisine is not very well known. What do you think about this? What are our pros and cons?

Turkish cuisine, Turkish gastronomy has become more talked about nationally and internationally in recent years. Even in countries whose cuisine is not as strong as ours for years, the Michelin Guide has been featured in our country, but its arrival to us in the past months is actually a long overdue move. In fact, this should be considered in terms of country policy. “gastro-diplomacy“I strongly believe in the importance of It is important that the country's tourism goes beyond the sea, sand, sun and history and that gastronomy adds added value to tourism income. Unfortunately we are late in this sense, but late is better than nothing. The two most important countries that have achieved this are Peru and Spain. The fact that San Sebastian is the gastronomic center today is the result of the work of the last 2-15 years.

We, the operators, can only give our kitchen justice by working hand in hand with the state and NGOs. Our chefs will go abroad, the state will support them, we will go abroad as brands, there will be incentives. To be known and to be recognized can only go hand in hand as it is.

Source: HORECA Trend