Meet Nurdan Gur | Restaurant owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Nurdan Gur and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Nurdan, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
owning your own business means being the captain of your own ship. right actions will take you to your destination successfully, and mistakes can even cause you to sink the ship. Also, a good captain’s crew will be good. Introducing your own country’s food in another country and trying to do it right by analyzing good and bad examples requires serious effort. But the pleasure when you do it right and carry it to a Michelin award like my brand El Turco is priceless.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I own a Michelin awarded Turkish restaurant which was also chosen one of the best 20 restaurants in Miami by Bloomberg.com , voted by Top Chefs of USA. I am proud of it everyday. I am surrounded by a great team of people that helped me to reach this success.
I am also proud of my cuisine and my culture that made it easy for us to achieve this honor. Turkish cuisine is one of the or maybe the best and richest cuisines of the world.
We have a big history of the cuisine and culture.
I started my professional working life in the fashion industry as a senior evecutive in Turkey’s retail giant Demsa. My company Demsa, which has the world’s most luxurious department stores such as Harvey Nichols and Gallery Lafayette.
I worked with very succesful people in the fashion industry many years such as Diane Von Furstenberg, Elie Tahari and Michael Kors personally and this experience thaught me to think more eloberate and global. I managed the operations of hosting them in Turkiye and opening their stores in Istanbul.
I learned to pay attention to fine details when serving my product.
In fact, the dynamics of both sectors are similar. on communication and selling a product and welcoming people. In fashion you sell clothes . First you create them , package them and display them with your personal touches as well as in food business.
How you display and serve and how you package them is important as well as you produce them.

I can say that I get good results in all my works because I am a character who pays attention to fine details. I think paying attention to fine details is one of the main keys to success. The more details you pay attention to, the more you and your business are noticed. The experience and knowledge I have gained throughout my business life laid the groundwork for me to create the El Turco brand that I have today. It is a good achievement to promote Turkish cuisine in a city like Miami, where competition and appreciation of many cultures are high, and to receive an award from an authority like Michelin, recognized and accepted by the whole world, even though it has been a year since it was opened.

My goal right now is to bring Turkish cuisine and hospitality to more people in the world. I want to introduce our famous Turkish hospitality to lot of people and show our wonderful culture and history.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Miami is a place with lots to choose from for every taste. I would choose options according to my friend’s lifestyle. However, there are some places that must be seen. There are many beautiful places for food, sports, art, entertainment, and shopping. Especially wonderful beaches, exquisite walking paths are some of good options. Wynwood walls and art galleries, Perez Art Museum, Artechouse, Vizcaya museum and Garden’s, The Bass Museum of Art, Eden Gallery etc are some of the museums and galleries that must be seen. Little Havana, Little Haiti are places to see with their historical textures, food and visuals. Coral Gables, Coconut Groove’s restaurant options and cultural richness should definitely be visited.
Upper Buena Vista Shopping Mall is a great option for those who want to see bohemian products.
My Michelin awarded Turkish restaurant at Upper Buena Vista, El Turco is a must-try for excellent Turkish breakfast and other delicious Turkish food options.
For those who want to see luxury brands together, Bal Harbour Shopping mall and Design District area are must-see places. There are also fine art galleries and popular restaurants here. For affordable prices The Sawgrass outlet mall is attractive with plenty of options.
Miami is also a hotel destination, so it has hotels that are very different from each other and worth seeing.
Faena Hotel, Standard Hotel, Fontainebleau Hotel are the perfect choices to visit.
Miami has many gastronomic options too.
One of the cuisines that should be tried in Miami, which is under the influence of Cuban culture, is Cuban cuisine.
Little Havana and Coral Gables are the places has many Cuban restaurant and cafes.
This is how my Miami tour goes;)

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Mina Taskiran

Website: elturcoturkishfood.com

Instagram: nrdnyzbsgl

Linkedin: Nurdan Gür Y.

Yelp: Nurdan Y.