Tan Yifan

cicitan2011@gmail.com

BIROL DINCLI, who claims fruitful achievements in the food and beverage industry, recently quit his well-paying job at a five-star hotel to try and forge his own brand, starting with a steakhouse at Shopping Park Bar Street.

Born in a Turkish city called Mengen, where people are keen to become chefs or work in the hospitality industry, Dincli said his city has the best culinary art school, and he never had a doubt about his career path, even when he was little.

Dincli received professional education in Turkey, France and the United States. He was transferred from Kazakhstan to InterContinental Shenzhen in 2010 and later worked for Marco Polo Shenzhen. He said he became tired of the working mode of the hospitality industry after serving in high-end hotels for 15 years.

“I don’t want to start all over again once I am reassigned to another hotel in another city. I want to settle down to create my own food and find a new challenge,” he said. “While I was working in the hospitality industry here, I realized that the city is the best place for diners. It welcomes various cuisines and it has constant communication with cities like Hong Kong and Macao, which will bring continuous vitality. Besides, there are many potential customers and nobody has done what I want to do.”

“When I first came to Shenzhen, I cried, because the culture, the language and people’s mindsets were totally different. I have to work extremely hard to win people’s respect and to adapt to the environment. Now I understand the culture, the market and the suppliers, I am confident in succeeding here,” he said.

Dincli said he found that people in Shenzhen preferred beef and seafood. They also value a healthy and quality lifestyle.

“Thus, I think restaurants like quality steakhouses will thrive,” he said.

A meat lover himself, Dincli has opened a steakhouse offering mainly beef products along with some signature Turkish lamb dishes. He also decided to introduce dry-aged beef (which must be stored in a special fridge for a couple of weeks to dry) to local customers, even though it may increase the cost of the management.