Arda Türkmen: the TV cook and restaurateur behind Arda’nın Mutfağı
Arda Türkmen is an Istanbul cook and restaurateur best known for Arda’nın Mutfağı (Arda’s Kitchen), the television cookery show he has presented since 2010. It began on CNN Türk and is now on Kanal D, and the episodes posted on the show’s website in autumn 2026 are labelled season 17. Alongside the show he has run a catering company and opened several restaurants in Istanbul.
His route into food was not the usual one. He studied business and performing arts, spent his twenties organising concerts and events, and set up a catering company before opening his first restaurant. On the show, everyday Turkish dishes such as hünkar beğendi and ezogelin soup sit alongside a shepherd’s pie or a lemon tiramisu, all with the written recipe a click away.
Early life and career
Education and events
Türkmen was born in Istanbul in 1975. According to his official website, he graduated from Saint Benoît, a French-language high school in Istanbul, in 1994, and from Istanbul Bilgi University in 1999 with a degree in business administration taught in English, adding a second major in stage and performing arts in 2001.
Between 1995 and 2000 he organised more than 350 university tours and over 100 concerts, and from 1998 to 2000 he ran A-Bar on Uludağ. From 2001 to 2003 he held management roles on concert, production and event projects.
Catering
In 2003 he founded Roka Davet, a catering company, which he ran until he sold it in April 2012 (Arda’nın Mutfağı). Five years after founding it, he opened his first restaurant.
Restaurants
11 Leblon, Asmalımescit, Istanbul
His first restaurant, 11 Leblon, opened in 2008 in Asmalımescit. His biography notes that it hosted the film Issız Adam. It closed in 2013.
Forneria, Karaköy, Istanbul
After closing 11 Leblon, he opened Forneria in Karaköy in 2013 (Arda Türkmen).
Mükellef, Karaköy, Istanbul
Mükellef followed in 2015. It is on Maliye Caddesi in Karaköy and describes itself as a meyhane, restaurant and breakfast place – a meyhane being the Turkish tavern where meze (small cold and hot dishes) are shared over rakı.
Central
In 2016 he opened Central, which his biography says brought him to three restaurants at the same time.
Cooking style and signature dishes
Türkmen cooks for home kitchens. The recipe sections on ardaninmutfagi.com run from soups, meat, fish and chicken to salads and desserts, and each video on the site links to a written recipe and ingredient list. The mix is broad. On the Arda’nın Mutfağı YouTube channel he makes hünkar beğendi (lamb stew on a smoky aubergine and cheese purée), and a Ramadan edition, Arda’nın Ramazan Mutfağı, has covered ezogelin çorbası, the red lentil and bulgur soup.
The episodes from season 17 posted in October and November 2026 show the same range:
- Zeytinyağlı vişneli pancar – beetroot cooked in olive oil with sour cherries, with goat’s cheese and red onion (Arda’nın Mutfağı). Zeytinyağlı is the Turkish family of vegetable dishes cooked in olive oil.
- Yanık domatesli pilav – rice with charred tomatoes.
- Kuru üzümlü havuç tarator – carrot tarator, a garlicky dip, with raisins.
- Tavuklu arpa şehriye risotto – a risotto made with orzo-shaped arpa şehriye and chicken.
- Cevapcici köfte – Balkan-style grilled meatballs of beef and lamb mince, with kaymak (clotted cream) and pide also featuring (Arda’nın Mutfağı).
- Shepherd’s pie, lemon tiramisu and chocolate fondant – proof that the show is not only about Turkish food.
Books, TV and online
- Arda’nın Mutfağı on TV – first broadcast on CNN Türk in 2010; his personal website also mentions seasons on Tv8, and the show’s own biography says it continues on Kanal D. It is produced by PERA İletişim.
- Newspaper and magazine columns – in 2012 he started an Arda’nın Mutfağı column in Sabah and began writing recipes and food features for La Cucina Italiana; in 2013 he moved his column to the Sunday supplement of Hürriyet (Arda’nın Mutfağı).
- Online – recipes and episodes on ardaninmutfagi.com and the show’s YouTube channel. The site also carries his own travel diaries, including a Mont Blanc climb in July 2019.
- Velotürk – outside the kitchen, he co-founded this bicycle project with five friends; it has given 2,600 bicycles to primary school children around Turkey.
Watch
Arda Türkmen makes hünkar beğendi in this video from the Arda’nın Mutfağı YouTube channel (in Turkish, but easy to follow).
Where to eat food like this in London
For the meyhane side of his cooking, browse our meyhane listings and meze restaurants; for a long Turkish breakfast, see our Turkish breakfast listings and our guide to Turkish breakfast in London. At home, start with our hünkar beğendi, ezogelin soup or ızgara köfte (grilled meatballs).
- The Midyeci – Turkish meyhane in Dalston & Stoke Newington
- Meyhane Tottenham – Turkish meyhane in Tottenham
- Sarıyer Balık – Turkish meyhane in Newington Green
- Akşam Güneşi Meze Bar – Turkish meyhane in Edmonton
See all 4 Meyhane (Rakı & Meze) places in London
Quick facts
- Born: 1975, Istanbul
- Studied: business administration and stage and performing arts, Istanbul Bilgi University
- TV: Arda’nın Mutfağı, since 2010 (CNN Türk, now Kanal D)
- Restaurants: 11 Leblon (2008–2013), Forneria (2013), Mükellef (2015), Central (2016)
- Columns: Sabah, Hürriyet and La Cucina Italiana
Further reading
- Arda Türkmen – official website
- Arda Türkmen kimdir? – Arda’nın Mutfağı (Turkish)
- Arda’nın Mutfağı recipe videos
- Mükellef Karaköy
Pictured: ezogelin soup. Photo: E4024, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
