Hüseyin Özer: the founder of Sofra and a London Turkish restaurant pioneer
Hüseyin Özer is the founder of Sofra, a group of Turkish restaurants in central London, whose first restaurant, in Mayfair, dates back to 1981. He arrived in London in 1975 by bus, because he could not afford to fly, and started out working in a döner kebab shop in Mayfair (Wikipedia).
Sofra means a laid table, a fitting name for a business that grew from a döner shop and a run of affordable cafés. Today the group’s website lists Sofra restaurants in Mayfair and Marylebone, alongside a restaurant under his own name, Özer.
Early life and career
Tokat and Ankara
Özer was born in 1949 in a village in Reşadiye, in Tokat province in northern Turkey (Wikipedia). His company’s biography says he taught himself to write, practising with charcoal on walls and rocks, and herded goats as a boy (Sofra).
As a child he was sent to Ankara to earn money, and he worked in a bar there. According to Sofra, he used his first wage to set up an education trust in his own name, the Hüseyin Özer Eğitim Vakfı (Hüseyin Özer Education Foundation).
Istanbul and the journey to London
In 1967 he moved to Istanbul, where he worked as a dishwasher in restaurants (Wikipedia). He found an English tutor and completed his military service, then in 1975 made the journey to London by bus.
Restaurants
The Mayfair döner shop
In London he worked in a döner kebab shop in Mayfair – döner being meat cooked on a vertical rotating spit – and studied English in his spare time. In 1981 he bought the shop and turned it into a restaurant (Wikipedia). Sofra’s own account says the new restaurant drew queues.
Cafés
During an economic downturn he opened cafés serving healthy food at reasonable prices; at times, the company says, customers chose what they paid (Sofra).
Sofra, London
Over the years Özer opened Sofra restaurants in Covent Garden, Mayfair, Regent Street and St John’s Wood, and at one point ran up to 20 cafés and restaurants in London (Wikipedia). Wikipedia notes that his focus in recent years has been on two restaurants, Sofra Mayfair and Sofra St Christopher’s Place, and also lists a Sofra in Karaköy, Istanbul. The group’s website currently gives addresses on South Molton Street and in Shepherd Market, both in Mayfair, and on Oxford Street in Marylebone (Sofra).
Özer
The group also includes Özer, a restaurant bearing his name.
Cooking style and signature dishes
The company describes its food as Middle Eastern with international influences and says it uses only the freshest ingredients. Özer has described the restaurant business as “an art”, and his company biography says he teaches staff to look after every guest without discrimination by race, ethnicity or religion, and to be honest (Sofra).
The restaurants also promote Turkey itself, handing out Turkish tourism brochures to guests (Sofra).
Awards and recognition
- 2011: honorary Doctorate of Letters from the University of Westminster (Wikipedia).
- 2011: Entrepreneur of the Year at the World Food Awards, according to Wikipedia.
- 2007–2008: his Regent Street restaurant was recommended by the Michelin Guide, according to Wikipedia.
- Museum of London: his reflections on the city have been part of an audio presentation at the museum since 2003, according to Sofra.
Books, TV and online
His cookbook, The Sofra Cookbook, was published by HarperCollins in 1998 (Wikipedia), and the company says it is still in print. A Discovery Channel documentary about his life has been shown in around 60 countries, according to Sofra. The restaurants also work with Middlesex University, whose students train with them (Sofra).
Away from the kitchen, Özer has long supported the Turkish-English Chamber of Commerce and has sponsored a London civil society organisation (Sofra).
Where to eat food like this in London
To find Turkish restaurants across the capital, from smart dining rooms to neighbourhood favourites, browse our meze and fine dining and kebab and döner listings, or read our guide to the best Turkish restaurants in London. At home, try our İskender kebab (sliced döner over bread with tomato sauce and yoghurt), red lentil soup or sigara böreği (crisp cheese-filled pastry rolls).
- Gallipoli – Turkish meze & fine dining in Islington & Angel
- Beyzade Turkish Kitchen – Turkish meze & fine dining in Putney
- Ev Restaurant – Turkish meze & fine dining in Borough & Southwark
- Kirvem – Turkish meze & fine dining in London
- Fora City – Turkish meze & fine dining in City of London
- Mangal Meze – Turkish meze & fine dining in Romford
See all 95 Meze & Fine Dining places in London
Quick facts
- Born: 1949, Reşadiye, Tokat province, Turkey
- Came to London: 1975, by bus
- First restaurant: a Mayfair döner shop he bought in 1981
- Known for: founding the Sofra restaurant group
- Book: The Sofra Cookbook (HarperCollins, 1998)
Further reading
Pictured: İskender kebab. Photo: Adriao, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
