On February 11, a truly diverse group of RC alumni ranging from 1960 to 2016 graduates, with all sorts of professional and personal interests, came together at RC ’90 alumnae Sanem Alkan’s home in Los Gatos.   RC ’04 alumnus Sayat Ozyilmaz, our school's only professional chef alumni as far as we know, prepared delicious appetizers while entertaining guests in the kitchen. Coincidentally, two alumni from Florida and Washington D.C. were visiting the Bay Area and could join the evening as well.

Besides toasting to existing and new friendships, we celebrated a great milestone for our chef at this event:  As you may have read in past RC Quarterly articles, Sayat and Laura have been telling the story of "an Istanbul that could have been" through their ticketed pop-up dinners inspired by the cuisines of the various regions that the Ottoman Empire had influence over.  With that perspective, this chef duo is in the process of creating an unprecedented fine casual dining model to disrupt the traditional casual guest experience. Their food will be vegetable-forward, health-conscious, yet decadent, and inspired by the Eastern Mediterranean with California sensibility.  

As Bay Area residents, we are grateful for our regular access to Sayat and Laura’s delicious cooking. We hope many other RC alumni can visit SF Bay and experience the same.