After years of dedication, some chefs may finally achieve to get three Michelin Stars and become globally celebrated. It is undoubtedly a long and challenging path. But what made Chef Ulaş Durmaz say at the 2024 Michelin Awards ceremony, “I wouldn’t be so happy if I got one star!” was the fact that he knew he had many more years ahead of him to earn a star, but it was he who walked off the stage with the 2024 Michelin Young Chef Award. He knew that it was the opportunity of a lifetime.
This award is given by the Michelin Guide to encourage chefs who performs exceptionally well despite their young age, and Ulaş Durmaz, as a winner of the award at the age of 24, comes from a family of chefs. The chef, whose grandfather and father are both chefs and run their restaurants, says he loved being in the kitchen as a child, preferring to watch cooking videos rather than cartoons. He also admits, “Neither my grandfather nor my father would ever let me be in the kitchen. Knowing how difficult the work was, I often ran away when I saw them. But the kitchen was always calling me, and I was always very interested in cooking. After all, I was a child who grown up ‘playing chef’ with chopping newspapers into pots!”
Contrary to expectations, Chef Ulaş Durmaz didn’t begin his culinary journey in the family restaurants. Instead, he started working as a dishwasher in a hotel at the age of 14-15, but the chefs who saw his culinary curiosity directed him toward cooking. Unable to resist the call of the kitchen, he began his studies at Ayvalık Vocational High School. Chef Ulaş remembers his first “creative” dish: “One day, at the Feast of Sacrifice, I fried liver with scallions and pickled cucumber and served it as a sandwich. The flavors didn’t match at all, but I still think that the idea was good!”
Plates like these reflect Chef Ulaş Durmaz’s deep respect for his ingredients and his fearless approach to experimentation. Like many others, Chef Durmaz is aware that we can no longer ignore sustainability and local cycles of production and consumption, and we must reduce our carbon footprint. Taking action to align his kitchen with these principles, he began planting in a nearby orchard, supplying some of The Red Balloon’s ingredients directly. Additionally, the vegetable waste from his kitchen is transformed into compost at Damlıca Farm, a key supplier of his ingredients. In this way, the fruits and vegetables produced in İstanbul are consumed in İstanbul, and their waste is returned to the soil in the form of compost as nourishment for future crops. This is a model of production that we would like to see in all of today’s kitchens.
As his award proves, Chef Ulaş Durmaz is an exceptional chef and we will probably be hearing more about him in the future. For those who want to experience the creativity of this rising culinary star and perhaps proudly say, “I’ve followed him since the beginning,” a visit to The Red Balloon is a must. Please note that the restaurant is closed on Sundays and Mondays. On the other days, it is open for dinner after 17.30.
Hero image: Chef Ulaş Durmaz, The Red Balloon // © Emre Başak / The Red Balloon
