DJ set
ERHAN KOSTEPEN • Doya
WORK • Thursday Routine
ERHAN KOSTEPEN • chef-partner • Doya
Neighborhood you work in: Wynwood
Neighborhood you live in: Downtown
It’s Thursday morning. What’s the scene at your workplace?
We just received our new Doya plates. About a year ago I hired a boutique plate manufacturer in Turkey, and they’re making about 5,000 of them. All handmade, one by one from the soil, in different shades. We received them last night. We put a lot of love into what we do here — it’s the same with the furniture custom-made in Turkey. When it all comes together, it makes a huge difference.
What’s on the agenda for today?
After I finish up with orders, I have two meetings. Then around 230p I go inside the kitchen to make a couple of specials, eggplant and meatballs, which I’ll cook over charcoal, and, in the oven, branzino wrapped in greens we import from Greece, with cheese.
Tonight’s my DJ night, so I’m done cooking by 6p. I have my staff meeting, then my pre-shift meeting with the kitchen. Then around 7-730p I get in the DJ booth and play 80s and 90s hits. I’ve got a lot of friends coming tonight, so it’s fun.
Any restaurant plans today, tonight, this weekend?
When I go to bars, I try to go as local as possible. I love Dante’s HiFi. I have a couple of restaurants I like to go to on Mondays and Tuesdays when I’m off. Ossobuco is beautiful and has great cocktails. I’m also going a lot to the Moxy Hotel in Wynwood.
How about a little leisure or culture?
I like art a lot. Being a chef, plating your recipes is art, so when I go around the neighborhood and see different artists putting up artwork, I’m influenced. I try to see the galleries in Wynwood and the Design District. I also like the museums, like the Rubell Museum and Superblue.
Any weekend getaways?
If I have three to four days, my number one place to go is Costa Rica. Amor Arenal is one of the best hotels in the Americas — it’s this beautiful boutique hotel with only 20 villas and a private pool next to a volcano. If I have only two days and I don’t want to fly, I like the Keys and Key West. They’ve got great restaurants – Santiago’s Bodega is beautiful for Spanish tapas. Louie’s Backyard for Sunday brunch. I love all the Irish pubs and the bars and just hanging out on the street having some Key Lime pie.
What was your last great vacation?
Every year in the first two weeks of September, I go to Thailand, Japan, and the Far East. I’ve been doing it the last dozen years; it’s my two weeks I’m away from everything. I have a lot of chef friends over there and we do a lot of cooking together and have a lot of street food, especially in Bangkok. Then we’ll go to bars, a bunch of the 50 Best Bars like BKK Social and Bar Us.