Süreyya Üzmez, a retired military officer, has been interested in gastronomy for many years. He opened Trilye after working as the Head of Social Services in the Turkish General Staff for 10 years, and has managed to turn Trilye into a world-famous restaurant, extending beyond the limits of Turkey. He can often be found travelling the world to discover new gastronomy trends in the world and to keep himself up-to-date.
As Trilye began to gain domestic and international attention, he decided to share his expertise and experience with the public through articles and publications. With this in mind, he now publishes the quarterly gusto magazine, Trilye. Gourmet-author Süreyya Üzmez also pens a column for the Milliyet Newspaper’s Cadde Supplement entitled “Route of Flavors” on Mondays.
He has also produced and hosted a TV program called “Fish Tastes Best in Ankara” on TRT HD between 2011 and 2012, and between 2013 and 2014 he hosted “Turkish Chefs of the World Cuisine” on TRT Turk.
Since 2016, he has been sharing tips about seasonal fish and easy recipes every Sunday on FOX TV’s “Merve Yıldırım ile Benden Söylemesi”.
A member of the Turkish Culinary Professionals Association, the Turkish Association of Tourism Investors, Chaine des Rotisseurs and TURYAK Senior Council, Süreyya Üzmez has written three books to date, entitled “Trilye’s Passion for Fish”, “Trilye’s Journey of Appetizers” and “What’s on Trilye’s Hook?”
He is currently working on the “Blue Home” campaign, aimed at preventing off-season and illegal fishing, as well as increasing the consumption of fish among the public as the source of the highest quality animal protein.