Zulal Rogers is a chef with a deep love for showcasing Turkish cuisine. Her latest venture is a restaurant at Platform 3095 in Eltham called Zul’s Turkish Kitchen. She spoke with Tom Ingleton about food, life and the community.
What’s your connection to Whittlesea?
My Whittlesea connection started via a longtime customer and friend who had been to my previous classes. She runs the Whittlesea Hub and asked me to do some work with them and cater the International Women’s Day dinner at the library. It was a lovely experience—meeting and working with some incredibly committed people. Their insights, their facilities, and how much community work they do was inspiring.
What do you like about where you live?
I live in a beautiful part of Eltham and am so lucky to have almost a city of bird life sing and visit every morning. Plus, our surrounding wildlife is treasured.
What, if anything, would you change about where you live?
I wouldn’t change anything about where I live. It’s peaceful and inspiring and so close to even more wonderful towns and communities.
Where is your favourite local place to spend time?
My friends tend to come to my home or my new restaurant for catch-ups. I’ve always loved to cook for family and friends and my businesses have always been an extension of that love and passion. Now, my latest venture—Zul’s Turkish Kitchen at Platform 3095 in Eltham—has brought it all together and allows me to showcase my Turkish food passion. But I do love going to good Vietnamese places in Box Hill or Turkish/Lebanese places on Sydney Road too.
Tell us something people would be surprised to know about you.
I talk to my birds—and my beautiful cat is called Baba Ghannoush!
What does Turkish cooking mean to you?
My Turkish food means family, love, happiness and childhood memories. I love that the flavours can be mild or ramped up with extra spiciness using chilli or pul biber, but they’re always delicious.
My best menu item in my original café was my Turkish eggs, which I created from memories of my dad making our breakfast — sautéed spinach with eggs cracked on top, finished with feta. Simple, special ingredients served with love. Add chilli and sucuk, and you have a taste sensation.
I’ve always loved learning from my mum and her friends. My baklava recipe comes from years of practice and perfecting, thanks to their inspiration. My cooking is about love: love for delicious cuisine, for the history of the dishes—like Imam Bayildi, which means ‘The Swooning Sultan’. The story goes that the Sultan demanded a delicious meal or else… and when the chefs presented him with this dish, he loved it so much he fainted!
Last year I visited the palace kitchens in Istanbul and found it even more inspiring and fascinating. So basically, my love of food, my family, my friends—and being able to showcase that love on a plate—is everything. Knowing people leave happy is what makes it all worth it.
What’s the local support been like for your work?
Overall, the community has been very supportive. For the past 25 years, I’ve worked hard to serve home-style Turkish food, catered numerous private functions and community events with councils, and taught many cooking classes—in libraries, living and learning centres, private homes and my original Café Z.
It’s been very humbling to have so many customers over the years follow me to my latest business. I love what I do, and I love even more sharing it with my community.
