Banu Özden

Banu Özden started her career at an Italian restaurant in Boston, MA where she worked as the kitchen manager. She returned to Turkey in 2007 she worked in various prominent establishments and government agencies; researching history of Turkish cuisine, giving lectures and organizing food events and conferences. Her works include a development of the curriculum for professional and amateur culinary programs for a newly established culinary school and a website (www.turkish-cuisine.org) among other things such as attending international food events, holding culinary tours in Istanbul and across Turkey. Ms. Özden participated in various international forums on cuisine, such as the Oxford Symposium on Food and Cookery, Roger Smith Food Conference in NYC and 3rd International Conference on Food History and Culture in Tours, France. She also toured in several cities in United States to give lectures on Culinary Heritage of Turkish Cuisine. She is a regular contributor in local Turkish food magazines.