After nearly a decade, one-Michelin-starred Belon opens a new chapter with Mina Güçlüer. The Istanbul-born head chef talks to Stephenie Gee about upholding the restaurant’s legacy while bringing her own vision to the table
Mina Güçlüer was 14 when she first felt the pull of the restaurant world. Born and raised in Istanbul to a Turkish father and German mother, she grew up in a household where food was sacred. Dinner was a time for conversation, connection and, above all, exceptional cooking. Her parents, both avid lovers of dining out, instilled in her a deep appreciation for restaurants from an early age. A concierge for over 40 years, her father would often take the family to some of the city’s finest establishments, not just for the food but for the whole experience – the service, the energy, the respect for craft. It was in those moments that she knew she didn’t want to just eat in restaurants, she wanted to be a part of creating them.
Güçlüer’s first taste of professional cooking came at 15 years old when her parents, sceptical of the glamourised version of kitchen life portrayed on television, encouraged her to stage at Divan, a prestigious hotel in Istanbul. The experience was a reality check, but also a revelation; despite the gruelling hours and intensity, she knew she was exactly where she wanted to be.
But Güçlüer’s journey to the kitchen was not immediate. After completing her high school in Istanbul, she took a leap and headed to Berlin to start her culinary education, where she entered the city’s rigorous dual- system apprenticeship programme, splitting her time between working in professional kitchens and attending culinary school. This hands-on approach to learning cemented her passion.
From there, Güçlüer’s career quickly gained momentum. She refined her craft in some of the world’s most celebrated kitchens, including the three-Michelin- starred Victor’s Fine Dining by Christian Bau and two-starred Horváth in Berlin. “The biggest lessons I learned were about attitude and work ethic,” she recalls. “There are moments in this industry when you just have to put your head down, keep pushing and never settle for ‘good enough’. If a dish isn’t right, it doesn’t leave the kitchen. It’s always better to be honest with a guest and make them wait a few minutes longer than to serve something that isn’t your best. Every guest deserves the same level of care, whether they’re regulars or dining with us for the first time. And every day, you start fresh with new guests and new opportunities to make people happy.”
Driven by ambition and a desire to grow, Güçlüer moved to Hong Kong, first joining the team at then- two-Michelin-starred Amber before making the move to Belon in 2019 as chef de partie. Under the mentorship of chef Matthew Kirkley – with whom she had worked closely with at Amber, developing a shared respect and understanding in the kitchen – she quickly rose through the ranks, pushing the boundaries of her craft and bringing her own refined, elegant touch to the restaurant’s modern French cuisine. Now, as head chef, Güçlüer steps into a new role, determined to uphold Belon’s reputation while shaping its next chapter.
“It’s big shoes to fill. Incredible chefs like Daniel Calvert [now executive chef of Tokyo’s three-Michelin- starred Sézanne] and Matthew Kirkley have left their mark here, and I respect them deeply,” she says. At 29, she is one of the youngest female chefs to helm a fine dining establishment in Hong Kong. “My hope is to honour what they’ve built while bringing in my own experiences and culture. Belon has always been rooted in French tradition, and I want to stay true to that while adding my Mediterranean touch and my own style. Food was sacred in our household, and it still is for me today. I try to bring that sense of connection into the way we cook at Belon. So first and foremost, the food has to taste great. But beyond that, I find myself naturally weaving in flavours and ingredients from my childhood. Those memories are part of who I am, and I want to share them on the plate.”
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Güçlüer’s approach to cooking is rooted in precision and subtlety, creating dishes that are restrained yet deeply complex. She believes in allowing flavours to speak for themselves, with small, thoughtful touches that surprise and delight. Take the brioche beef tartare, a reimagination of the restaurant’s long-standing signature cervelas en brioche (a sophisticated twist on the traditional sausage roll) that reflects the new era of Belon while staying true to its legacy. Beef tartare, made with a luxurious mix of hand-chopped wagyu striploin and fillet, is set over a perfectly golden square of brioche, then dressed with a lime-spiked crème fraîche to counterbalance the richness of the meat and buttery brioche, and finally crowned with a precisely measured mound of shimmering caviar for a briny pop. Or, in a whimsical nod to Güçlüer’s love for citrus and snacks, fluke, aged for a week and cured with salt and sake, is paired with a citrusy sauce of grapefruit, orange, lemon and bergamot steeped with red onion, and finished with airy tempura “Cheetos” dusted in Espelette pepper. There’s also the 14-day aged duck, roasted to tease out a crispy skin, and served with apricots poached in Gewürztraminer – as an ode to her German heritage – and bulgur cooked in chicken stock and thyme.
“They’re classic in spirit but carry flavours that feel very personal to me,” she says. “I find inspiration mostly in the food I love to eat and the flavours I grew up with. Being far from home, I often crave those tastes, so I build on them in the kitchen. I also spend a lot of time with cookbooks. Sometimes a single ingredient or a technique I stumble across can spark an entire dish. Inspiration can come from anywhere – you just have to stay curious!”
Getting everyone in sync with her vision hasn’t been easy. Opened in 2016, Belon has been a stalwart among Hong Kong’s top restaurants for nearly a decade. “Belon has always had a distinct style and a lot of signature dishes that guests love. So finding the balance between respecting that history and introducing my own voice has been the most challenging part,” she says. “It takes time and trust to honour what people expect, but also to show them something new.”
It also takes a good team. Described by Kirkley as both a creator of flavours and a natural leader, Güçlüer brings leadership rooted in example, day in and day out. At 9am, she is always the first to arrive, settling into the quiet kitchen to work on new dishes, sharpen her knives, run the dishwasher, check guest reservations and write out menus. Once the rest of the team is clocked in, dinner prep will start. She doesn’t just supervise; she’s actively involved, beginning with the proteins – breaking up fish, meat, foie gras – then moving to support any sections with whatever they might be behind on. At 5:30pm, everyone will pull out and she’ll go through every element of every dish before service commences at 6pm. Her imprint is evident on every plate that leaves the kitchen. Post-service, after the rush subsides and a big clean down, she’ll review the day’s service and debrief the team before sending them on their way. She’ll stay back to work on emails and other menial tasks.
“I try to lead the way I’ve always wanted to be led by being present for my team and sharing the load when things get tough. I’d never ask someone to do a job I wouldn’t do myself, whether it’s plating on the pass or mopping the floor. By holding myself accountable and to high standards, I hope my team feels motivated to raise theirs too. The team is not built via hierarchy; it’s built based on trust, respect and growing together,” she explains.
Together, she hopes to create a comfortable and approachable space: “I want Belon to be a place where people feel at ease and can settle in and have a great time over great food and wine. Beyond that, I hope guests catch glimpses of my heritage and background in what they eat. Food is such a personal thing, and if people leave Belon feeling not only well fed but also a little more connected, that’s the real vision.”
As for what’s next, Güçlüer says, “For now, it is more ‘what’s better’ than ‘what’s next’. Every day we push to refine, to raise the bar, to make the experience at Belon just a little stronger than the day before. That constant pursuit of better – that’s what’s next.”
