About
Us
Who We Are? Why Us?
We are a London-based boutique restaurant consultancy that blends field-based insight with academic knowledge. Founded by two professionals who understand and implement every aspect of gastronomy—from kitchen operations to business management, from customer loyalty to operational excellence:
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Strategy from the field: Ezgi brings the corporate brain, Serhat brings the operational pulse.
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Practical solutions: We don’t offer PowerPoint presentations—we deliver grounded systems.
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Training & follow-up: We don’t just “tell” — we teach, implement, and re-measure.
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Belief in simplicity: We don’t promise Michelin stars—we focus on customer return and team retention.
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Local and realistic: As a team that understands the dynamics of mid-range establishments, we speak your language.
How It All Started
Gastro Heroes is a London-based boutique restaurant consultancy blending field insights with academic expertise.
Dynamic and results-driven Executive Head Chef, General Manager, Restaurant consultant with over 20 years of international
experience across all facets of restaurant operations.
My expertise spans Mediterranean, Turkish, Middle Eastern, Italian, American and British cuisines, Classic Pub food, seafood, steakhouse, sushi, mezze, and open-fire cooking techniques. I have played a key role in turnkey restaurant openings, including four in London, overseeing concept development, team recruitment, menu creation, and operational efficiency.
Operational Optimization, Expert in analysing workflows, identifying bottlenecks, and implementing streamlined solutions to
enhance kitchen efficiency.
Co-Founder | Executive Head Chef & Operations Consultant
M. Serhat Saatçı
With over 20 years of experience spanning from Istanbul to London, Serhat has worked as an executive chef and consultant across a wide range of establishments—from fine dining restaurants to chain brands, ghost kitchens to pub kitchens.
A graduate of Istanbul University (Business Administration) and Yeditepe University (MBA), Serhat is as experienced in business strategy as he is in the kitchen.
He has successfully led the launch and full setup of four different restaurants in London, managed openings for brands such as Nova and Mada, and overseen teams of hundreds.
Serhat doesn’t rely on theory—he speaks the language of the field. In every kitchen, he “first catches the scent, then builds the operation.” His consultancy is hands-on, covering everything from menu engineering and cost control to hygiene audits and staff training.
🔧 Areas of Expertise:
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Process and time optimisation within the kitchen
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Menu design and cost engineering
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HACCP-compliant audit systems
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Staff training and team management
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Ghost kitchen and delivery model transformations
Co-Founder | Strategy & Systems Consultant
Ezgi Yıldırım Saatçı
Ezgi is a business development consultant with over 20 years of experience in academia, entrepreneurship, and strategic management. She has taught at UCL, Oxford, and BPP University in the UK, and holds a PhD in Management. She has supervised numerous master's and doctoral theses and led international projects in areas such as social entrepreneurship, corporate restructuring, digital transformation, and strategic planning.
Ezgi approaches restaurants not just with the question of “what should we serve?” but with often overlooked yet crucial questions like “how can we improve processes?”, “how do we scale the team?”, and “why aren’t customers returning?”
She lectures at MBA level at BPP University and has provided strategic consultancy to numerous SMEs and large-scale enterprises across the UK.
📊 Areas of Expertise:
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Process and organisational structure development
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Customer satisfaction measurement systems
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Brand loyalty and customer retention programs
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Training design and employee development systems
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Cost control and strategic mapping using the Balanced Scorecard