Ahu Hettema

The Path

University of California, Berkeley gave Ahu Hettema a framework of discipline and rigor that shows up in the work itself: measured execution, careful editing, and a clear point of view. In 2025, she served as Culinary Artist-in-Residence at Shangri La Museum of Islamic Art, Culture & Design in Hawaii, placing her cooking in direct conversation with place, heritage, and the cultural meanings carried by food. Istanbul Hawai‘i is the current form of that work, with Ahu Hettema as owner and Executive Chef. The restaurant functions as the clearest expression of the culinary identity she has built over time, where memory, technique, and hospitality are handled as one practice rather than separate concerns.

The Work Today

At Istanbul Hawai‘i, the cooking is grounded in Turkey and the Mediterranean, while also drawing on childhood memory and the experience of being welcomed into a home. That matters to the way the food reads at the table: it is not framed as an abstract technique display, but as a cuisine shaped by lived experience and carried with intent. Ownership and the kitchen floor sit in the same hands here. As owner, Ahu Hettema holds the practical and creative responsibilities of the business; as executive chef, she defines its flavor and structure. Those roles meet in a Honolulu restaurant built around personal memory rather than distance, with hospitality doing as much of the work as the menu.

Signature

Ahu Hettema’s signature dishes include manti, Turkish Delight, kunefe, and Sultan's Table. The range tells you what the kitchen is doing: savory and sweet, familiar and ceremonial, and rooted in tradition without being separated from her own voice.

In Their Words “We see this place as a home and that's what we want guests to feel when they come here.” “I am sharing my culture and feelings through food.”