‘We chose Green Bay & we’re happy to be here’: New ethnic restaurant brings Turkish cuisine to Green Bay

ASHWAUBENON, Wis. (WFRV) – A new restaurant that offers a unique menu with a wide variety of exotic and ethnic foods from across the world opened at 940 Hanseb Road in Ashwaubenon on Tuesday.

Istanbul Fish & Seafood’s menu will include Greek, Turkish, and many more dishes. The seafood menu provides an abundance of main dishes, including sauteed squid shrimp, sauteed catfish, and grilled sea bass.

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For as long as he can remember, Fatih Okcu has dreamed of creating a dining experience like the one his new restaurant offers.

“My family has their own restaurants, and they all do the fish and the seafood, explained the owner. “They have been in this business for over thirty, forty years, so if you have a family like that, you will know all the kitchen, and when I came to America, I said maybe I can do one of them here.”

Baklava, semolina, and volcanic desserts, which are special to Middle Eastern cuisine, will all be part of the dessert menu as well.

Okcu said growing up in a family like his and a country like Turkey has given him a love of rich and delicious fish cuisine, so he said he is grateful that his family is here to support him.

“I bring all my team from Turkey and all my family, so we are kind of like a family business because all of the employees that we have are my cousins,” said Okcu. “That’s the good part for me because I haven’t any time to teach people or train the people.”

Okcu also explained that in the Turkish culture, hospitality is the most important thing so his only hope while running his restaurant is that everyone enjoys their food and has no other worries.

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“We are representatives of Middle Eastern food,” he said. The most important thing for us is to make every customer happy. We do not worry about the prices or how much we charge; the most important thing for us is leaving them happy.”

Istanbul Fish & Seafood Restaurant will be open daily from 10 a.m. to midnight. For more information, visit their Instagram or Facebook.

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