When Cockscomb shut down last October, it was an extremely worrying sign. Covid cases were skyrocketing again and fewer and fewer restaurants were able to endure the pressures put upon them by the lockdowns. But when even celebrity chef Chris Cosentino was forced to close the doors of his incredibly popular restaurant, Cockscomb, it became a symbol of the incredibly difficult times we were facing.
Since October, the space has remained vacant – a dark reminder of the many losses suffered last year. Locals wondered when they would see the space once again flourishing with new life, but the lights remained off for nearly a year.
Thankfully, things are about to change. According to a DPH referral uncovered by What Now San Francisco, a brand new Turkish restaurant will be replacing Cockscomb at 564 4th Street. The new restaurant, Taksim, will owned by Chef Emre Kabayel and Neslihan Demirtas.
Kabayel, who was born and raised in Turkey, first moved to San Francisco in 2013 to pursue a career in electrical engineering. When he moved though, he fell in love with the local food scene after working at Kitchen Istanbul and discovered that he had a natural aptitude for working in the restaurant business. When an opportunity that was too good to pass up presented itself to Emre, he seized it immediately and got to work opening up his very first restaurant – Lokma.
Lokma, which is Turkish for “bite”, launched in 2018 and quickly cultivated a positive word-of-mouth reputation. Serving up Turkish/Californian Mediterranean fare, Lokma’s meals were light and delicious – exactly what people were looking for.
Now it appears that Emre and Neslihan will be launching Taksim as a sister restaurant to Lokma, which is more oriented towards brunch and breakfast options. Named for an important public square in Istanbul, Taksim is expected to serve up authentic Turkish meals. No word has been given as to when Taksim is expected to open, but Lokma will remain operational should any curious readers want to try it out.
