How a Turkish Cafe Creates both Community and Delicious traditional delights.

You’ve heard it before: shop at local businesses. Large business chains are increasingly crowding out smaller, family-owned businesses. This inspires conscious consumers to support individuals’ livelihoods — rather than corporations’ already sizable pockets. However, the ethics of “supporting local” is not just a fight against the monopolization of homogeneity, but for the preservation of community. 

It is rare to visit a restaurant for the first time and immediately feel like a family member in the third-largest city in the United States, but that is exactly what a small cafe in Rogers Park does effortlessly as a natural extension of Turkish culture. 

Tostini opened up in 2019 to share the flavors of Türkiye, specializing in street-style sandwiches and traditional breakfast foods.

A glass of traditional Turkish tea, often served with breakfast. Photo by Lydia Schultz.

Sean (Şahin) Cakir, the owner and founder of Tostini, had always wanted to open a cafe. Though it took 24 years since moving to the United States from Türkiye to make it a reality, chasing after dreams is nothing new for the entrepreneur. 

His first dream came true when Sean Cakir was 19 years old. After growing up watching American media on television and hearing about the American dream, Cakir always knew that he wanted to move to the United States. When the opportunity arose to move to Chicago for college, he took it. 

The trip to Chicago was the first flight Cakir ever took. It was also the first time setting foot in the United States. Cakir arrived knowing only one person from his home city of Trabzon, Türkiye, and limited knowledge of English. Besides his small fear of the language barrier, only pure excitement pumped through Cakir. Equipped with a small handheld English dictionary and indistinguishable enthusiasm, Cakir was ready to create a new life. 

In Turkish, Cakir says there is a figure of speech to describe a person’s fervor that roughly translates to “crazy bravery.” Similarly, his Turkish name, Şahin, means falcon. If language can portray the essence of one’s spirit, a crazy brave falcon is a natural depiction. 

Nineteen-year-old Cakir moved in with his friend from Trabzon and started his undergraduate education at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC). There, he spent two semesters concentrating on finance courses, meeting people from all different cultures and practicing conversational English. His English as Second Language (ESL) professor, in particular, motivated him in his studies, who Cakir compared to his American “Mom figure.” 

Still, without his mother in Türkiye, Cakir had to step into adulthood in other ways — like cooking for himself. 

“You’re over here by yourself. You’re a student. You’re hungry, and you don’t know what to make. All you know how to make (is) eggs,” Cakir describes. “So, I called my mom, ‘How do I make this?’” 

Experimentation in the kitchen, rather than step-by-step instructions, is when Cakir became passionate about cooking. His culinary skills can be attributed to kitchen improvisation; that is, adding his own flavors and trying new creations. 

“The only recipe I strictly follow is baklava,” he said. “I learned the hard way.”

Inspired by childhood memories of his mother and sister’s cooking, the best chefs Cakir knows, he learned how to make his own Turkish comfort foods — such as menemen (a savory egg and tomato dish), köfte plates (meatballs served with rice and vegetables) and even entire traditional Turkish breakfasts (several dishes including small staple plates of olives, cheese and bread, served with Turkish tea or coffee).

A platter of menemen. Photo by Lydia Schultz.

“It reminds me of home,” he said. 

When he was growing up in Trabzon, there were only two restaurants in the city.

“We never had the culture (of) going out to dinner,” Cakir said. 

Instead, his family gathered in the kitchen. Cakir’s family ate canned vegetables for the winter, prepared sujuk (tomato paste) and tarhana (dried vegetable soup), and on weekends, he and his family would enjoy a traditional Turkish breakfast together.

A traditional Turkish breakfast spread of feta cheese, seasoned tomatoes and cucumbers, olives, pita bread, carrots and menemen. Photo by Lydia Schultz.

Community in Türkiye is everything. Close friendship and family, Cakir said, is valued more than in the United States, which is a more individualistic culture. 

“Everybody helps each other out,” Cakir explained. 

After dropping out of UIC to pursue a range of odd jobs — from working at a car wash, hotel and ice cream shop, to selling real estate as a broker and being a rideshare driver on the side — Cakir desired to build his own community in Chicago. 

As he was completing rideshare assignments one day in 2019, Cakir saw a “For Rent” sign on a storefront just a short walk from the Morse CTA Redline stop. 

“I was like, ‘That’s it,’” Cakir recalled. 

Like moving to the United States, Cakir had always dreamed of opening up a cafe; consistent with his spirited determinism, he pushed aside his fears. 

Cakir remembered going back and forth about the decision at first: “Oh-my-God, am I gonna do this?” 

Ultimately, his passion to promote Turkish culture overshadowed any doubts, and with the support from his wife and two sons, Tostini opened up to the public in September of 2019. 

The small cafe prioritizes simple, fresh food. As a self-professed “health freak,” Cakir is committed to home-cooked dishes that are reminiscent of childhood favorites. He also buys locally sourced produce and meat and ensures everything is halal, an Arabic word that indicates the food was prepared according to Islamic guidelines. 

“We’re gonna serve you whatever we feed the kids,” Cakir said.

Cakir stands over a small griddle, frying eggs for menemen. Photo by Lydia Schultz.

Customer Yusuf Kaya found the cafe when he first came to Chicago from Türkiye, and since then, he has been visiting weekly.

Maintaining close relations with customers, as well as with his family in Türkiye, is what brings Cakir the most pride. 

“Food is just a tool,” he said. 

Cakir sits with loyal customer Yusuf Kaya to chat. Kaya described Cakir like a “big brother.” He comes about five days each week, and his go-to sandwich orders are either the Köfte & Potato Tostini or Tostini House. Visiting Cakir at Tostini, he said, is like visiting family. Photo by Lydia Schultz.

Through shared food comes shared culture; bridges between differences are built and communities are created. 

Cakir extends this invitation to all people, regardless of who they are and where they came from. “Our door’s open to anyone.” 

This promise is demonstrated not only through Cakir’s welcoming smile and easy going demeanor, but also by the care he gives to each customer. 

He enjoys making custom off-menu orders for customers who call in advance, even if the profit is not much. 

“Whatever a customer wants … why not?” Cakir said. 

The cafe owner makes it a point to visit his family in Trabzon every summer and occasionally fly his mother out to Chicago. 

But unlike before, Cakir is now the designated cook in the family. 

“I cooked most of the time,” he laughs, referring to his mom’s last visit. “I was like, ‘Mom, I brought you just for the food.’” 

Though to be fair, the entrepreneur has come a long way since just knowing how to cook eggs. With near-perfect ratings on restaurant reviewing platforms, such as Yelp (5/5 stars) and Google Maps (4.9/5 stars), Tostini has successfully cultivated a Turkish-based community. This is yet another dream translated into a lifestyle Cakir loves.

The dreamer typically works alone in the cafe — buying groceries, prepping ingredients in the morning, handling the cash register, cooking the food and serving customers throughout the day. He does all of this and yet never fails to welcome everyone with the same spirit. 

Cakir said that he dreams of one day owning a farm and traveling. Until then, he will continue to do what he loves: building the Tostini family. 

“We’re all gonna die one day. Are we gonna take anything with us?” Cakir mused. “Live your life, travel, enjoy … life is too short.”

Sean Cakil, owner of Tostini, poses in front of the Turkish flag that hangs in the cafe. Photo by Lydia Schultz.

Header by Rafa Villamar