The connection of cultural identity and interior design in restaurants, a proposal of a restaurant model reflecting the Turkish culture

It is a modern and cultural phenomenon that people increasingly go to restaurants to save time or have a pleasant time by socializing. Globalization and increases in income have both increased the number of restaurants around the world and many types of cuisines and restaurants that appeal to different tastes have emerged. Recently, Turkish cuisine has come to the fore in the category of "World cuisines", which is used to describe foreign food cultures. However, it is a fact that the Turkish restaurants are far from reflecting the characteristics and richness of Turkish culture. Nevertheless, it is widely accepted that restaurants offering world cuisines should not only offer their guests the pleasure of food, but also contribute to the promotion of the country by increasing the interest in the culture, history and tourism of the country. Anatolian Seljuks, who managed to develop a cultural influence unique to Anatolia constitute the distinctive element of Turkish culture. It is possible that Turkish restaurants, inspired by Anatolian culture and architecture, contribute significantly to the promotion of Türkiye and its culture by reflecting its cultural background. This thesis has been prepared as a suggestion on how the spatial structure of a Turkish restaurant aiming to reflect the Turkish culture should be, the distinctive features that should be present in the interior, the materials to be used on the surfaces, the lighting, the colours used, the mobile and fixed furniture and other criteria that create the space. In the conclusion part of the study, there are determinations regarding the elements that should be highlighted by interior architects during the design phase of a Turkish restaurant.