CityView Magazine

32 | March/April 2018 F O O D Kitchen Magicians BY JAMES JOHNSON AND CATHERINE PRITCHARD What makes good food great? e ingredients, the recipes – and the people who put it all together. Here, four local women who make their living creating tasty things for the rest of us to eat offer some insights into their cras – and some tips. (Plus, two recipes!) Erin Somar General manager and chef at Sherefé, 114 Gillespie St., Fayetteville What to expect at Sherefé: is downtown restaurant, whose name means "Cheers!" in Turkish, serves upscale Mediterranean fare in an elegant setting. In addition to lunch and dinner, patrons can be entertained on Fourth Fridays and special occasions by live music and belly dancers. A little about her history in the kitchen: Erin Somar was 9 when she started absorbing the rhythms and rules of the restaurant business. at's when her father, Mustafa Somar, started Sherefé Mediterranean Grill on Ramsey Street and she spent plenty of time there. At age 17, she started working at the restaurant, which later consolidated at its current downtown location. She learned to cook all of the restaurant's dishes expertly and how to run the business. at's come in handy since she now runs Sherefé. Her father comes in sometimes but is focused on his new restaurant off Skibo Road called Baby Garlic Bistro. Erin Somar leaves most of the cooking these days to Sherefé's current head chef but can step into any role in the kitchen whenever needed. She said she loves to see customers leave happy. Cooking tip: "Make sure your oil is hot before you drop fish into a sauté pan," Somar said. "Otherwise it will stick. at is a hard-learned lesson." Most popular dish? "Probably lamb shank," she said. Scallops and risotto at Sherefé, recipe at CityViewNC.com Erin Somar, general manager and chef at Sherefé, started working at her father's restaurant at 17 and learned to cook all the dishes and run the business.

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