Ney Forest: The intimate dining experience on everyone's wishlist

I stumbled upon Roni by chance. Someone had shared a story on Instagram, which was then further shared, and I realized that several celebrities were spending their Saturday nights in this charming apartment in Zagreb. Those omnipresent social networks catch everything.

Step by step, information by information, everything led me to Roni, a charismatic Turkish woman already known in Zagreb’s social scene. Her life here has intertwined with various people from the cultural and artistic scene through work and acquaintances, and all of them, sooner or later, found themselves invited to her pleasant spontaneous Ney Forest dinners. And now, finally, so have I.

In a time when quantity often trumps quality, sitting down for a dinner with a dozen or more people, enjoying the scents and flavors being served while engaging in meaningful, curious, encouraging conversations with strangers or perhaps acquaintances, who could soon become good friends, sounds like a new concept of socializing. Given its popularity in Zagreb and the word-of-mouth technique that functions quite well in spreading the word about these more intimate special gatherings, Ney Forest is the next big thing when it comes to Saturday plans.

Roni Sequoia moved to Croatia from Istanbul six years ago. She tells me how her Kurdish roots helped her quickly adapt to the country and its customs. “Our cultures have many similarities and shared words. For instance, we share the word for ‘women,’ and I like that. It wasn’t easy at the beginning, but I never gave up because I truly feel connected to this country,” Roni tells me, and continues about her reasons for moving, “I had friends living in Croatia, and that was a reason that led me here. To be honest, I was very curious to explore it.”

As far as gastronomy is concerned, Roni has been surrounded by good chefs her whole life and has learned a lot from them, although, as she admits, due to new projects she is designing, she feels more like an art director. “I grew up on a farm in Turkey surrounded by many excellent chefs from my family. We also had wheat fields, so we produced our own flour, bulgur, and spices like cumin. I believe all this has helped me to love cooking.” She officially entered the world of gastronomy when she started working on creating new concepts with partners who wanted to open a bar or restaurant. “I worked on many, later proven successful, hospitality projects, but over time, I became curious about food preparation in professional kitchens. One day, I approached a chef in Istanbul and told him I wanted to start cooking. He invited me to work with him and began teaching me about Eastern cuisine. I continued working in fine dining restaurants for years after that. To be honest, these days, preparing traditional street food in my own way excites me much more. Everything I cook comes from the most sincere part of me.”

About her project of small dinners gathering various interesting people who do not necessarily know each other, she says it started accidentally, after a significant dream in which she dreamt of the ney, a traditional Persian instrument, played by a musician inviting people to gather around the music. When the pandemic hit, and she was spending time in Croatia far from her family, she began to think more intensely about social gatherings. One day, she gathered friends and acquaintances of different cultures and thoughts she knew in Zagreb at her apartment to connect over food, exchange ideas about art, creativity… As she says, it has become her new mission to connect people and cultures and offer something new to Zagreb. A couple of years later, the idea proved to be extremely successful, and Ney Forest Gatherings now always seek one more invitation. Until recently, she organized dinners exclusively in her apartment, but as the project has grown, she plans to hold them at new locations in the city. Also, Roni is a one-woman team in this, so she organizes and carries out the story from start to finish. The project has always been international by nature due to acquaintances, and when she travels with it, she will always happily return to Zagreb. Her dinner guests are of various profiles; musicians, photographers, chefs, diplomats, designers, artists, and even people working in embassies around the world, in Portugal, London, France, Germany, America…

“When I started the gatherings, people told me all sorts of things, but most often, I heard the sentence that such dinners wouldn’t work in Zagreb. But, it succeeded. With a bit of hard work. I organized them quietly at the beginning because it was the start of the project, but over time, it became known. The dinners are not a secret, but you must come by invitation. Also, I have ideas about introducing some novelties into the project. I think new perspectives will always be welcome and keep the project alive.”

Roni exclusively announces to me that she and a business partner are opening a small street food near Britanski trg in Zagreb, which will focus on mezze and tapas, and daily fresh soups and goulashes. Ney Forest will continue to attract those ready for a different type of dinner and socializing on weekends, giving you the opportunity to meet new people, thus creating a lively and healthy community of people who help Zagreb feel global.

“I would love to stay in Croatia and continue creating a life here. It’s the best country for me. I especially love its nature, which is why it’s my dream to take Ney Forest into the forest someday. Imagine such a dinner in the woods? Sounds great! I want to continue creating, sharing, learning, and teaching, from my experiences here.”

Photo: Sanjin Kaštelan