From Cappadocia to New York Nights: How Baris Koroglu Built Aquarelle and DEJAVU

Baris Koroglu, born in the storied region of Cappadocia, brings a refined yet spirited hospitality philosophy to New York City’s dining scene. Having honed his expertise in venues like The Lullaby, Paradise Club, VirgoPresent, and 9 Jones, Koroglu’s latest projects showcase a deliberate embrace of atmosphere, pacing, and immersive experiences amid the city’s often hurried culinary culture.

New East Village sanctuary: On June 26, 2025, Aquarelle opened at 47 Avenue B in the East Village as what The New York Times termed a luxuriously appointed seafood destination. Velvet-lined spaces awash in marine tones and candlelight set the sensual stage. Within, guests discover the signature dining areas — the Cove, the Deck, and the subterranean Grotto — inviting patrons to revive an older New York habit of lingering long past midnight over stoves still burning. The menu spotlights the likes of fluke crudo accented with blood orange, scallops bathed in piri piri, branzino brightened by Meyer lemon, and a reverent salt-baked red snapper.

During New York Fashion Week in September 2025, Aquarelle emerged as a magnet for high-profile fashion and nightlife gatherings. Coverage by Daily Front Row and Page Six underscored its role as a nexus where food, performance, and style converge, further embedding Koroglu’s vision within the city’s cultural pulse.

West Village enigma: Following swiftly, October 2025 saw the debut of DEJAVU, located at 394 West Street in the West Village. This venue embraces a fluid duality—by day, a European-inspired caviar café serving espresso, blinis, crème fraîche, and refined tea service complemented by guided tastings. After sunset, it transforms into a jazz-infused supper club lit by candlelight.

The interior choreography of DEJAVU plays out across a trilogy of rooms: the Emerald Room exudes verdant calm, the Golden Room uplifts with warmth, and the hidden Red Room offers intimacy cloaked in shadows. This layered spatial design enhances the evolving tempo from brisk daytime tastings to leisurely nighttime reveries.

Menu offerings reflect eclectic luxury — scallop crudo, tuna tartare, shrimp carpaccio crowned with caviar, alongside heartier choices like pastrami croquettes, lobster ravioli, truffle pappardelle, grilled lamb chops, sea bass, and steak frites. The bar crafts the signature DejaVu cocktail, marrying lychee, yuzu, pineapple, and a frothy matcha foam.

Central to both Aquarelle and DEJAVU is not just the ownership of Baris Koroglu but a unifying philosophy. It challenges New York City’s common rush with a measured tempo, inviting diners to savor time, ambiance, and a hospitality style that unfolds unhurried and immersive.

This feature draws explicitly from the press decks and extensive coverage appearing in The New York Times, Modern Luxury, Daily Front Row, Village Voice, Haute Living, and CEO Weekly, striving to illuminate how Koroglu’s journey from Cappadocia shapes two distinct yet philosophically aligned New York destinations.