Just Can't Get Enough of just chik'n Peruvian Rotisserie

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Have you ever tasted something so unbelievably good that it inspired you to start an entire business for it? If that sounds like you, consider having a conversation with Yilmaz Yoruk. The RIT alum, his brother Abdul, and his mother Zehra discovered their passion for pollo a la brasa, Peruvian rotisserie chicken, and decided to open a restaurant solely dedicated to sharing the dish with the greater Rochester community.

The story starts with Yilmaz’s father Ergun, who visited Peru on vacation in the early 2010s. Apart from the sun kissed beaches, phenomenal weather, and a rich history, his father discovered incredibly tasty food — most notably a rotisserie chicken dish slathered in herbs and spices. In Yilmaz’s words, his father “could not stop talking about it.”

“He just couldn't stop yapping about it when he came back,” Yilmaz said. “And my mom, being the foodie that she is, tried to cook it for all of us at home. That was when we knew we had to recreate this for others.”

The thing that separates pollo a la brasa from other rotisserie chicken meals is how it's cooked. Once marinated with the right spices, each bird is then marinated for 24 hours before it is slowly flame cooked for an hour and a half. The result is tender chicken that oozes flavor. After perfecting every part of what makes a great pollo a la brasa at home, the family was ready to share with the Rochester community.

Yilmaz, Abdul, and their parents started spending their time together crafting menu items, developing recipes, and building a restaurant space to make their passion into a business. The only missing puzzle piece was the restaurant name. A few head scratches later, just chik’n Peruvian Rotisserie was born and officially opened to customers in November of 2020.

As the name suggests, just chik’n serves an all-chicken menu comprised of full chicken entrees, bowls, and sandwiches, along with a handful of traditional sides like the sweet alfajores cookies, the savory chili lime yuca fries, and the gluten-free arroz chaufa rice.

“People deserve to have food that is different from what they are used to, food they are not accustomed to,” Abdul said. “The favorite? Just chicken… kidding. Our specialty here is Peruvian chicken but we also have chicken sandwiches and amazing sauces like our aji verde and aji amarillo. The sauces really make it. It is all so flavorful.”

Yilmaz attended RIT as an undergraduate student. Today, his business is one of nine locally run restaurants included in RIT’s Visiting Chef Program. Being an alum of the university, he remains a part of what makes it tick.

When asked to recall what stood out from his time at the university, he said diversity.

“I could go to different eateries on campus, walk to Global Village, and have something different every day, I really appreciated that,” Yilmaz said. “That’s when it clicked for me. We’re doing this, we’re just down the road [from RIT], there has to be a way to bring our rotisserie chicken to campus and become a visiting chef.’”

In order to ensure the pollo a la brasa is ready to be served on campus, Yilmaz and his family prepare everything at their restaurant on the morning of service. Once they run out of food, they make a second and if needed a third trip to the restaurant from campus to restock again.

According to the two brothers, the ongoing success of just chik’n is down to their joint effort as a family and what they call “the glue.” You might also recognize Zehra is the welcoming motherly face you see when you order just chik’n on campus.

“Our mom is the glue that keeps us together,” Abdul said. “She was the artist; we just came up with the final touches.”

Just chik’n has been part of RIT’s Visiting Chef Program since 2022. For Yilmaz, RIT is his “second family,” one which he hopes he can continue to be part of for years to come.

“We live and breathe RIT,” Yilmaz said. “Seeing all the kids, seeing the smiles on their faces when my mom serves them. That's what it's about, and we're very grateful for it.”