Expat founders · Istanbul

You’re not the only one building here.

I’m Vincent. I moved to Istanbul and I’m putting together one table a month — 8 to 10 expat founders, good food, long conversations. The kind you moved abroad hoping to find.

Message Vincent on WhatsApp

No application, no commitment — just say hi.

Portrait of Vincent, the host.

The host

Hi, I’m Vincent.

23, French, building iOS apps solo from Istanbul. I arrived here with exactly zero network — and building alone abroad is precisely as lonely as it sounds. So I’m doing the thing I wished existed when I landed: one long dinner a month with other expat founders. I book the place, pick the table, and sit down with you.

Say hi — @vincent_betis
A long candlelit table on a terrace above the Bosphorus at night.

The idea

Building a company abroad is a strange kind of loneliness. The city is full — your calendar isn’t.

So once a month, I set one table for founders, freelancers and builders who chose Istanbul, and let dinner do the rest.

A founder alone, seen from behind, at a laptop in a dark apartment at night.

How it works

  1. 01

    You message me

    One short message: who you are, what you’re building, how long you’ve been here.

  2. 02

    I curate the table

    Eight to ten people, mixed on purpose — different industries, same situation. Never more.

  3. 03

    Dinner happens

    One long evening somewhere worth the trip. Confirmed guests get the date and the address.

No name tags.

No pitch decks.

No ‘networking’.

Just a good table.

Rhythm
Once a month
Table
8–10 seats
Language
English spoken
Where
Venue shared with guests

Questions

Hands raising glasses by candlelight.

Come to the next dinner.

Send me a message with one line about what you’re building. I’ll tell you the date, the place, and who’s coming.

Message Vincent on WhatsApp

I reply personally, usually within a few hours.