Ottoman Kebab and Grill

A new Turkish eatery, Ottoman Kebab and Grill, has opened its doors at Bedok Mall! Ottoman Kebab & Grill specialises in Turkish cuisine and is the first of its kind Turkish bistro in Singapore. With accent touches of Turkish elements in a chic setting, this halal-certified restaurant serves Turkish favorites – homemade Pide Flat Bread cooked over lava stones, creamy chickpea dip Homous, hearty Iskender Mutton Kebab, sweet and buttery Kunefe dessert – all are made fresh daily as per order.

Homous S$6, Pide S$2, Apple Tea S$3

Falafel S$5/3 pieces

Cheese Borek S$6/6 pieces

For appetizers, start with Homous and Pide (chickpea dip and homemade flat bread), and maybe Falafel – traditional Middle Eastern deep-fried ball made from ground chickpeas, fava beans, or both. I personally don’t care for Falafels because I think they are kinda bleh and too dense for me. If I’m strictly desiring to consume chickpeas, I’d go straight for Homous and Ottoman’s version is creamy. I got to try another appetizer as well, the Cheese Borek, which is a skinny spring roll filled with cheese. I don’t recommend this because I find the spring roll skin too thick so this wasn’t as crunchy as I expected. The cheese filling was also too mild for my liking.

Moving onto the main entrees though, both the Iskender Mutton Kebabs and Ottoman Shish Platter did not disappoint. The mutton kebabs were served with homemade pide croutons, tomato sauce and yoghurt (the word Iskender refers to the yoghurt-based dressing). Those who generally balk at eating lamb or goat will be delighted to know that there’s hardly any gaminess and if you weren’t told it’s mutton, you’d think it’s just another red meat. Speaking of red meat, the Ottoman Shish Platter is of great value as it contains beef, chicken, seafood, homepade pide, grilled vegetables and pilaf rice – all for just S$29.00 per order. I particularly liked the beef, it was tender, flavorful and juicy.

Iskender Mutton Kebabs S$18.50

Ottoman Shish Platter S$29

Look at the huge serving portion!

Now, I don’t drink coffee but had to give the traditional Turkish Coffee a try. Two versions are available: black or with milk. I had the version with milk and this small cup of coffee turned out to be pleasurable to drink. And just for kicks, Turkish coffee reading is an ancient practice that has been around since the 16th century so when you finish your cup of coffee, turn the cup upside down onto the saucer for a few minutes, and then flip it over to see the interesting patterns that form along the side of the cup. The patterns are formed by the coffee ground. There are people who believe that images and shapes created in the coffee ground in contrast with the white color of the cup have predictable future happening meanings. Have a go at it, it’s fun and have some imagination.

Turkish Coffee S$4

What do you see? What do you see? I see the numbers 77. Do you see it too?

Kunefe S$8.50

I urge you to order the heavenly Turkish dessert called Kunefe. This shredded vermicelli pastry is filled with gooey Turkish cheese, sprinkled generously with crushed pistachios and then drizzled with simple syrup. It takes 20 minutes to prepare one, so order this along with your meal right from the start. Seriously, I’d go back to Ottoman Kebab and Grill just to have this dessert again and at S$8.50 a pop, I don’t intend to share.

Thought it’s worth a mention that Ottoman Kebab and Grill is helmed by Turkish native and head chef Ali Kose, who has over ten years of culinary experience, two of which saw him as sous chef at Gordon Ramsay’s Michelin-starred restaurant Maze in London. Ottoman Kebab and Grill is also managed by the same company behind Zaffron Kitchen – the award-winning contemporary Indian restaurant which I’ve been meaning to check out for at least two years now but haven’t yet. Soon, I hope.

In the meantime… oh gawd, that Kunefe. I’m going to have dreams of it tonight. I MUST have it again asap.