Ottoman Kebab & Grill - A Touch of Turkey

Photo Credit: Ottoman Kebab & Grill

Ottoman Kebab & Grill, the first of its kind Turkish Bistro in Singapore, located at the new Bedok Mall. First Gourmet Pte Ltd is the company behind Ottoman Kebab & Grill; together with the award winning Indian restaurant Zaffron Kitchen, and the chain of Prata Wala casual restaurants. 

Ottoman Kebab & Grill, is a halal-certified restaurant serving the best of Turkish food made only with the finest ingredients. This new 40-seater eatery offers a concise menu of Turkish favourites such as Homous, Borek, Falafel, Doner, Kebab, and Kunefe dessert. The restaurant also serves traditional Turkish Coffee to stratify the coffee lovers.

Apple Tea (Iced / Hot $3)

Apple Tea is not really a tea, but is a sweet fruity flavoured drink. This Apple tea is excellent when consumed hot as a winter warmer, or thirst quenchingly delicious when served cold and iced in summer.

Photo Credit: Ottoman Kebab & Grill

Turkish Coffee (with/without Milk $4)

A cup of Turkish coffee is rather small; as compared to an Italian espresso. The trick to drink a Turkish coffee is "Not To Rush". First is to allow the foamy cup of Turkish to cool down just a bit, as you wouldn't want to burn your tongue. That little pause will also help the grounds settle. Then take tiny sips of the coffee and sit back to relax; while engaging with friends or family in a good conversation.

After you have drinking the coffee, invert the cup and place it on the saucer (like the above photo), let it cool down and the coffee grounds would slide onto the saucer with the remains forming patterns that is believed to be used for fortune telling.

Fortune telling through Turkish coffee reading is another aspect of coffee usage. What can you translate from the patterns formed; and not only predicts the future but also advises how to proceed in solving any kind of problems. Turkish coffee reading is not scientific proven, but due to the fact that there are people willingly to pay money to have their problems solved; it has become a flourishing business in some countries. 

Homous (Chicken Pea Dip $6) and Pide (Homemade Flat Bread $2)

Homous is a Midden Eastern food dip or spread, made from cooked, mashed chickpeas and blended with tahini (sesame paste), lime juice and garlic. Homous is useful for vegetarian diets; and is best eaten with bread as a protein meal. The homemade Pide Flat Bread at Ottoman Kebab & Grill is cooked over lava stones for that char-grilled aroma, which is uncommonly seen in Middle-Eastern and other Turkish restaurants in Singapore. 

Photo Credit: Ottoman Kebab & Grill

Falafel (Fried Chicken Pea Balls $5 for 3 pcs)

You can order more starters to share; Falafel, which are deep fried patties made from ground chickpeas and fava beans. Falafel is a common dish in Middle East, that can be eaten alone as a snack, or served as part of an appetiser course. 

One bite and I was like WOW! These falafels are awesome; crispy on the outside, moist on the inside and packed with flavor. You will definitely get HOOKED eating these crusty balls. 

Cheese Borek (Spring Roll with Cheese $6 for 6 pcs)

Another starter to recommend is the Cheese Borek, which is commonly known as Spring Roll or "Popiah" in our dialect. Borek is a fried pastry made of a thin flaky dough, and filled with cheese. This most probably is a modern Turkish invention, as the typical homemade borek would be filled with meat, or vegetables. 

Between the Falafel and Cheese Borek, my favourite starter was actually the Falafel; and you probably would agree with me too. 

Iskender Kebab (Mutton, homemade pide croutons, tomato sauce, yoghurt $18.50)

Moving on to the mains; Iskender Kebab, which is one of the most popular meat dish in Turkey. It is prepared from cut grilled lambs into minced patties and slathered with rich tomato sauce, then arranged atop a bed of crispy pide croutons. Tangy yogurt are sometimes poured over the dish; at Ottoman Kebab & Grill it is placed at the side of the plate, so you can spoon over the dollop of yoghurt before tucking into this savoury dish. 

Photo Credit: Ottoman Kebab & Grill

Ottoman Shish Platter (Beef, chicken, seafood, homemade pide $29)

Shish Kebab, another Turkish classic dish made up of pieces of meats, seafood and vegetables grilled on metal skewers. You can order them as individual skewers priced at $7.50 to $12.50; or served with bread and pilav rice at $13.50 to $18.50. 

Alternatively, you can opt for the Ottoman Shish Platter which can be shared between two to four diners, and comes in a meat combination of chicken, beef, mutton and seafood (fish fillets and prawns), served alongside pide bread and pilav rice.

Photo Credit: Ottoman Kebab & Grill

Kunefe (Shredded pastry, turkish cheese, crushed pistachios $8.50)

Kunefe is considered to be one of the most delicious Turkish desserts, but mostly unknown to the outside world. This delightful treat takes at least 20 preparation time and efforts to craft. 

This traditional dessert was crafted in a small metal tray which a piece of Nabulsi goat cheese is placed, within some shredded kadayif phyllo pastry, and sugar syrup; then pan-fried with butter and crisp into perfection, at which time ground pistachios were sprinkled on top.

What distinguishes Ottoman Kebab & Grill’s kunefe from others, is that the kunefe is freshly prepared upon order. The chef has even imported the traditional kunefe cooking pan with an unique aluminium base that allows the heat to be distributed evenly during cooking. 

Good Things Are Always Worth The Wait! 

This elegant looking and delicious dessert should be consumed hot, right after the kadayıf absorbs the syrup for the best taste. The cheese will be very stringy, so a knife will be needed when eating this luscious dessert.

Tinted glass-blown hanging lights (Reminiscent of the iconic Turkish tea cups) 

Ottoman Kebab & Grill also offers affordable weekday sets for lunch (11am to 2.30pm) and dinner (5.30pm to 9.30pm), which include a daily soup and drink. Prices start from as low as $8.50 for the Doner Wrap Lunch Set to just $20 for the Shish, Pilav, Bread and Borek Dinner Set. 

For a gastronomic focus on culinary delights from Turkey, Ottoman Kebab & Grill is definitely the one to look out for!

Ottoman Kebab & Grill

Address: 311 New Upper Changi Road, #01-75, Bedok Mall, Singapore 467360. 

Tel: +65 6702 4031

Operating Hours: Daily, 11am to 10pm