Food Picks: Tasty Turkish fare at 27 Mezze Bar & Grill
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There are only 27 items on the menu of 27 Mezze Bar & Grill at any given time.
ST PHOTO: CHERIE LOK
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SINGAPORE – The “27” in 27 Mezze Bar & Grill refers not to the restaurant’s unit number, but the number of dishes on its menu at any given time. Though by no means a sum to scoff at, for owner Ozlem Ozbilgili, this is an exercise in restraint.
There is a whole lot more she could chuck at diners, if other Turkish restaurants in Singapore are anything to go by: more cheese-flooded variations of pide, more falafel, maybe a musakka or two.
The classics that make the cut on the recently updated menu are those deemed sophisticated enough. Among the mezze, diners might recognise babaganoush ($14++) – or smoked eggplant salad – and, of course, hummus ($14++).
Cannot decide? Try the mezze tasting board ($34++), which lets you pick three items from this category, into which you can dip toasty pillows of pita bread.
Tradition is tightly woven into the menu, which is very much Mrs Ozbilgili’s love letter to her home town. The rice-stuffed vine leaves ($16++) might prove a bit of an acquired taste for Singaporean diners used to the warm, savoury sort of leaf-wrapped rice. But Sucuk & Hellim ($22++) – Turkish sausage with halloumi – is the kind of high-fat, high-salt goodness that translates just fine across cultures.
Cut it with the supremely refreshing Gavurdagi Salad ($24++), tossed with tomatoes, onion, walnuts and pomegranate molasses. It comes in especially handy once the mains arrive.
What is a Turkish meal without some grilled meat? Chief among them is the Adana Kebap ($37++). Hand-minced lamb is seasoned with just salt, capsicum and paprika, letting the natural richness of the meat take centre stage.
Adana Kebap from 27 Mezze Bar & Grill.
ST PHOTO: CHERIE LOK
For something less gamey, opt for the deliciously charred, succulently marinated chicken skewers ($28++).
Other Anatolian specialities, such as Turkish beef dumplings ($32++) and lamb meatballs with tomato sauce ($37++), make an appearance as well.
27 Mezze, opened in January 2024, is modelled after the meyhane – mey connoting alcohol and hane meaning house – style of dining, so be prepared to knock back a shot or two.
Be warned, however, that raki (starting at $10++ a glass), Turkey’s national drink, is 45 per cent alcohol, so there is a chance you may not remember anything from this meal.
Where: 01-02A Riverside View, 30 Robertson Quay 27mezzebarandgrill.com
MRT: Fort Canning
Open: Noon to 10.30pm (Sundays to Thursdays), noon to midnight (Fridays and Saturdays)
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