A Comprehensive Culinary Journey Through Turkish Tradition
Nestled within the evolving culinary landscape of South Beach Avenue, Pera Turkish Grill & Mezze represents a sophisticated addition to Singapore’s diverse dining scene. While the Roman restaurant Medusa may currently dominate local conversations, this Turkish establishment—officially launched in October 2025—merits equally serious consideration for discerning diners seeking authentic Mediterranean flavors executed with precision and artistry.
Ambience and Atmosphere
The spatial design of Pera Turkish Grill & Mezze demonstrates a thoughtful approach to atmospheric creation, one that transcends mere aesthetic decoration to evoke a genuine sense of place. The interior architecture achieves an immediate emotional resonance through its lighting scheme—a cascade of illuminated bulbs drawing direct inspiration from Istanbul’s iconic Yeni Mosque. This design choice proves neither arbitrary nor superficial; rather, it establishes a visual bridge between Singapore’s contemporary cosmopolitanism and Turkey’s rich architectural heritage.
The pervading quality of warmth extends beyond the literal glow of these fixtures. The space cultivates an intimate coziness that encourages leisurely dining—a quality increasingly rare in Singapore’s often frenetic restaurant culture. The open kitchen configuration serves dual purposes: it provides transparency in food preparation while allowing the sensory experience to begin long before plates arrive at the table. The aromatic complexity of grilling meats, the visual theatre of flame-kissed preparations, and the ambient sounds of a working kitchen combine to create an immersive dining environment that engages multiple senses simultaneously.
The service delivery system, orchestrated by Turkey-born Singaporean co-owner and general manager Guzide Koksal, exemplifies cultural hospitality at its finest. Having resided in Singapore for fifteen years, Koksal demonstrates a nuanced understanding of both Turkish culinary tradition and Singaporean dining expectations, bridging these two contexts with evident expertise. Her effervescent presentation style transforms dish delivery into storytelling, providing contextual frameworks that enhance appreciation without lapsing into didacticism.
Culinary Analysis: Signature Dishes
Guvec Mantar
Price: SGD 26
This mushroom preparation exemplifies the intersection of simplicity and sophistication that characterizes superior Mediterranean cooking. The dish centers on mushrooms cooked to optimal tenderness—a state achieved through careful temperature control and timing that preserves structural integrity while developing deep umami characteristics. The cooking method yields specimens that retain a subtle resistance to the bite while remaining thoroughly juicy, their cellular structures having absorbed the cooking medium without collapsing into mushiness.
Textural Profile: The mushrooms present a yielding yet substantial texture, their natural earthiness amplified by the cooking process. The aged kashkaval cheese crown provides contrasting characteristics—a creamy, molten quality upon initial contact that develops into a more elastic, slightly stringy pull as it cools. The cheese maintains a delicate balance between rich fattiness and tangy sharpness characteristic of aged varieties.
Visual Presentation: The color palette moves from the deep, earthy brown-to-mahogany tones of the caramelized mushrooms to the pale gold of the melted kashkaval, which develops toasted amber highlights at its edges where it meets the vessel’s heat. This gradient effect—from darker base notes to lighter, more delicate top notes—creates visual depth that mirrors the dish’s flavor complexity.
Ege Izgara Levrek (Grilled Sea Bass)
Price: SGD 62
Turkish grilling traditions applied to premium seafood produce results worthy of careful examination. The sea bass preparation demonstrates mastery of heat application—achieving the delicate balance between developing flavorful char on the exterior while maintaining the fish’s internal moisture and delicate flake structure.
Textural Analysis: The flesh presents in large, moist flakes that separate cleanly along natural muscle divisions. The exterior develops a light crispness from the grill’s direct heat—not a heavy crust, but rather a subtle textural boundary that provides contrast without overwhelming the fish’s inherent delicacy. The skin, when consumed, offers a satisfying crackling quality, its rendered fat contributing richness without greasiness.
Color Dynamics: The visual presentation showcases the fish’s pristine white flesh, which remains opaque and pearlescent at its center while developing translucent edges where heat has most thoroughly penetrated. The skin displays an attractive variegation—silver-grey scales interspersed with golden-brown char marks creating a geometric pattern reminiscent of the grill’s crosshatch. Garnishes of emerald herbs and citrus wedges provide chromatic counterpoints.
Bostana Salad
Price: SGD 22
This preparation exemplifies the Turkish approach to vegetable-centric dishes—allowing premium ingredients to express themselves through minimal but precise intervention. The composition features diced tomatoes, cucumber, and onion, each component cut to uniform dimensions that facilitate balanced fork distribution and even flavor integration.
Textural Composition: The salad delivers a symphony of crispness and juiciness. Tomatoes contribute soft cell walls that burst with acidic sweetness, while cucumbers provide clean, watery crunch. The onions, likely briefly treated to moderate their pungency, offer a crisp snap that transitions to a yielding chew, releasing their characteristic sharpness in controlled doses. The lemon juice dressing coats these elements without drowning them, maintaining each vegetable’s structural clarity.
Visual Vibrancy: The dish presents as a celebration of fresh produce in its prime. Tomatoes contribute saturated red hues ranging from deep crimson to coral depending on variety and ripeness. Cucumbers provide cooling jade green accents, their flesh showing pale green-white when diced. White or pale violet onion pieces punctuate the composition. The collective effect is one of brightness and vitality—a visual freshness that parallels the taste experience. The lemon juice adds a subtle sheen, causing light to catch and reflect off the vegetable surfaces.
Fıstıklı Beyti (Pistachio Lamb Kebab)
Price: SGD 36
This dish represents Turkish culinary engineering at its most sophisticated—a multi-layered construction that balances richness with acidity, creaminess with crunch, heat with cooling elements. The lamb kebab, studded with pistachios, is wrapped in lavash bread and served with garlic yogurt, tomato butter, and sumac onion—each component contributing essential textural and flavor dimensions.
Textural Complexity: The lamb presents a fine-ground consistency, its proteins tightly bound yet maintaining moisture through careful fat ratios. Pistachios interrupt this uniformity with their distinctive crunch—small nuggets of textural resistance that require mastication. The lavash wrap provides a thin, pliable envelope that has absorbed moisture from the filling, developing a soft, slightly yielding character. Garlic yogurt contributes cooling creaminess with a silky flow, while tomato butter adds viscous richness. Sumac onions provide acidic crunch that cuts through the dish’s heavier elements.
Color Palette: The cross-section reveals layers of visual interest: the deep brown of well-seasoned, grilled lamb; vibrant green pistachio flecks; the pale cream of yogurt sauce; and the russet-orange of tomato butter. The lavash wrap forms a thin, beige border containing these elements. Sumac-dusted onions add purple-red accents. The overall presentation achieves warmth through its earth-toned foundation, punctuated by cooling white and bright acidic notes.
Izgara Hellimli Sarma (Grilled Halloumi Wrapped in Vine Leaves)
Price: SGD 18
This preparation demonstrates creative adaptation of traditional Turkish wrapping techniques applied to halloumi—a cheese whose high melting point makes it uniquely suited to direct heat applications.
Textural Dynamics: Halloumi possesses a distinctive squeaky quality when bitten—a characteristic resistance followed by a yielding, slightly elastic chew. Grilling intensifies these properties while developing a caramelized exterior that provides textural contrast. The vine leaf wrapper adds a subtle leathery quality with faint vegetal bitterness, its texture softened by brief heat exposure. Cherry tomato salsa contributes bursting juiciness and soft acidity, while pine nuts provide small, irregular crunch elements that scatter throughout each bite.
Visual Elements: The dark green-black of brined vine leaves creates a dramatic wrapper for the pale ivory halloumi, which develops golden-brown grill marks in parallel lines. The cheese’s interior remains white, creating contrast when cut. Cherry tomato salsa adds bright red punctuation, its glossy surface catching light. Pale pine nuts provide cream-colored textural accents. The composition balances dark, dramatic leaf exterior with bright, fresh interior elements.
Beverage Program
The beverage selection includes cocktails starting at SGD 18, though the standout recommendation is the Turkish lemonade at SGD 10—a refreshing preparation distinguished by the addition of lemon salt, which provides mineral complexity and enhances the citrus elements while moderating sweetness.
Turkish Lemonade Characteristics: The beverage presents as cloudy pale yellow, its opacity suggesting fresh juice rather than concentrate. The lemon salt creates a nuanced flavor profile—initial brightness from citric acid, followed by savory mineral notes that stimulate salivation and cleanse the palate. The texture is light and effervescent if carbonated, or smooth and pulpy if prepared traditionally. Its cooling properties and acid content make it particularly effective at cutting through rich, fatty dishes.
Dessert Offerings
Fıstıklı Baklava
Price: SGD 16
This classic Turkish sweet demonstrates the technical precision required for proper phyllo handling and the delicate balance between sweetness and textural interest that characterizes superior baklava.
Textural and Visual Analysis: The pastry achieves paper-thin layers that shatter into delicate shards upon contact, creating an audible crispness. Pistachios provide contrasting crunch—their texture firmer and more substantial than the phyllo. The sugar syrup creates slight cohesion between layers while contributing a glossy sheen that catches light, creating a jewel-like appearance. Colors range from golden-brown on exposed pastry surfaces to pale cream in protected areas, with vibrant green pistachio filling visible in cross-section.
Kabak Tatlısı (Candied Pumpkin)
Price: SGD 16
This dessert represents traditional Turkish home cooking elevated to restaurant presentation—a demonstration that simple ingredients, treated with respect and skill, can achieve profound satisfaction.
Composition Analysis: The pumpkin undergoes slow candying that concentrates its natural sugars while maintaining structural integrity. The result is tender yet sliceable, its texture reminiscent of high-quality candied fruit—yielding with slight resistance. Tahini drizzle contributes nutty bitterness and a flowing, slightly grainy texture that coats the palate. Walnuts provide irregular crunch and additional bitter notes that balance the pumpkin’s sweetness. Visually, the dessert presents deep amber-orange pumpkin against the beige flow of tahini, topped with brown walnut pieces—an autumnal color palette that suggests earthiness and comfort.
Practical Information
Location B1-21 South Beach Avenue, 26 Beach Road
Nearest MRT Esplanade Station
Operating Hours Weekdays: 11:30 AM – 11:00 PM
Weekends: 10:00 AM – 11:00 PM
Contact Tel: 8750-2017
Website: perasg.com
Price Range SGD 10 – 62 per dish
Delivery and Takeaway Options
Based on the available information, specific delivery partnerships and takeaway services were not detailed in the source material. Prospective diners interested in delivery or takeaway options are advised to:
Contact the restaurant directly at 8750-2017 to inquire about current takeaway policies and any in-house delivery services.
Check third-party delivery platforms including Deliveroo, GrabFood, and foodpanda, as many South Beach Avenue establishments maintain partnerships with these services.
Visit the restaurant’s website at perasg.com for the most current information regarding delivery options and any promotional offerings.
Final Assessment
Pera Turkish Grill & Mezze occupies a valuable position in Singapore’s culinary landscape, offering authentic Turkish cuisine executed with both technical precision and evident passion. The restaurant succeeds on multiple levels: atmospheric design that evokes cultural authenticity without descending into pastiche, a menu that balances familiar comfort with educational introduction to less-known preparations, and service that combines warmth with knowledge.
The cooking demonstrates consistent technical competence across diverse preparations—from the delicate handling of seafood to the robust flavors of grilled meats, from the precision of phyllo work to the patient development of candied vegetables. Ingredient quality appears uncompromising, with vegetables showing peak freshness and proteins displaying premium characteristics.
For diners seeking respite from Singapore’s often homogeneous international dining options, Pera offers genuine regional character. The pricing structure positions it as an accessible introduction to quality Turkish cuisine rather than as exclusive fine dining, making it appropriate for both casual meals and more considered dining occasions.
In the context of South Beach Avenue’s evolution as a dining destination, Pera Turkish Grill & Mezze deserves recognition beyond its status as Medusa’s neighbor. It merits attention as a destination in its own right—a testament to Turkish culinary traditions thoughtfully adapted to Singapore’s sophisticated dining environment.
★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
4 out of 5 stars