INGREDIENTS + EXECUTION
Execution will always be in the hands of the chef and represents many elements—knowledge, training, experience, skill, tools—that contribute to the cuisine we serve. For an entire team of chefs working in concert to achieve proper execution is both a challenge and a vital aspect of a restaurant’s success, but here I would like to share with you the other equally important side of the equation.
When ingredients arrive at the restaurant they are, in one sense, already finished. At the stove, we have no control over how an animal was raised or the way a peach was harvested. As chefs, all we can do is to carefully select our suppliers and then work with them to ensure we get the best possible ingredients. Developing relationships is a fundamental part of any great chef ’s work and all that we have accomplished through the years has been made possible through partnerships with extraordinary purveyors. Our responsibility as chefs, then, is to support these individuals by executing dishes for your enjoyment that highlight and elevate the fruits of their labors.
Eat Together
Every plate achieves that elusive, cuisine-defining balance of sweet, salty, and sour — even dessert.
“One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well.”
The Talent
Habip Kargin
EXECUTIVE CHEF
Born in Mersin, Turkey, Habip Kargin is a passionate and creative chef with over 20 years experience who views food as an art and a way of life. His style of cooking is rooted in Mediterranean cuisine and includes bread making, pastries, dish presentation and butchery using fresh farm to market meats, poultry, fish and vegetables.
Chef Habip started his career in Mersin, Turkey where he opened his first restaurant in 1999. After a few years his passion for cooking brought him to the melting pot of the world, New York City. He started as a line cook in a local restaurant and then became the Sous Chef at Turks & Frogs in Manhattan. After gaining experience, he studied at The Culinary Art School in New York for 2 years. Thereafter, he continued his career in many 5 star restaurants in the city, ultimately becoming the Executive Chef at Pierre Loti in Midtown, Manhattan.
With 12 years in NYC, Habip came to Texas to start up his Mediterranean restaurant Pera Turkish Kitchen in Dallas. Pera received exceptional reviews including 4.5 stars on Yelp for the quality of ingredients, fresh taste, excellent food pairings and warm inviting hospitality staying true to Turkish culture. Chef Habip's latest creations have come with a new face, Selda Mediterranean Grill allows him to continually serve up new and exciting food.
