Peruvian cuisine restaurant Tono Cevicheria shines with fresh seafood ceviche and vibrant sharing plates of food from Peru
The dancing fish mascot and good-vibey salsa music should immediately clue you in that there’s nothing stuffy about Tono Cevicheria, one of Singapore’s few South American restaurants and perhaps our only Peruvian restaurant. The new restaurant at Duo Galleria serves up a selection of South American and Peruvian dishes, including ceviche, Peru’s national dish.
Ceviche, is more than just a piscine analogue to steak tartare – the dish, a staple of coastal Peru, is one of chunks of raw white fish marinated in lime, chopped onions, (unpronounceable) chilli peppers, and cilantro. What ties the dish together is the ‘leche de tigre’ (tiger’s milk) – the mixture of fish juices, lime and spices.
Our Peruvian feast began with a rather interesting ceviche – the ‘Mixto’ – which in addition to raw fish, featured blanched prawn, calamari, and octopus with its tiger’s milk spiked with Aji Rocoto chillis. The dish, served with plantain chips, was distinctly light and refreshing thanks to ample lime juice, but also packed a kick from the Aji Rocoto chilli. The dish is similar to the classic ceviche but with a little extra something if you’re looking for a bit of an adventure.
While ceviche is certainly the restaurant’s speciality, other Peruvian classics aren’t left out, and if you’re unfamiliar with Peruvian cuisine, you’ll want to bring a party of four and order up several sharing dishes like the solterito. This homely street food consists of canchitas (Peruvian corn kernels made from corn air-dried in the Andes mountains before being deep fried and salted), crispy white fish, mashed potatoes, fava beans, and a tomato and black olive mayo.
If you’re after a heartier dish, try the chicken anticuchos (meat skewers). The dish of chicken skewers is marinated with aji panca, red wine vinegar, oregano, and garlic for 24 hours, making for richly flavoured morsels of grilled meat. The chalaquita sauce offers even more complexity with the addition of tiger’s milk (from the classic ceviche).
In line with Peru’s rich coastal cuisine, Tono Cevicheria also does a fantastic fisherman’s stew. The fish stew (sudado de pescado) has a comforting base of white wine and corn cider, chock full of lightly cooked fish, onions, garlic, oregano, and aji amarillo chilli – especially good on a rainy day I’ll wager.
Dining at Tono Cevicheria is a great entry-point to the full breadth of Peruvian cuisine. The brightly decorated, and festive dining space offers a comprehensive taste of the country’s culinary heritage – from refreshing, light ceviches, to richly flavoured spiced skewers. We’re certainly excited to see what else this charming cevicheria has in store for us.
Tono Cevicheria, 7 Fraser Street, Singapore 189356, p. 6702 7320. Open weekdays 12pm-3pm, 6pm-10pm; Saturday 6pm-10pm. Closed on Sun.
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