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2024-09-24
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Went with a friend to try out this Italian restaurant hoping to bring back some good memories from our Italian trip last year. We were seated close to the dessert counter which was adjacent to the other entrance of the restaurant that opened onto the harbour waterfront. We could see tourists coming in through that door for ice cream or food. The menu we chose was one of restaurant week special offers, $288 plus 10% service charge (per person). We decided to share our food so each of us could tas
We were seated close to the dessert counter which was adjacent to the other entrance of the restaurant that opened onto the harbour waterfront. We could see tourists coming in through that door for ice cream or food. 
The menu we chose was one of restaurant week special offers, $288 plus 10% service charge (per person). We decided to share our food so each of us could taste more dishes on the menu. The waitress knowing we wanted to share our foods was prompt to provide extra plates for us which was good. The following were our selection:
Antipasti- BURRATA DI ANDRIA and PROSCIUTTO E MELONE
Secondi- TRIPPA ALLA ROMANA and MEZZE MANICHE ALLA VODKA
Dolci- Assorted Mini Pastries Selection from the Vitrine
Here are my tasting notes:
Burrata Cheese, Datterino TomatoesBasil Pesto, Arugula Salad - the mozzarella-like shell of the burrata once cut open, revealed soft snowy white fresh curd. While it sang of freshness, it needed the pesto to bring out the creaminess of the cheese. It would be great if there were more pesto but generally, the ingredients were all really fresh and it was a good start for a meal.
24 Months Parma Ham "Cantalupo" Melon - whilst the melon was sweet and juicy, the ham unfortunately lacked the umami flavour. 
Stewed Beef Tripe, San Marzano Tomato Sauce, Pecorino Cheese, White Beans, Guanciale- apparently Trippa Alla Romana is an ancient recipe in Italy being food of the lower class like the peasants in the olden days- offals are one of the the more affordable proteins. Surely, time has changed and this is now a popular dish in Rome and in some parts of Italy too. The tripe in this instance was served piping hot in a little brown pot. The cooking of the tripe was just right and they were not tough, though personally, I would prefer a little bit more tomato and some spice to lift the dish a bit more. 
Mezze Maniche Pasta "Benedetto Cavalieri" Tomato Sauce, Vodka, Spicy "Nduja Sauage Parmesan Cheese - the grooves of the mezze maniche pasta helped to sucked up the goodness of the nduja ('Nduja is a soft, spreadable fermented pork salume, spiked with fiery Calabrian chiles) sauce which flavour was rounded up nicely by the cheesy Parmesan. There was just a hint of spice ( not that fiery) and the pasta was cooked al dente, quite flavourful. 
As for our Dolci course, each of us chose two mini pastries from the Vitrine - there was such a big selection that we were certainly spoiled for choice. After much battling 😆， we chose the following: Sicilian cannoli - the flavour of the filling reminded me of Christmas . It would have been great if the cannoli were freshly made so the shell of the cannoli could remain crisp, which wasn’t in the present case as it must have been sitting in the vitrine.
Torta mimosa- it was not lemony as advised by the waitress, just one big choux with cream.
Deliziosa - this cookie sandwich fare much better with bites of nuts in the biscuits and cream.
Delizia al limone- this was a mini sponge cake with lemon custard, supposedly a pastry of the Amalfi Coast. It didn’t taste very lemony though.
A word of caution, if you think these mini pastries could rival the French patisseries, you might be disappointed. One consolation was, they were not overtly sweet as some desserts were which was good.
Overall, the service was attentive. A good causal place to chill on a sunny day.
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