Prego’s

Friday nights are reserved for great food and company. Prego’s was our stop that night as we were looking for Italian food and a place that had a very lively atmosphere (and of course, a more central location given that we work at extreme ends of the country).

Our meal began with a bread basket of focaccia and ciabatta (hope I’m right), served warm with the usual bottle of balsamic vinegar and olive oil.

Bread Basket – Focaccia, Ciabatta, Balsamic Vinegar and Olive Oil

Next up was the Parmigiana di Melanzane, which was a baked eggplant with Mozzarella, cooked in a pomodoro sauce, and sprinkled with Parmesan cheese. The acidity of the tomato sauce certainly helped in finishing up the eggplant as it is a pretty heavy dish for a starter.

Parmigiana di Melanzane – Baked Eggplant, Mozzarella, Parmesan, Pomodoro Sauce, Basil

My dish, and possibly a personal favourite, was the Cavatelli con Nduja. The ‘Nduja is a spreadable pork salumi and it has a fiery taste because of roasted hot red peppers as one of its ingredients. This dish is spicy but the spiciness is lightly countered by the tomato sauce that it is cooked in. The hollow shells of Cavatelli pasta were cooked perfectly (al dente, of course!), and its shape allows it to hold the meat sauce, thus giving you a good mix of everything in every mouthful.

Cavatelli con Nduja – Cavatelli, Nduja Sausage, Red Onion, Pomodoro Fresco, Pecorino Cheese

Tonnarelli al Nero. The prawns were tender and cooked beautifully. Pasta was al dente, as expected. Compared to the eggplant starter, I found the pasta dishes much lighter, and the acidity from the pomodoro sauce somehow cleanses your palate to prepare yourself for the next bite and subsequent ones. 

Tonnarelli al Nero – Squid Ink Tonnarelli, Tiger Prawn, Garlic, Chilli, Filetto di Pomodoro

Go with a group of friends, or even bring your family. Eat good food, pop a bottle of wine, and enjoy your Friday.

Oh wait, today IS Friday. So why not check this place out?

Address:
Fairmont Singapore
80 Bras Basah Road, Level 1
Singapore 189560

Nearest MRT:
City Hall MRT (EW13/NS25)

Opening Hours:
Breakfast:
Daily | 6:00AM – 11:00AM

Deli:
Daily | 6:30AM – 9:00PM

Lunch:
Monday to Saturday | 12:00PM – 2:30PM

Early Bird Dinner:
Daily | 5:00PM – 6:00PM

Ala Carte Dinner:
Daily | 6:00PM – 10:30PM

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La Nonna

‘Nonna’ is the Italian word for grandmother. Grandmothers are highly revered in Italy because of their food! It is unpretentious, traditional and of course, delicious. Here in Holland Village, La Nonna aims to serve a hearty meal to enjoy with good company.

When you’re at La Nonna, you must definitely order their signature wood oven-baked pizza – one that starts with a tomato sauce base, spread with black truffle paste, mozzarella and Parmesan cheese, strips of asparagus, and topped with an egg right in the centre of the pizza. This reminded me of my summer holidays spent in Italy where every meal was either pizza or pasta. One might get sick or ‘jelat‘ after every meal but it was very enjoyable.

I am a big fan of thin-crust pizza as it is not very filling, and you get maximum pleasure out of the ingredients. On the other hand, normal pizza crust is too thick and every bite gives you more dough than the toppings.

Next would be their homemade Pappardelle with an oxtail ragout and rosemary. I’ve been really fortunate to get al dente pasta every single time I order a pasta dish and this meal was no different. The oxtail ragout was packed with flavour from the hours of stewing and the slight acidity from the tomato sauce certainly helps bring out the flavour even more. Unfortunately, there wasn’t enough bread for the chance of scarpetta.

Scarpetta
I was introduced to the concept of scarpetta in Rome by one of the best waiters I’ve ever met. Most of the times after finishing a pasta dish, copious amounts of sauce will be left in the serving dish/bowl. This will then be cleared by the service staff and thrown away, which is a waste! Scarpetta simply involves cleaning up or wiping up the remaining sauce with a piece of bread from the bread basket.

Nevertheless, the food was lovely, the staff were attentive especially to both our water and wine glasses thus making the whole experience enjoyable!

Address:
26/26B Lorong Mambong,
Singapore 277685

Nearest MRT:
Holland Village MRT Station (CC21)

Opening Hours:
Lunch | 12.00-14.30 (Mon-Sun)
Dinner | 18.00-22.30 (Sun-Thu)
Dinner | 18.00-23.00 (Fri-Sat)
Times taken from their website here.

*If you are using the Entertainer app, do note that the 1-for-1 deal only applies to their main course. Pasta and pizza are not included. [Mentioned by their staff on the day of visit.]

**From 6PM – 8PM, you can order a bottle of Prosecco with a complimentary side of assorted Italian Sausages, Bruschetta or Calamari!

 

Food Tour (III) Prego’s @ Fairmont Singapore

Our final stop was to Prego’s at Fairmont Singapore. Chef de Cuisine Antonio Facchinetti made it a family-sharing styled lunch/dinner compared to the individual servings we had earlier on. Amazing dishes such as Insalata Caprese (correct me if I’m wrong!) – a dish with buffalo mozzarella that was so soft, fresh tomatoes, fresh basil, drizzled with balsamic vinegar; Plus my personal favourites, Penne Tartufate – penne with sautéed mushrooms and a truffle cream sauce, pasta was cooked al dente, sauce was not too heavy;  and Prego’s ‘House Signature’ Tiramisu, which was extremely light and had a great balance of coffee and liqueur.

Insalata Caprese (Vine Ripened Tomatoes with Buffalo Mozzarella)

Penne Tartufate (Pasta with Sauteed Wild Mushrooms in a Truffle Cream Sauce)

Cappellacci di Zucca

Tiramisu

With Maureen (misstamchiak)

There were other dishes that did not make it into these photo slideshow but they were great as well. I am so grateful to Maureen for organizing this food tour and picking the 10 winners too! Through this food tour I met 9 other foodies that had so much love for food, and the great lengths they go to arranging their food for a photo shot.

Don’t forget to check out the Accor Hotels Food and Wine Festival from the 4th to the 12th of November and there will be a total of 40 restaurants and bars taking part in this festival!

P.S. I ended the food tour at night with a Backstreet Boys concert at the Indoor Stadium. So darn good, as always.