PUBLISHED February 28th, 2013 01:31 am | UPDATED May 27th, 2016 04:44 pm
In the ever-developing ‘Little Italy’ of Tanjong Pagar, one of the longest running restaurants Capricci just went through a massive redesign….and we at City Nomads couldn’t be happier. Gone is the fuddy-duddy old-boy Italian restaurant atmosphere…say hello to chic exposed red brick walls, minimalist Manhattan style and some funky music = a smooth experience.
Finally catching a chance to drop by this week, Ms Demeanour and myself stopped in for an indulgent (and surprisingly affordable) lunch.
Buratta and parma ham ($20) – the fact that this dish is only $20 made it an obvious choice…and believe me, Chef Massimo does not skimp on the ingredients. A beautiful fat ball of savoury buratta with some pistachio crumble surrounded by a seemingly endless moat of deliciously soft parma ham. My personal preference is to add a dash of balsamic vinegar to give the mild flavours a bit of a kick…but that’s just me.
Served up at the same time was the Parmaggiano Melanzane. An old favourite of mine… Baked eggplant, tomato sauce and mozzarella cheese. It’s also a dish that seems to be done slightly differently by every Italian Chef in Singapore, both in taste, and presentation. In the case of Capricci, it comes out piping hot, beautifully presented on a spotless white place and with a deep-fried basil leaf on top. Taste-wise it’s a very good standard but I definitely wouldn’t have minded a bigger portion. Especially compared to the buratta/parma ham dish.
Moving onto mains, we were craving a bit of pasta so made the risky decision to order the Risotto Milanese. Risotto is done well by very few establishments in Singapore. Capricci is definitely one of them. What was served up was spectacularly moreish. Rich saffron and cream flavours combined with melting bone marrow..and a perfect al dente but slight soft texture of the rice. Gorgeous.
Sadly the Margarita pizza was much less impressive. It wasn’t particularly bad…. let’s just put it this way; if you’re coming to Capricci, save your stomach for other dishes…
Such as the Lamb chops. Granted I’m a major sucker for lamb in almost any form…this was a particularly interesting way of serving with an immense amount of pistachio completely conquering one side of the chops. Very juicy and a nice strong taste without being too ‘lamby’. Only complaint was that it was a little overcooked (granted, partially my fault for not requesting it to be more pink in the middle).
After finally making it down to Capricci since the refurb, I am very happy to see how things have progressed. It’s a cool looking venue with a bar at the front I could very much imagine myself chilling out at, with food that will please the palate without upsetting your bank balance.
Written by The City Nomad