TortaPistocchi Chocolate Week at Hilton Singapore; A Cioccolato Dining Experience at il Cielo

This March, famous chocolate producer of Florence, Chef Claudio Pistocchi, collaborates with Hilton Singapore for a chocolaty Easter and a Cioccolato Dining Experience at il Cielo.

The Hilton Singapore pastry team and il Cielo restaurant chef Omar Bernardi will be presenting an array of chocolaty sweet treats and savouries. This first-ever collaboration will pique the interest of ardent fans of chocolates and gourmands who anticipate with gusto. Continue reading

OTTO Locanda

OTTO Locanda brings fine Italian cuisine in a relaxed setting, at the charming Maxwell Chambers just minutes away from the Red Dot Traffic Building, where its fine-dining counterpart OTTO Ristorante resides –both walking distances away from the Tanjong Pagar MRT station.

The partners behind OTTO Ristorante share a life-long passion for great Italian food, offering dining that is close to the hearts of Italians.

OTTO Locanda exudes a rustic charm similar to that of a traditional Italian trattoria. Walls are adorned with the owner’s personal postcard collection, while copper lamps illuminate the dining room with warmth and cosiness. Shelves are filled with vintage Italian memorabilia, which will open vaults of memories and feelings of nostalgia close to the Italians’ hearts.

Under the culinary direction of OTTO Ristorante’s head chef Michele Pavanello, Chef Marco Violana helms the kitchen at OTTO Locanda, bringing his impressive Italian culinary expertise to the table. Expect hearty Italian recipes coupled with high quality ingredients and precise execution. Continue reading

Chocolate Masterclass with a Michelin Touch at Regent Singapore

Things are getting sweetened up at Regent Hotel, with Executive Pastry Chef Domenico Di Clemente from Michelin-starred Il Palagio at Four Seasons Hotel Firenze presenting sweet creations at Dolcetto by Basilico from 16 January 2013.

I had the privilege of attending Chef Domenico’s first-ever chocolate showcase in Singapore. The Chocolate Masterclass was held at Basilico Restaurant’s well-equipped private cooking studio, where cooking demos and classes are held upon request or booking.

We learnt how to make one of Chef Domenico’s signature creations, the Warm Chocolate Tart with Coffee Zabaglione. Continue reading

Casa Verde’s Valentine’s Day Menu

Aptly named, Casa Verde means ‘green house’ in Italian; it is an Italian bistro nestled in the Singapore Botanic Gardens, surrounded by verdant foliage.

The bustling patio-style terrace-café, frequented by nature and pet-lovers in the day, matures into a romantic full-service restaurant by night.

For Valentine’s Day this year, the Les Amis Group has come up with a ‘Naughty Meets Nice’ theme, employing sensuous ingredients from the list of aphrodisiacs, to be featured in seven seductive menus across the restaurants under their belt.

Here’s what Casa Verde at Singapore Botanic Gardens has to offer: Valentine’s Day Choice of 3-Course Set Dinner ($70nett per person)


Insalata Fichi e Proscuitto

Mesclun salad tossed in fig vincotto with fresh figs, parma ham and bufala crumble

In this 3-Course Set Dinner, there are two options for each course.

For starters, you can choose between the Insalata Fichi e Proscuitto (pictured above) and the Zuppa di Pomodoro (oven roasted cherry vine tomato soup with sautéed chunky crabmeat, finished with a touch of cream and pesto emulsion).
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Catch Episode 9 of The Big Break on the Asian Food Channel –Italiano challenge

Have you been following The Big Break religiously on the Asian Food Channel (AFC)? I look forward to watching it every week!

The Big Break is an original reality television series produced by the Asian Food CHannel (AFC), in partnership with Resorts World Sentosa (RWS), offering the chance of a lifetime to 12 underprivileged youths from six countries across Asia to fulfil their culinary dreams.

More information here: http://www.asianfoodchannel.com/thebigbreak/

I enjoy every episode so much I almost wish the series would not come to an end so soon, but on the other hand, contradictorily, I can’t wait to find out who triumphs in the grand finale!

In the upcoming 9th episode, contestants’ multi-tasking skills are put to the test in the Ultimate Italiano Challenge.

Making pizza from scratch can be relatively easy when you’re following a reliable recipe, step by step, with no time constraint. However, during this challenge, contestants must knead, assemble and bake their own pizzas within the stipulated time. With time proving a major obstacle, will all the pizzas make it to the judging table in time?

Find out tonight (9 January 2013) at 10pm!

The show is an inspiration to budding cooks. After this episode, if you have drawn motivation and have ideas floating endlessly in your head, here is a basic pizza recipe from the AFC Studio to get you started.
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DBS Supperclub with Chef Valtulina Valentino

I had the privilege of attending an exclusive after-hours Underground Supperclub event by DBS Indulge at Ristorante Da Valentino, all thanks to AFC’s invitation.

Chef Valtulina Valentino, owner and executive chef of Ristorante Da Valentino, is a true-blue Italian who embraces the traditions of Italian cuisine, adding a pinch of personal touch to each dish.

The menu is specially created for this DBS/POSB Credit and Debit Cardmembers-exclusive Supperclub event.


Bormio (name of a town in northern Italy) salad of apple, marinated onion, olives, nuts and ricotta
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Trattoria Nonna Lina

Craig Road welcomes the arrival of Trattoria Nonna Lina –an Italian restaurant named after owner/chef Simone Vespasiani’s beloved grandmother Lina. The menu pays homage to Italian classics, highlighting their family’s best-kept recipes.

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Dolcetto by Basilico at Regent Singapore

Dolcetto by Basilico; this gleaming store on the first level of Regent Singapore is embellished with stitched Italian leather detailing, and boasts polished and richly-veined Carrera marble. Dangling above the counters are European blown-glass pendants; surrounding you is an endless array of all-things-Italian –it is possible to feel transported to Italy, from the moment you enter, to the minute you fill the orange leather shopping baskets with your favourite Italian goodies.

This could potentially be Singapore’s own ‘Little Italy’.

Dolcetto is Basilico’s casual counterpart – a gourmet pasticceria – offering Italian coffee, sweet treats, freshly baked goods and specially imported merchandises.

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Dinner with mum: Ristorante PepeNero –Simply Italian

PepeNero means black pepper in Italian.

Ristorante PepeNero is a quaint little restaurant housed in one of the conservative shophouses along Telok Ayer, on Stanley Street to be exact.

As opposed to its appellation, black pepper does not take centre stage at this Italian restaurant. I reassure you, you won’t get a choke-inducing profusion of black pepper that overwhelms each and every dish.

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Caffé B –Fine Italian traditions combined with subtle Japanese flair

The name, Caffé B, misleads one into perceiving this establishment as a casual café – Caffé being enunciated as Café, while Caffè is the Italian word for coffee – but what’s in store will take you by surprise.

Beyond this elegant-yet-industrial-chic portal, surrounded by luxury brands in the basement of Marina Bay Sands, lies an 80-seater fine dining Italian restaurant.

It’s not surprising to discover subtle Japanese influences in their Italian cuisine. The owner of Caffé B is Japanese, while the chef hails from Italy. A Japanese chef used to hold the reins in the kitchen until recent times, so if you have come across previous reviews regarding their Japanese chef, that is history.
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Alkaff Mansion

Oh, beautiful mansion, I blame my declining memory for having no recollection of this venerable quarter, where my parents brought me to when I was little.

Mum, please do ravage through the clutters at home and recover the photographs we took 20 years ago.

Today, a fine Italian restaurant occupies this historical mansion.

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