Tavolo (2) -- Never Again!

I said I would go there again and so, as promised, today (Feb. 18, 2008) I went to Tavolo again. I wanted to make sure whether my previous negative impression was due to a momentary lapse of culinary reason, or due to what I consider poor cooking.

After today's visit, I definitively lean for the second. True, beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder -- and taste in the taste buds of the person eating, but my judgement was confirmed by a friend who joined me for lunch.

We also had to ask to be seated at a different table as the air conditioning was too strong and direct. If I go to the hawkers' center and pay 3 dollars for a meal, I am not too fussy. You get what you pay for. When I pay 80 dollars (each) for a meal I am fussy.

Here, given the steep bill, I expect to be able to enjoy my meal without catching a cold.

Food: My friend had a bruschetta and veal scaloppine. He found the bruschetta average and the veal tasty and tender. I had a caprese (tomato and mozzarella salad) and linguine with beef sauce. Again, the pasta was overcooked and the sauce was too sweet and oily. This impression was shared by my friend, who is not Italian but knows good food when he eats it.

As for the sauce, I think it's the chef's style to prepare it oily and sweet. Maybe he is trying to adapt Italian cuisine to Singaporean taste. I wander what he'd say if I gave him sushi with cooked fish...

When I asked the waiter to convey my complaint to the chef, the chef answered with a shrug... not very professional. A chef that really cares about his job, would listen to a complaint and reply, if the case. A shrug denotes lack of professionality.

Wine: The wine list was divided into two parts. The general list which had some interesting names at non interesting prices, and the "Owner's List" which had some famous names such as Ornellaia and Sassicaia with equally famous prices.

We had a house wine, a generous Montepulciano (red). When we asked for another glass, the waiter said they had run out of Montepulciano and could give us an Australian shiraz.

Although I don't have anything against Australian wine, I find it unacceptable that an Italian restaurant does not have an Italian alternative to their house wine.

The 1-billion-dollar-question: Will I go there again? Definitively not.

Tavolo (1)

On January 4, 2008, I went to an Italian restaurant in Boon Tat Street (in Singapore).

The restaurant had been recommended by a Japanese friend of mine who's a fantastic cook and whose judgement I usually trust. Moreover, the chef, Mr. Torii, is from Tokyo and, as some of you well know, Tokyo is home to some of the best Italian restaurants outside of Italy. The place is called Tavolo.

Unfortunately the food did not match my expectations. I would rate it average or less. The atmosphere is nice and as it is pricey -- by Singapore lunch-time standards-- it wasn't too crowded. I had the day's special: a coliflower soup, a salad and linguine (flat spagetti) with a tomato, bacon (a surrogate for pancetta?) and mushrooms sauce.

The first disappointment was that the pasta and the salad were served in the same plate... The second -- and the biggest -- was the pasta itself. It was overcooked and the sauce tasted a tad too sweet and was too oily. It looked -- and tasted -- like it was a leftover from the previous day. I may be wrong...

The dessert, a pear muffin, came in Lilliputian servings accompanied by a mint sauce that killed the pear flavor. I am not a dessert person, so I did not really care.

When I asked the waiter (a very nice person, with a great sense of humor -- maybe the best note of the day) to tell the chef that the linguine was overcooked, the chef seemed not to care... or maybe he did not feel comfortable speaking English.

If you have come this far down in reading, endure a few more lines... My girlfriend -- a fine connoisseur of Italian soul and food -- had warned me that I would be disappointed. Nevertheless, I wanted to give it a try.

The 1-billion-dollar question: Will I go there again? Yes, I will give the place a second chance, soon. And you will read it on this pages.

Aglio, olio e peperoncino

In my spare time and on weekends, I like to try my hand at some traditional Italian recipes.

Once a week, I'll share with you the recipe for an easy to prepare dish. I will try to stick to dishes that can be prepared in less than one hour.

This week's recipe is a classic: Aglio, olio e peperoncino.

Ingredients for four people:
- 400 grams of spaghetti
- two cloves of garlic
- 5-6 tablespoons of extra
-virgin olive oil
- peperoncino
- table salt (possibly sea salt)

Preparation:
Saute the garlic and some peperoncino in an iron-cast skillet (a large frying pan will do as fine) with oil until it turns golden brown (you can also thin-slice the garlic and saute it until it becomes crispy).

Cook your spaghetti just a bit more al dente than you usually would, and briefly saute it in the frying pan with the sauce.

Add some more perperoncino to your liking and serve hot. If you feel that the spaghetti is dry, you can add another tablespoon of oil or of cooking water.

You can sprinkle it with some parmigiano cheese or, better, some pecorino romano.

And remember... cooking is fun...

Cannelloni di Prosciutto Cotto (Ham Rolls)

It's Saturday again and Saturday is both the day you want to recover from Friday's excesses, but must also get ready for that dinner party you have planned for a long time.
So, here is a simple recipe for a tasty antipasto, or starter: Cannelloni di Prosciutto Cotto (Ham Rolls)

Ingredients for eight people:
- eight slices of roasted ham
- six eggs
- mayonnaise
- roasted pickled pepperoni
- pickled gherkins
- olives
- Worcester sauce
- salt and pepper

Preparation:
Boil the eggs until they are hard, cut them in half and remove the yolks.

Put the yolks in a food mixer with the gherkins and the pepperoni, add a splash of Worcester sauce, salt and pepper and blend (leave the mixture a bit coarse).

Spread the mixture onto the ham slices, roll them up and cut them in half diagonally.

Place on a serving plate and garnish with slices of pepperoni and the olives.

And remember... cooking is fun...

Avocado with rocket and eggs

Saturday you are supposed to relax, meet your friends and have fun. You can do all of them at the same time, unless you end up spending too much time preparing something to eat for your guests. So, here is a quick recipe for a light and healthy snack that is also the perfect complement to a glass of chilled white wine: Avocado con rucola

Ingredients for four people:
- two avocados
- two eggs
- two slices of roasted pickled pepperoni
- basil
- lemon
- 80 grams of extra-virgin olive oil
- salt and pepper

Preparation:
Cut the avocados in half and remove the pit. Remove the flesh, making sure you leave a thin layer, and cut it into small dices.

Put the pepperoni, oil, salt, some lemon juice and basil leaves into a food processor and mix until it becomes and homogenous sauce.

Boil the eggs until they are hard and slice them.

Fill the half avocados with chopped rocket, the diced flesh of the avocados and the sliced eggs. Pour the sauce and sprinkle with freshly ground pepper.

And remember... cooking is fun...

Swordfish with tomatoes, olives and capers

One of my favorite dishes is swordfish. I can have it in any sauce or just grilled with olive oil and lemon. Here is an easy way to make a light and tasty main course: Pescespada con olive e capperi.

Ingredients for four people:
- 4 slices (150 g each) of swordfish
- 4 mid-sized ripe tomatoes
- Garlic (as much or as little as you like)
- 50 g of green olives
- 50 g of black olives
- 3 teaspoons of capers and their water
- Salt and pepper
- Half a glass of dry white wine
- Extra-virgin olive oil
- Italian parsley

Preparation:
First, cut the swordfish in small dice and sprinkle it with salt, pepper and olive oil.

Boil some water and put the tomatoes in it for a minute or two until the skin starts peeling off. Take the tomatoes out, peel them and dice.

Cut the olives in thin slices and add a spoonful of capers.

Put the chopped tomatoes, the sliced olives and the capers in a large frying pan with some olive oil and garlic and sauté it to let some of the water out.

When some of the water has evaporated, add the swordfish, the remaining capers and their water and cook for a few minutes until the fish is almost ready. Adjust salt and pepper to your taste, add the white wine and cook until the fish is ready.

Olives and capers are salty, so you may want to go easy with salt and add while cooking.

When ready, sprinkle with fresh Italian parsley and serve hot.