Cugini
11 Unity Street
#01-27/28 Robertson Walk
6836 9541

I think I just had one of the best Italian meals ever. Cugini was chosen over Tovolo as the place to celebrate my 21st birthday since it's been in my to-go-list for quite awhile.

Complementary bread was served while we waited for our orders to arrive. It was unremarkable to me since it was very soft and not the dense type of bread I like. Yee Hwee liked it alot though!


We did away with starters and ordered 4 mains to share. The Ravioli al tartufo e patate con burro alle noci e grana ($25++) was fabulously good! Translated into english, it's simply freshly made truffle and potato ravioli with walnut butter and parmiggiano. The infusion of truffle gave a unique fragrance to the ravioli and the pasta skin was nicely al dente.


The 2nd pasta dish we picked was Fettuccine al nero, con seppioline, piselli freschi e bottarga di muggine ($25++) which was freshly made squid ink fettuccine with baby cuttlefish, fresh pea and mullet roe. I requested for the cuttlefish to be replaced with prawns and the owner graciously obliged us by agreeing. Now, I'm normally not a pasta fan (unless it's ravioli!) but this was good! The otherwise bland fettuccine took on the distinct sea tang and deep black glow of the squid ink while the prawns were large and so fresh.


From the Mains section, I liked the Melanzane alla Parmigiana con basilico e dadolata di mozzarella ($19++). The parmesan oven baked aubergine with basil was served with marinated mozzarella cubes. Baked to perfection, the soft aubergine and cheese simply melted in the mouth. This may very well even convert aubergine-haters.


Since the tuna fillet was not available that day, we had the Scaloppa di branzino Mediterraneo con schiuma di mozzarella ($33++) at the owner's suggestion. The Mediterranean sea bass was very fresh and simply grilled with salt. I liked the cranberry reduction which played on the taste buds with its sweet and tangy flavour.


The sea bass also came with a cup of mozzarella foam which I felt was quite redundant since the cranberry reduction was already a nice complement to the fish. I didn't like the foam as, though interesting, it had a strong cheesey-buttery taste that put me off.


My SUPER DUPER NICE friends arranged for a birthday surprise for me. I think we were all quite startled when the soothing music playing from the restaurant's stereo was cut off abruptly and replaced by a birthday song suddenly. My Tortino caldo di cioccolato con culi' di amarene ($13++) was delightful. Though the hot chocolate fondant cake was the lead star, I prefer the accompanying soaked cherries more as they were slightly sour and had a strong tint of alcohol.

I'm always excited when I see hot chocolate oozing out! The cupcake look-alike fondant was a tad too sweet though.

Lastly, how can we not have tiramisu at an Italian restaurant? The Tiramisu con salsa di cioccolato amaro ($11++) looked slightly deconstructed as it was unlike any other I've seen so far. This is one nice messy lump covered with smooth mascarpone cheese and bitter chocolate sauce. It's a pity that the alcohol taste was too mild and subtle but hey, they always say "a little goes a long way" right?

Labels: Italian

7:52 PM