I love pasta sooooo much I could eat pasta the rest of my life. While living in Minneapolis, my favorite pasta was from Broder's Pasta Bar. They serve among the best pasta dishes I have ever tasted. Upon moving to Singapore, I was excited to try Pasta Brava, which I finally did.
If you are thinking of going, a reservation is a MUST. Without a reservation, it would be impossible for you to get a table, especially during dinner time even on weekdays.
I love the decoration of the restaurant - it was classic, rustic, yet classy. The tablecloth was replaced by white paper and you were given chalks to draw on your table. Some Italian restaurants in Minneapolis / St. Paul do this too. Perhaps this was something Italian?
My friends and I ordered the Vittelo Tonnato ($18) to share, and all of us ordered the pasta dish. We had the Ravioli con Carne di Manzo al Gorgonzola ($22.5), Agnolotti Farciti al Salmone ($22.5), and Stracci al Gamberi e Capesante ($22.5). I just got to know that you could order half serving of their dishes at half the price. This way, you could try more dishes!
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| Bread with olive oil (tip: ask for Balsamic Vinegar!) |
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| Vittelo tonnato - veal loin, tuna sauce |
The Vittelo Tonnato was a cold antipasti. The veal was so thinly sliced that you almost could not taste it at all. Instead, the tuna taste was overwhelming and definitely much more prominent than the veal. I loved how the arugula added some tart to the creamy dish. Something interesting that you could try, but not something I would order for a second time.
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| Stracci al gamberi e capesante - slices of pasta, shrimp, scallop, green peppercorn, white wine, saffron cream sauce |
My Stracci al Gamberi e Capesante was not as amazing as I thought. Although the pasta was al dente, the seafood was just okay (not utterly fresh), and the cream sauce tasted almost bland. This was kind of a disappointment for me.
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| Agnolotti farciti al salmone - agnolotti filled with fresh salmon, tomato and cream sauce |
My favorite dish of the afternoon would be my friend's Agnolotti Farciti al Salmone. I was never a fan of filled pasta, but the agnolotti was yummy and I love the salmon filling too. The sauce was perfectly seasoned and the dish as a whole was just nice, not too hearty for a filled pasta dish.
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| Ravioli co carne di manzo al gorgonzola - ravioli filled with minced beef, gorgonzola cheese sauce |
Lastly, my other friend had the Ravioli con Carne di Manzo al Gorgonzola. The Ravioli was not bad either, and the cream sauce was tasty too. My second favorite.
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| Tiramisu |
At the end of our meals, we ordered a Tiramisu for sharing. In my opinion, the zabaglione was too light - the mascarpone taste was really subtle the heavy cream was actually more prominent. The savoiardi was nicely soaked - wet and supple, but slightly too bitter to my liking. My friend and I agreed that my tiramisu was better. Ha!
At the end of our meal, my impression for Pasta Brava was not as amazing as my expectation. Broder's Pasta Bar is clearly my incumbent favorite and still standing strong. Would I return again? Maybe yes.
That’s a nice pasta adventure, Astrini! The good thing about Italian restaurants is that they offer their customers hospitable services, along with their scrumptious dishes. Anyway, thanks for sharing that! All the best to you!
ReplyDeleteLawrence Neal @ Prime-13