Following our generally positive experience with the Singapore Restaurant Week events in 2014, we decided to sign up for a few restaurants at this year’s restaurant week which lasts from 14 to 22 March 2015. The first restaurant that we tried was Ristorante Amarone which is located at the Capital Tower on Robinson Road.
During Restaurant Week, participating outlets roll out special menus for the occasion featuring 3-course lunch and dinners at $25 and $35 respectively. More acclaimed places charge $15 and $20 more for lunch and dinner respectively. The Amarone Italian restaurant is a warm and attractive place. Its high ceiling and judicious use of wood paneling lends a homely yet spacious feel to the premises. Interestingly, a part of its walls was used to screen some movie snippets, which provided entertainment for those waiting for their friends to arrive but we felt it detracted from the ambience of the room.
As a restaurant with a star, they offered a three-course dinner at $55. There were only two options for each course so we were able to try out all the choices.
The appetizers were served promptly. The Grandma’s vegetable soup was just that. Simple, light vegetable soup. The other appetizer was mixed salad and fruits with burrata cheese. This was slightly more interesting than the soup as the burrata was fresh and went well with the fruits. However, while there was nothing wrong with them, the appetizers were quite ordinary.
The main courses were homemade tagliolini with crab meat ragu and Juniper lamb T-bone in red wine reduction. The lamb was very bony with a low meat to bone ratio. While the red wine sauce had a good taste, we found that texture of the meat to be rubbery. The pasta was the better choice. With quite a generous use of crab meat, the tagliolini had a good seafood taste. We might order this should we visit the restaurant again, but definitely not the lamb.
Finally, it was time for desserts. We are glad to report that after the rather lacklustre preceding courses, the desserts were enjoyed by all of us. The ice-creams were very creamy and delicious. The other dessert was a guava flavoured cake. This was certainly an unusual fruit to be used in a cake but it was a success. The cake was creatively presented and the unusual blend of guava and other fruits was delightful.
All in all, our first experience of Singapore Restaurant Week 2015 was a so-so one. Perhaps our expectations were raised as the restaurant looked good and the service staff were attentive and helpful, but the food (other than the dessert) were not of the same high standard. You can read about our experiences in 2014 here, here and here.
Ratings:
Food: 2
Service: 4
Value: 2
Atmosphere: 4
Overall Rating: 3 TOPs
Amarone Ristorante
168 Robinson Rd, Capital Tower,
#01- 08 / 09 / 10
Singapore 068912
Reservation Hotline
(+65) 6423 0464
Monday – Friday
Coffee 9:00am – 11:30am
Lunch 11:30am – 2:30pm (2:00pm Last Order)
High Tea 2:30pm – 6:30pm
Dinner 6:30pm – 10:00pm (9:30pm Last Order)
Saturday
Dinner 6:30pm – 10:00pm (9:30 pm Last Order)
Operating Hours
9:00am – 11:00pm (Monday-Friday)
6:30pm – 10:00pm (Saturday)