Da Paolo’s recent overhaul features minimalist décor and a menu boasting more seafood offerings.
By Yong Yung Shin
Tagliatelle Bellavista. PHOTO COURTESY OF DA PAOLO RISTORANTE.
Something fishy’s going on at Da Paolo, and we mean it in the most positive way. The stalwart 23-year-old Italian restaurant has been through an overhaul of its interior, taking on a classic white theme, and updating its menu to offer more seafood-based dishes.
For starters, the tantalizingly aromatic Crema di Crostacei (S$22) with lobster, crab, langoustine, cream as well as a quick dash of cognac and truffle oil is a soup that’s good enough to be a meal itself if you’re in the mood for a light lunch.
Diners who want to pile on the protein can go for the Baked Sea Bass (S$40), served with celery, cherry tomatoes and olives. Highly reminiscent of our signature Teochew steamed fish with sour plums and vegetables, it is nevertheless a quintessential Italian dish that will go down well with fish-lovers; the fish is filleted whole. Of course, red-meat diehards may want to try the Agnello dell’Aquila (S$38), a dish of roasted lamb tenderized in Galliano liquor and served with ricotta cheese and herbs.
The white-themed interiors of Da Paolo’s second storey dining space.
If you want to fall back on safe options, Da Paolo’s fresh pasta is always a palate-pleaser. The Tagliatelle Bellavista (S$36) showcased the restaurant’s homemade egg pasta to great effect, each springy strand of tagliatelle coated in a lobster sauce accentuated with tangy notes from the cherry tomatoes.
Longtime patrons will find it hard to resist Da Paolo’s famous tiramisu, but the Delizie ai Tre Cioccolati (S$18) is worth breaking tradition. A special creation of Chef Morelli, it is a creamy pile-up of Venezuelan dark chocolate mousse atop Piedmont hazelnut milk chocolate mousse and Madagascar vanilla white chocolate, served in a tall dessert glass. Indulgent but not overwhelmingly sweet.
Lunch sets are available at S$28.
Da Paolo Ristorante
80 Club Street,
Singapore 069448
+65 6224 7081
