Osvaldo Take 3

I'm not sure how come I've given Osvaldo a second and third chance in such a short span of time since my first visit, but I suppose it's because I had friends who were interested to know what Forlino should have tasted like. The menu hasn't changed at all since I first went there, but that was fine since it meant I had the chance to try other things. It was pretty empty when we walked in at 7.30pm, but got really crowded around 9.00pm. Case in point of software transfer where we're learning from the Italians to eat later!

I was eating with a friend who knows his food well and is fairly fussy about good food. Maybe that was why we had pretty good service - my first in all three visits.

For starters, we shared 2 things: First, we ordered a daily special that wasn't on the menu - a baked Tomino cheese wrapped with Parma Ham ($30), served with a salad.
This was really nice. The cheese and ham weren't too salty (as I initially feared), and the cheese was melty without being too rubbery.

We also had a serve of the beef carpaccio ($25). Osvaldo Forlino told us that apparently AVA regulations don't allow Italian (or any European, for that matter) beef to be imported to Singapore, so he had to use Australian beef (I forgot the cut he mentioned), which was chilled and sliced.

We shared a half-bottle of Chianti Classico ($60).

I was craving pasta, and ordered the piemonte agnolotti with veal ($23), which I've had previously. I really like it, but it had me craving truffles similar to what is served at Otto. The pasta, which is made freshly, is very supple. It was as good as I remembered.

My friend had the rabbit. His first reaction was "why is the bunny so small??" It was tender, and tasty though. He said the potatoes were good.

We were both still hungry (and greedy), and as a result we ordered a serve of spaghetti with fresh porcini mushrooms ($30) to share. This was a special for the day, and not on the printed menu. It was a winner! The sauce was creamy-ish without being too rich (I think they used butter), with a slight garlic and parsely taste and really good rich mushroom flavour. I can't remember the last time I had fresh porcini (must have been in Melbourne) but this was really outstanding. The spaghetti was cooked al dente - I had trouble figuring out if it was fresh or dry (my suspicion is the latter), but it was that good!

We shared a tiramisu ($13)since we were both so full - I had a cafe latte too. This was ordinary. Decent, but nothing to rave about.

Towards the end of the evening, the waitress brought around a bottle of honey wine with shot glasses for us to have a taste. This was apparently made by the boss' daughter (she didn't say which boss) in Italy by adding yeast to honey and allowing it to ferment for 6-8 months. It's not available anywhere else in Singapore. It was very pleasant.
After my first 2 tries, I felt that Osvaldo deserved another go despite certain disappointments, and I was right. I think the pastas are the real winners for me. The other food they serve (ie. starters, meat/seafood mains and desserts) is pretty good too, but other Italian restaurants in Singapore do them equally well.

We received really good service that night - I was pleasantly surprised to note that the waitress who had basically shown us a really black face on my 2nd try gave me a beaming smile this time round. Maybe she was having a bad day the last time. Or maybe - just maybe - it was the attire of my friend who was dressed to look every bit the successful young chap that he is.

Osvaldo Ristorante Italiano
32 Maxwell Road#01-03
Maxwell Chambers
Tel: 6224 0978
Mon-Sat: 11.30am-2.30pm, 6.30pm-10.30pm(Closed on Sundays)