Experience la dolce vita with the familiar and comforting flavours of classic Italian cuisine with Duomo Ristorante at CHJIMES.
Judging by the number of Italian restaurants opening in Singapore every other month, it’s safe to say Singaporeans can’t seem to get enough of Italian food. From new casual trattorias popping up in every other street corner or famous Neapolitan pizzerias opening an outlet here, Italian is by far the most popular European cuisine in town.
Among the latest to join the fray? Duomo Ristorante, located within CHIJMES right in the heart of Singapore’s civic district. And it’s rather appropriate too – Duomo is Italian for cathedral, and the restaurant literally flanks what used to be the historic convent school’s chapel before it was restored as a dining and nightlife complex in the 1990s.
Duomo Ristorante sticks to tradition. From its homely decor to the sprawling menu, it looks and feels like every restaurant you’d find in the piazza of any town throughout the Italian peninsula.
Not that it’s a bad thing. The restaurant proudly showcases the rusticity of Italian cuisine, drawing on the best produce sourced from Italy and turning them into the many classics you’d find from the Alpine north to the more maritime south of the country. And the wide plains in between.
The La Bruschetta is everything you expect of the starter, a loaded toast of pecorino cheese, garlic pesto and fabulously sweet Pizzutelli tomatoes from Sicily, while the razor thin slices of melt-in-the-mouth beef in the Wagyu Beef Carpaccio demands Chianti for a romantic dance on your palate.
The Seafood Cioppino is excellent too, the rich seafood-laden tomato broth reminding me of the one I loved at Sotto Mare in San Francisco. I had to regretfully push most of my bowl away, in case the succulent shellfish in my cioppino triggers a gout attack.
It was the same with the Taglioni Gamberi & Limone, an absolutely delicious tangle of pasta and grilled prawns that’s scented with a touch of lemon. But at least I could avail of the Gnocchi Funghi & Salciccia, its pork ragout giving almost bak chor mee vibes.
The namesake Bella Duomo pizza, the restaurant tells us, is a must order. It’s pretty good, the toppings of mortadella, mozzarella, straciatella and pistachio outrageously combining for a riot of textures and flavours.
Main courses weren’t as impressive, but it could be just the two we ordered. The octopus tentacle in our Polipo Arrosto came well grilled yet tender, but was a little small for the portion considering its price tag. The Nodino di Maiale fared better; the sizeable pork chop juicy and played well with the accompanying apple mustard.
As for dessert, the Duomo Tiramisu is a must. The one here has each layer weaved into an aria of perfect harmony. It deserves an encore.
If you’re looking for fancy plating or experimental gastronomy, you won’t find it here. Instead Duomo Ristorante offers food that’s rustic and honest-to-goodness in a lovely setting, the kind that no Italian nonna can fault with.
And that’s amore.
Duomo Ristorante
Address 30 Victoria St, #01-32 CHIJMES, Singapore 187996 (Google Maps link)
Opening Hours 12pm to 2.30pm and 5.30pm to 11pm Mondays to Fridays; Wednesdays to Mondays; closed on Tuesdays
Tel (65) 8911 4874
Web duomoristorante.com
Facebook duomoristorante
Instagram @duomoristorantesg
Reservations book here
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