osvaldo

Housed in the corner of a refurbished 1940s Customs House, now known as Maxwell Chambers, Osvaldo is family style Italian restaurant owned and run by Chef Osvaldo Forlino, formerly of the Forlino Restaurant at the Fullerton, which still uses his name. Having left Forlino, he wanted to put behind formal high end cuisine and do something simpler and closer to his heart. The food at Osvaldo is best described as rustic and down-to-earth. There is no overwrought plating or presentation, just honest food with excellent ingredients.

Entering the restaurant through the door which was once the main entry to the building facing the junction of Maxwell Road and Shenton Way, the whole restaurant comes into view. Seperated onto 2 split levels (probably pre-exisiting and not by design), the space is large with high ceiling but at the same time intimate and welcoming. Littled with Chef Osvaldo's collection anitque furniture, the decor is simple and rustic, if a little nonchalant and haphazard (in an endearing and homely way).

In between tending the kitchen, Chef Forlino can be seen going from table to table casually chatting with patrons, explaining the food and checking if everything is alright. As this was our first proper meal at the restaurant (I have been to the restaurant previously but only for a quick but excellent pasta during lunch time),we spoke to Chef Forlino who offered to arrange for an assortment of items for the table to share.



Having no idea which items we were going to be served, the meal began with a food train of antipasti. We were served a total of 7 antipasti which includes bell pappers stuff with tuna mayo, russian salad, bresaola, cold cuts platter, fresh anchovies, bruschetta and buffalo mozarrella.

The anti pasti were mostly excellent, perhaps with the exception of the russian salad which was a little like what you might get as part of lunch in some cafeteria. The bruschetta was particularly outstanding, the sweetness of the diced tomato highlighted with olive oil and basil. The waiter, when he served the Bruschetta, quipped, "can make at home!". The simplest food allows the natural falvour of the ingredients to be expressed but also requires the use of good ingredients as the lack of flavour cannot be masked by seasoning.

After the antipasti, we were served 3 pastas to be shared. Firstly, it was the Piemonte agnolotti with veal shank sauce. Stuffed with bacon, the pillows of agnolotti were bursting with the smoky goodness of bacon, which was complemented by the lightness of the veal sauce. The second one was the home made tajarin with squid ink sauce. I usually do not order squid ink pasta but I rather enjoyed this one. The last and my favorite one was the tagliatelle with wild boar ragout. This dish is simply tagliatelle tossed with minced pork in broth, basically an Italian bak chor mee. I am partial to flat pastas but the winner in this dish for me is the pork ragout which was so full of flavour. All the pastas were perfectly cooked, firm with a bit of bite.

Being rather gluttonous that day, we ordered the lamb shank which was recommended by the waiter who had served us earlier. The meat on the lamb shank, together with the gelatinous tissue around the joint, slid off the bone with a slight pull of the fork, tender and juicy (melt-in-your-mouth, to use the food blogger cliche), with the sprig of rosemary scenting every bite.



We rounded off the meal with a trio of desserts, which perhaps were rather disappointing. The more interesting one was the ice cream spaghetti which was strings of vanilla ice cream served with strawberry syrup. Someone commented it tasted like Wall's ice cream in a good way, but I found the sweetness rather flat. My favorite was unexpectedly the meringue sandwich with just a dollop of cream in the centre, creating a nice contrast in texture and sweetness.

Using locally sourced fresh ingredients and from the Forlino family farm in Italy, Osvaldo serves up uncomplicated food that tingles the tastebuds without try too hard. There is an inherent honesty that permeates beyond the food into every element of the restaurant, from the casual atmosphere, the charming but not overthought decor and the professional service. The outstanding front of house staff played a particularly important part in crafting the experience at Osvaldo. Ample knowledge of the food served and sincere recommendations, coupled friendly banter, are not something that is easy to find in Singapore restaurants; it's like being hosted in a friend's home. The idea of a cosy neighbourhood Italian restuarant serving home style Italian food is perhaps still a rather foreign concept in Singapore, but Osvaldo has scored very high marks in my books.

Osvaldo
Unit 03, 01/F
Maxwell Chambers
32 Maxwell Road