Cugini Trattoria Pizzeria

I love Italian cuisine. In fact almost everyone does. No wonder Elizabeth Gilbert chose Italy as her gustatory destination in Eat, Pray, Love.

Nested in one of the colourful Peranakan shophouses on Club Street, Cugini Trattoria Pizzeria is a 2-storey restaurant serving Southern Italian cuisine. With an awning bearing its logo and furnitures beautifully painted in ocean blue, it stands out from the neighbouring pubs and bars.

I certainly am no expert but after a little bit of research, I have learnt that Italian food is extremely diverse with different regional fare. It seems that fresh pastas made with eggs, rice, beef and speciality sausages and more commonly found in Northern Italy due to their fertile soil. Whereas the southern regions enjoy lighter flavours with olive oil, anchovies, seafood and lamb. I am not sure if Cugini bears the authenticity of Sardina and Sicily as their owner claims, but the food was surely delicious. They also put in a lot of effort into decorating the venue. Even the plates have all been beautifully hand-painted.

The complimentary bread was served with a Spanish dressing made with carrot, garlic and olive oil. It was light and creamy but I preferred my foccacia with olive oil :)

The pizza had a thin base and a mildly smoky crust. Tomato sauce went very well with the squid and the fish but they were not very generous with the toppings!

This was the special pasta of the night and the portion was rather small. But the freshly made pasta cooked to al dente had a bouncy texture and the beef sauce was amazingly sweet and juicy!

The squid ink fettucine was beautifully presented but unfortunately too spicy for W's taste. The pasta had just the right thickness and every inch was coated with the delicious creamy sauce. Again I wished the serving was a big bigger.

Their tiramisu was incredibly rich and smooth. I could not get enough!

Cugini Trattoria Pizzeria
87 Club Street Singapore