This is No Menu restaurant’s more casual outpost, and the first clear indicator of its status is the service—it comes across as too-familiar, an affected show of Italian hospitality, without actually being helpful or prompt.
But if you can get past that, No Menu Bar’s gussied-up kopitiam setting is genuinely charming—they don’t try to be posh or precious or sexy—which makes this a brilliant place for alfresco wine chugging while watching the world go by. (House wines served in carafes that go up to a liter.)
That doesn’t mean you can rely on them for bar grub, though. Some of the tapas dishes are pretty slapdash—gorgonzola-smeared celery sticks ($14), canned tuna on toast ($14)—and even no-fail fare like calamari ($24) and four-cheese pizza ($26) were underwhelming. Meats are more interesting, because they don’t play it safe. The homemade sausage ($14) and cold cuts ($25) were unapologetically meaty and barnyard-funky—at this point you find out if you’re really a carnivore. But the true standout is their sea urchin spaghetti ($29), a truly sublime plate of carbs with a hard-to-describe, crack-like flavor that’s not unlike really good wok hei.
Still, at these prices, you’re better off dining at a proper sit-down place with decent service and more thoughtful plates.
Mamma mia! Is your favorite Italian restaurant on our list of Singapore’s best?
