The colours, lightness, scents and flavours of an Italian Spring are brought together to the table at Braci - ilLido Group’s platform for showcasing progressive Italian cuisine in a private and personal kitchen which invites diners to experience that exceptionality in the exclusive Italian hideaway overlooking the Singapore River.
With a name that literally means ‘embers’ in Italian, Braci embarks guests on a journey to the North of Italy through the Padan Plain, delta of the Po River, Coast of Liguria, Milano City, Alpine lakes and the Dolomite Mountains. These painstakingly sourced produce are met with Chef De Cuisine Matteo Ponti’s creativity and personal experiences, transformed into a Spring menu that serenades guests’ curiosity and demonstrates a reverence for classical Italian roots and a youthful, vibrant innovative spirit.
Delicate snacks set the scene - Ricchi e Poveri refers to noble and peasant in Italian. This is where Chef Matteo showcases both food cultures from the North of Italy; a potato open cannolo filled with pork trotter salad which is often popular in Italy’s countryside and topped with oscietra caviar which is a representation for the rich and affluent. As the Po river used to host a substantial amount of sturgeons, the caviar culture has predominantly been present in Italy for generations.
Carpione
To start off with the appetizers is the Carpione which is a North Italian tradition of preserving fried fish in a vinegar and vegetable solution. Plated in the middle is a rose layered with cured kingfish, smoked eel and black radish. The rose is encompassed with a carpione jelly which is made with smoked eel broth, white vinegar, amalfi lemon and finished with marigold oil and shiso flower.
In tribute to his family’s northern Italian roots, Chef Matteo reinterprets the Ossobuco which is one of his signature dishes. He reconstructs the entire dish beginning with the edible hollow shank bone. Made with 36-month-aged Parmigiano Reggiano Vacche Rosse – milk from the red Reggiana cattle, the bone is filled with a hand-chopped tartare of free-range, grass-fed beef tenderloin and topped with toasted saffron threads nod back to the flavoured risotto that the classic dish is usually served with.
Simplicity takes centre stage for the main courses. The first of the mains is the Linguine in Laguna. A Monograno Felicetti is used for this dish. This top-quality pasta from the Dolamite Mountains is made from single types of grains and exudes a harmony of aromas and flavours. In paying homage to the abundance growth of nettles grown during the season of Spring, Chef Matteo has used his mother’s recipe of a nettles pesto which the dish is then finished with hamaguri clams, sea asparagus and borage. Simple yet exquisite.
Agnello Pasquale
The next course is the Prosciutto e Piselli. A beautiful 7 days dry aged sawara cooked on a sichirin grill and prepared medium rare. It is served with sea succulents and finished with the prosciutto e piselli sauce. This classic pasta sauce originated from Emilia-Romagna, a region in Northern Italy, extending from the Apennine Mountains to the Po River in the north and was a trend in the 80s and 90s.
The final main dish of the menu is the Agnello Pasquale. This is inspired by Easter as lamb and chocolate eggs are the most popular food items being celebrated and consumed during Easter. Both elements are featured in this main course and include a charcoal grilled maimao lamb saddle and a 100% pure dark chocolate stuffed morel.
A selection of sweets will continue to intrigue the minds and taste buds of diners. First on the list is the Magiostrella which is an old dialect name for street vendors to sell their strawberries. In here, there is a cardamon mousse crowned with hearts of strawberry mara des bois which are a variety of everbearing strawberries that produce shiny red aromatic gems. This is topped with smoked dark chocolate gelato and finished with yogurt and black mint sauce.
Petit Fours
Next on the list is the Veneziana which is a sweet focaccia from the Veneto region. Rosa del Borgo translated to ‘Rose of the Village’ is one of Chef Matteo’s signature desserts. It is an assembly of oabika namelaka, a polenta sable and incorporates a rose infused vinegar made by IL Borgo del Balsamico.
The star from the dessert menu is the Tiramisu Tartlet which consists of espresso ganache and marsala jelly. This bite-sized tartlet is topped with a charcoal burned mascarpone marshmallow which gives it a nice smoky aftertaste. The Tukelin de Grana is a frozen parfait made of Grana Padano 12 months and white chocolate, apricot gel and almond cookie.
a. 52 Boat Quay, #05-01/ #06-01, Singapore 049841
w. www.braci.sg
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