Tuesday, September 04, 2012

Buko Nero


C says:

The thing about Buko Nero is that if you don't make your next reservation while you're still there finishing up your current meal, you kind of lose the groove and end up not going for ages. That, coupled with just too many new places to try, meant a hiatus of almost a year since our last visit.

The set up still hasn't changed, with Oscar running the kitchen solo and Tracy running front of house. Their 5-course set dinner is still a steal at $55, especially given the audacious prices that some places are charging these days.

Amuse bouche was a hard boiled egg puree on a crisp crostini topped with confit tomato. Light, fresh and a great start to the meal.

Salad was a simple green salad with sliced nashi pear, tossed in a balsamic vinaigrette. It was simple but perfectly seasoned, with the ingredients paired surprisingly well.

I really like Oscar's light cream soups, so was slightly disappointed with the crabmeat and coriander bisque. It was more like a clear crab consomme thickened with beaten egg, a bit like an egg drop soup. The coriander was fairly subtle but I still have trouble getting used to the flavour.

After the white peach and calamansi sherbet, A had the rigatoni with salmon ragu that was part of the set, and I changed the main to one of the day's specials - a tagliatelle with lobster and porcini mushroom in a bisque sauce. The tagliatelle was great, really flavourful yet rustic. The rigatoni was okay, but a bit too typical.

The dessert was a ricotta cheesecake drizzled with honey, and served with a raspberry gelato. The cheesecake with honey was outstanding; perfect end to the meal.

Despite some newcomers on the restaurant scene that we're clearly enamoured with, I still have a soft spot for Buko Nero. A visit there always makes us happy, and while once a month is a bit of a stretch, we'd ideally like to head back maybe every quarter. If we can get a reservation, that is. 

A says:

Brilliant cheesecake. Very good meal. Pity it’s so hard to get a last minute reservation.

Buko Nero
126 Tanjong Pagar Road
Tel: 6324-6225
Dinner: 6.30pm to 9.30pm (Tuesday to Saturday)
Lunch: Noon to 2pm (Friday and Saturday)
Closed Sunday and Monday

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