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2013-10-05
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My friends and I were looking for a place for our quarterly get together. One of them suggested dining in at Trattoria Gallo D’oro (The Golden Rooster) which is an Italian restaurant located at Central Mall. Frankly, it is my first time to this mall and I got confused between this mall and the one at Clarke Quay. Do note that it is two different malls, this Central Mall is located at 7 Magazie Road. This place is definitely less popular among the public, gauging from the crowd there. The restaur
We had made reservations prior to coming and we are seated immediately. The decor of the restaurant is very simple and very cozy. I felt as though I was at a friend's place instead of a restaurant and I immediately felt very relaxed here. The chef is a very friendly man as he mingled with us a little and he took the trouble make some recommendations to us as we are all quite new to Italian food.
The chef's philosophy is "Have food, must share" which is why the dishes here are generally prepared for sharing and placed in the middle of the table. We ordered a total of 7 dishes. First up was the appetizer, the Burratina di bufala con pomodorini $18++, or more simply, buffalo burratina cheese. The cheese looks more like large whites enveloping large yolks, and the exterior of the cheese is actually quite hard. However, once you cut it, it is actually quite soft and the cheese is actually rather sticky. I was expecting it to be very heavy in taste, but surprisingly, the cheese is actually quite light tasting and does not have a very strong cheesy taste. I love spreading it with the bread that they serve. Speaking about the bread, it is very unique as well, with what tastes like vinegar green chilli within the bread. I also love the soft, slightly saltish and chewy texture of the bread.
The next dish we had was the Sardine fritte $25++. Although it was stated that it is a main, it felt more like an appetizer instead. When we say sardines, we normally think of those canned Ayam brand sardines. Once you had the sardines here, you will never look at sardines the same away again. The sardines here are flown in from Italy, and it is then deep fried until crisp and served with onions and lemon. Even though it is deep fried, it is not greasy at all and it is really crisp to the bite. I felt as though I was eating fried crackers because of its savoury taste. The onions and lemon also add some zesty tang to the sardines. This is one main that I will definitely recommend.
We ordered one of the pasta dishes as well, the Casonsei alla Bergamasca $20++ or stuffed veal ravioli, is served with crispy bacon. The ravoli is basically pasta wrapped around the veal filling. I would say it resembles the wantons, only that the filling is different. One good thing about the ravioli is that since it per piece, we can simply scoop one ravioli up easily with our fork and savour it. The filling inside the ravioli, the veal (beef), is tender, juicy and very tasty. The crispy bacon condiment further lifts up the taste of the dish as the bacon bits are very savoury and provide a burst of flavour when biting into it. Although it was a pasta dish, it did not feel too heavy on the carbohydrates because of the veal filling inside.
We also had to order their Involtini di manzo ripieni $28++ which is the rolled beef with mozzarella and tomato sauce. Although the beef is very tender, I did not actually taste any of the cheese within the beef, so that is quite a disappointment. I was expecting the cheese to be gooey like eating a pizza but it wasn't the case. In addition, the beef taste is rather strong, and even though I ate only two pieces or “roll”, it made me sick of the taste quickly and I did not reach out for a third serving. However, I must commend the rich tomato sauce which is very tasty.
The next main that was served to us was the Branzino intero al forno $29++, which is oven baked whole Sea Bass. The sea bass was flavoured with leeks and Italian herbs and it is quite light tasting so it is actually quite suitable since most of the dishes that we had was rather strong tasting. The fish does not come with any sauce or dressing, but even so, the meat is still tender and flavourful as it is naturally seasoned by the herbs. I really enjoyed this dish a lot. However, I think it would be better if the chefs could cut it up (not sure if there is such a service if we request) for us since it can get quite messy if each diner takes his own share.
Last of the mains is the Pollo al forno rustic $26++, or simply roasted chicken with potatoes, olives and shallots. Different parts of the chicken is used so depending on which part that you got, the meat will be different. The portion of the chicken which I got happens to be the chicken thigh which is very tender and juicy to the bite. The taste of the chicken meat is also great as it is well seasoned and tossed with the herbs with a nice olive oil fragrance to the chicken. The cubed potatoes are slightly hard on the outside and soft on the inside. I believe they may have lightly fried the potatoes to achieve the slightly hard exterior of the potatoes.
Finally, we are served dessert, which is the Torta della Nonna con gelato, $10++ or Grandmother’s custard cake with vanilla gelato. The cake is sweet and crusty at the ends and soft in the middle. I don’t really have a sweet tooth, so I found it to be too sweet, but for people with sweet tooths, this would definitely be alright for them. I particularly enjoyed the vanilla gelato. It is so smooth and not too sweet nor overly heavy. Overall, I found this place to be quite cozy and relaxed with its warm and soft lightings. The Italian food here is homely and as authentic as it can get. It is a great place for friends and families who want Italian food since the mall is away from the main crowd. In addition, the concept of sharing the food is a further draw for friends/families to bond over food. We are definitely coming back here in future for our get togethers. Service is also great as the chef was very friendly, recommending the food and checking with us on how we felt about the food. The service staff also topped up our water frequently and were prompt to replace our cutley after a few dishes were served.
Tips:
- Do make a reservation as the restaurant is quite small and there is limited seating capacity
- Do take note that it is closed on Sundays, so do not make plans for it if you are planning to come on a Sunday
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