Pastaria Abate – Spectacular Pasta that Won’t Break the Bank

A step into Pastaria Abate is like taking a step into a teleport machine — I am immediately whisked to an Italian bistro in Naples, Italy. The warm orange glow in the restaurant makes the space feel cozy and warm, like home. 

Pastaria Abate is run by the affable Mr Gino Abate, who was born in Italy but migrated to Australia, before settling down in Singapore with his Singaporean wife. According to him, their family used to make everything from scratch at home in Italy and Australia. With a wistful smile, Mr Abate recalled his family’s cooking adventures, and how his mother used to simmer “red sauce” for a minimum of 8 hours. His reason for opening Pastaria Abate? To bring the pasta so often made by his mum, grandparents and great-grandparents, which cannot be found in Singapore, to us all. As Mr Abate recounted his story and motivations, I sensed a very genuine passion for authentic and traditional Italian home-cooking. The admiration and respect for his family recipes is also clearly evident in Pastaria Abate’s logo — the Abate Family Crest.

My eyes brightened upon hearing that all pastas and sauces here are freshly made in-house, for this is rather uncommon in Singapore. And, my eyes brightened even more when I saw the sign “No Service Charge, No GST, Nett Prices” in a black cursive font.  Gino aims to make the food here as affordable as possible, since fresh, home-made pastas in Singapore are generally quite expensive.

The staff here are very friendly and helpful, which makes the place really nice to dine at. The menu comprises appetizers, mains, pastas and desserts. Of course, we ordered the pasta, as it is the shop’s signature. Pick your pasta (there are a whopping 16 types available), then your sauce (red, cream or white), and finally, the dish. We opted for the Italian Sausage with Tagliatelle ($12.80 nett) and Truffle Carbonara ($15.80 nett), and picked the Fried Mozzarella ($6.80 nett) to share.

The Fried Mozzarella ($6.80), a hot favourite at the cafe, was extremely stretchy. It’s perfect for cheese lovers who love pulling hot cheese apart. I’ve to say that Pastaria Abate is extremely generous with their mozzarella filling. I liked that the mozzarella bites were not too salty, even though I didn’t really fancy the “strawberry sauce”, which in my opinion, tasted like a heavily watered-down tomato sauce.

The Italian Sausage with Tagliatelle pasta was silky, light and thin, and I immediately knew that it was hand-made. I enjoyed the generous chunks of Italian sausage too. While the herbs and spices made the Italian sausage flavourful and savoury, I wished that the pasta was slightly saltier. Nonetheless, this is Gino’s family recipe, and the pasta sauce is one that’s made with hours of love and effort (it has been simmered for more than 8 hours), so I appreciate the immense amount of effort put into the dish. The cheese sprinkled on top added a strong and bold flavour, which I thoroughly enjoyed.

Both my friend and I agreed that the Truffle Carbonara ($15.80) was extremely delicious. We could immediately tell when the truffle carbonara exited the kitchen, for its characteristic fragrance wafted through the entire place. We chose the linguine, which did a good job in trapping the delicious truffle cream sauce between the strands. Break the egg yolk on top of the pasta for an even creamier, smoother and richer sauce. To cut the story short: the Truffle Carbonara is one you must definitely order, and is worth every penny!

To end the meal, we were served the Traditional Tiramisu ($6.80). The Tiramisu was incredibly soft and fluffy, where the experience felt as if I were eating a cloud. If you have a sweet tooth, you will definitely love this. On top of that, the tiramisu is made fresh daily, and limited slices are available.

Pastaria Abate serves extremely fresh, authentic, and delightful pasta. What more can you ask for? Good food, lovely ambience and most importantly, the prices here are really affordable. I think I’ve just found myself a new favourite hang-out spot!

MissTamChiak.com made anonymous visit and paid its own meal at the stall featured here.