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Aura
the page has enjoyed quite a few visits from Italian friends in recent weeks, so a big shout-out to and grazie to all. in the spirit of Italian fare, we had the opportunity to visit Aura at the National Gallery recently. established by the ilLido Group under renowned Italian restaurateur Beppe De Vito, Aura adds to their profile of quality Italian restaurants in Singapore.
Aura's brass and bronze colour theme brings about a sophisticated and elegant feel to the restaurant, and probably blends in well with the atmosphere of the National Gallery. we went for dinner and decided to try their degustation set menu. probably the best way to check out some of the chef's best interpretations in bite-sizes. before the courses was served, dinner came with complimentary Focaccia bread, olive oil and balsamic vinegar. the bread is really unique, very spongy in texture with a smooth skin crust drizzled with black olives. from the picture, it looks like traditional Chinese pastry. 
dinner itself was a 4 course meal that started with this Hokkaido Scallop Tartare served with sea urchin and Sevruga caviar. raw dishes are always tricky but Aura passes splendidly with fresh scallops that were soft and chewy, well accompanied by the explosive bits of caviar. this was followed up with a tasting portion of Fettuccine pasta with spanner crab, Prosecco and pollen. personally, i'm a big fan of authentic Italian pasta and i found the texture of this just right, with good spices and a reasonable portion of crab meat. 
there were a couple of choices for mains and we selected this Smoked Duck with Foie Gras, young spinach and Marsala Wine Sauce. Duck meat is probably one of the tougher poultry types to bite through and we found that the dish could be made a tad more tender. so we were a little torn with this one as the first impression with the wine sauce, the dash of hummus and first bites were great, but it somewhat became a jaw-bone exercise as we laboured to bite into the whole slice of duck. Our other main selection of Chilean Seabass with spicy Broccoletti and lemon potatoes was certainly a much safer choice. the fish was fresh, meat was tender and very easy to lap up. 
we kinda liked the dessert very much, this Chocolate and Hazelnut Tart served with Whisky Cream and Amarena cherries is just tops. and coming from someone who isn't a big fan of chocolate pastries, this is a huge compliment. post dinner activity for the romantics can adjourn to the sky-lounge bar where this is a fantastic view of the Padang and the Marina Bay skyline. in all, a hefty price tag for semi-fine-dining but a great experience of quality Italian food with good ambience. 
Aura 1 St Andrews Road #05-03 and #06-02 National Gallery Singapore Singapore 178957 Opening Hours Daily: 12 pm to 2 pm; 6:30 pm to 10 pm Skylounge is open from 11.30 am to 1 am daily an elegant and modern multi-concept dining destination... Labels: #aura, #degustationmenu, #illidogroup, #italianfood, #nationalgallerysingapore, #scalloptartare, #sgitalianfood |
..ThE lEgEnD..
Last Movie: Ad Astra
Golden Village, Singpost Centre 
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