Pizza stars at Osteria Mozza

NEW RESTAURANT

Osteria Mozza Level 5, Hilton Singapore Orchard 333 Orchard Road Singapore 238867 Tel: 6831-6271 Open for lunch and dinner Mon to Sat: 12pm to 2.30pm; 5pm to 10.30pm. Closed on Sun.

THERE was a time in Singapore when pizzas came only from a hut, we had never met a Neapolitan, and the arrival of Pizzeria Mozza in 2010 was like a ticket to the golden temple of dough. 

Well, we’ve come a long way in the past 12 years. We don’t hanker for Hawaiian Choice like we used to. There are real Italian pizza makers living among us now. Even other “famous” American pizza names have swung by, although the excitement has been temporary. So what is it about Osteria Mozza that the moment it says “pizza”, we’re lining up at its doorstep with memories and Margherita expectations in mind?

Maybe because, like sushi, you can’t have too many pizza joints. Osteria Mozza already staged its Singapore comeback a couple of months ago, 3 years after being indelibly associated with Mario Batali’s sex life. But it’s the other claim to fame – Nancy Silverton’s pizza – that we care more about, and also why we’ve deliberately stayed away till they put it on the menu. 

There’s just one downside. They appear only during the lunch hour. You can’t even offer to pay them overtime. Once their shift is over, they’re gone, taking with them our inalienable, constitutional right to freedom of dinner choice. 

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So if you’re a die-hard, you’ll have to make do with a much smaller menu in the afternoon, with just a handful of salads, pastas and burrata options to keep your pizza company. But realistically, you won’t be able to eat much more, so it still works out as a credible snapshot of the whole Osteria experience.

It may not be at Marina Bay Sands anymore, but there’s no mistaking the slick, American Vegas-ness behind the pseudo-Italian rusticity of its new home at the equally new Hilton Singapore. Its smallish entrance – shared with another restaurant Estate – opens up to a deep dining hall with glimpses of greenery beyond, presumably its herb garden. Most of the action takes place in front, with the heavy cooking station stretching along one side, and a cool pasta and salad-making section in the middle. If you can’t score a table, a seat at this counter is a better prize, because you have a front-row view of the action. 

That includes watching probably the hardest-working human pasta machine – a young lady who rolls and cuts pasta by hand non-stop during our entire meal, while her colleague mixes and tosses one of the four salads on the menu. Our pick of smoked trout and waxy snap beans (S$26) turns out well. It is initially sharp and salty, but the assertive yoghurt-based dressing mellows out as the flakes of smoked fish meld with the salad greens, raw onions and almonds. 

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The Mozza caprese (S$28) is simplicity on a plate, but still a pleasing assembly of burrata ball drizzled with very good pesto and plump if tasteless roasted cherry tomatoes. Ask for some crunchy toast to stab the cheese with.

In the meantime, our Margherita pizza (S$34) is taking its time to cook in the oven. This is no 90-second, blink-and-be-blistered kind of dough that’s the norm. If you’re partial to the pale, puffy chewiness of Neapolitan, Mozza’s will be a different bite. The fermented sourdough starter gives it a very mild tang and less pillowy rise. The cornmeal-speckled crust has a deeper colour and a light crispness that ends in a resilient bite. The base itself is very thin and also crisp, unburdened by its light tomato sauce and mozzarella topping, so it doesn’t give way. The outcome may be different with more elaborate toppings, but this pizza has complexity – a Shiba Inu compared to the golden retriever of Neapolitan pizzas. For sure, there’ll be comparisons made, but which is better is not the right question to ask. 

Given how hard the pasta-maker works, we have to try something she made. Maltagliati (S$32) is proof of the pudding: ‘badly cut’ flat pasta that is light and chewy-tender, in a rich, meaty duck ragù that is hearty, but stops short of smothering you with American excess. 

Rosemary olive cakes (S$20) are fluffy, fragrant and moist – better on their own without holding up the unwieldy mountain of olive oil gelato. Served with a little puddle of olive oil and flakes of sea salt, the gelato has a lovely chewy-satiny texture, but is heavy going. So you have to pick between eating the pizza edges or finishing the gelato because you can’t do both. 

Naturally, the question will be whether the new Osteria Mozza is better than the old. Recollections will vary, so it’s best not to go there. As far as lunch is concerned, it’s a satisfying recap of Italian cooking, California style that springs no surprises, but delivers on execution. Consistency is the only thing that will make or break it, but from this little lunchtime taste, a deeper dive into dinner won’t be too far off. 

Rating: 7