I thought long and hard about writing this review. I wasn't going to because I usually enjoy writing only for two types of restaurants:
1. Lousy ones that I hope to play a part in getting rid of.
2. Good ones because I want to maybe help bring them more business.

Now...Buko Nero.

I finally made a concerted effort about one month back to get a reservation, asking them about every day of June and agreeing to an early dinner at 6.30pm (they have two sittings, 6.30pm and 9pm). I told Tracy that I would get gastric and faint by 9pm!

I didn't want to write this review at first because I was not inspired by the place, but I think it's not through any fault of theirs. I thought the food was competently done and that the pasta dishes were very very well executed. It's just that I really just do prefer my Italian food to be tradtional....you know, cucina typica or cucina della mama. Buko Nero's food had more of an Asian / fusion / french feel. We both had the set and changed our pasta dishes.

I only decided to write this after reading the other reviews on HGW. I did not think that the service was pretentious, lacking, rude or absent. Yeah, so it's difficult to get a reservation. But you know, that's Buko Nero's right. What to do? They are popular.

Tracy was pleasant throughout, kept our water glasses filled (and was ok bringing me warm water the whole night in a little pot). She also remembered me saying at the beginning that I was under the weather and wished me well as we were leaving. The food came in a steady, well timed manner. What exactly was pretentious?? Pretentious is Garibaldi, where the waiters dress to the nines and the restaurant projects an upmarket ambience but the waiters constantly make faux pas like leaning over you to get to your friend on the left, or handing you a knife with the sharp side pointing at you.

Tracy certainly was not as warm to me as to her regular clients. But it's ok. We don't know each other, don't need to hug and kiss and make conversation with each other throughout the night. I was there to make conversation with my husband.

So all in all, would I return? Yes if I were hankering for italian food with a twist.

I have been toying with the idea for a revisit since the last circa end 2006.

And so I finally managed a reservation for lunch with the Friend. Wasn’t that hard actually. After all I did call a month ago.

The focaccia still taste wonderfully homemade, crumbly, aromatic and punctuated with distinct notes of herbs. Tracy then popped over and served us this uber cool morsel of Buffalo Mozzarella with Balsamic Vinaigrette amuse bouche, which even if it did seem a bit characterless at first, but never mind the aesthetics or process, the end result was just delicious.

Our Spinach and Crabmeat Soup had the most delicate yet delicious flavor combination that was just subtly vitalizing but most gratifying.

For mains, I savored the Oven Baked Cod with Rosemary Crust, Tamarind Broth and Baby Brinjal (Oscar does brilliant fish all the time :)) with elements that have no relation to one other but taste fantastic together anyway. What can be more dramatic than marrying both my favorite fish and vegetable mutually into an appealing center piece for lunch? The gorgeous slab of cod was evenly cooked all the way through; the rosemary crust more than complements its deliciousness and the baby eggplant braised till pappy. An ingenious play of tangy, savory and heady that may have shades of Japanese but is 100 per cent Italian. Almost bewildering, yet remarkable and incredible.

For sweet endings, we had a Warm Chocolate Cake(s) with Caramel Coulis that ignited only the oohh…ooh….mmm… effect. Need I say more? :)

The dynamic duo offers a very affordable set lunch on Fridays and Saturdays where diners can choose from 2 starters, mains and desserts all for $25. Set dinner is even more reasonable at $48 (if you don’t upgrade your main) for 5 courses.

Oscar and Tracy happen to disappear for certain periods of the year when they hibernate and tinker with their short and succinct menu that actually covers quite a lot of ground for a one man show. Certain classics like the Tau Kwa Tower and Creamy Porcini Mushroom Soup with Truffle Oil are sure to stay. Oscar dishes out strange but delicious combinations which add a different and very fresh dimension to the very warmed-over Italian regulars. His cuisine is distinctively Italian, but he adds a dash and splash of Asia and transforms it into a concerted fusion.

And the best part? Anticipation for the next visit.

And thus my title coz in case you didn’t already know, Buko Nero has a no-photography stance. I know it from long ago so The Equipment was left at home anyway. I was there purposefully to enjoy good food today. :)

ps: oh how could I forget to mention the super enlivening Mango and Peach Tea? I had it again. :)

Oscar is good at what he does so one will generally not be disappointed with the food. If you pick any of the specials, it can't really go wrong.

A dining experience is not complete without good service and sadly, this is what Buko Nero lacks. Given all the trouble I had trying to get a reservation and coupled with pretentiousness, I shall not return.

Remember them for the quirky amuse bouches (imagine strawberry with gorgonzola crostinis), the herby homemade foccacia bread, the full-bodied horlicks ice-cream, their seriously original peach mango tea, the very inviting toilet furnished with a rack of foreign magazines (saying: help yourselves to them when you poo poo). Oh…not to mention Oscar/ Tracy’s? toothbrush on the sink, and the ‘lofty’ tau kwa tower with a crowning glory of dignified greens (hey! I learnt to eat alfalfa sprouts then lol), and my very fruity cod (applaud Oscar for such an imaginative mango sauce for my fish!). Such coveted reputation that witnessed many a gourmand tearing their hair out over not being to get a place in The Restaurant with the Hardest Reservation in Singapore. That place with an eclectic, adventurous cuisine, that is curiously Italian (think porcini mushroom soup), Asian (hey! That mystifying sweet black sauce is kacip manis!) and Japanese (think miso-crusted food) all at the same time.

But sad to say those were the only good memories. I feel the couple come across as quite pretentious. Gourmet food aside, their service really needs some fine tuning. The Man is The Cook with an Attitude. The Woman’s really only chummy to her regulars. Or so I think, Pretending to be friendly. With so many cynical evaluations on their service, I think it really speaks volume for the lack thereof. I mean…what can be so taxing for the couple running a 20-seater restaurant, serving only 8 out of the supposedly 21 meals that a healthy individual is supposed to consume per week? Hello? They don’t even slog to wash the dirty dishes. .They use a dishwasher. Oh…or so I heard The Man’s giving classes in a cooking school during the day, while on their off days crossing legs sipping mochas in the Dempsey area and in the recent times LOL sitting pretty in print ads selling refrigerators (for heaven’s sake!) for a particular electrical brand.

Naturally their motive is not to make money out of this lovey-dovey, small yet roaring enterprise of their union. Thus it must be their penchant for the service industry. Their love for putting good food into happy bellies and smiles (or frowns?) on people’s faces.

Then why all that charade? Why create all that ‘make-yourself-at-home’ make-believe setting? All that pretext exchanging privately between that dynamic east-west duo during the whole course of our meals?

(But it is really NOT THE MONEY!!!) Or is it?...

Or did anyone out there forget that The humble Tau Kwa at the Tanjong Pagar market down the road cost at most just 50 cents per piece?

LOL.

First things first, I'm no gourmet, and usually I eat out at mainstream eateries ($20-$30 meals). After reading the reviews, I was quite prepared NOT to like the place, and quite sure it was going to be a pretentious affair.

BUT.....IT WAS REALLY GOOD LEI.

There were 6 of us, so we ordered quite a variety, and us being us, we of course must try everybody's food. So the forks were flying all over the place. (And no, no one gave us any disapproving looks)

We had for entrees: (this is based on memory, so I would have omitted some)

Tau Kwa Tower - overrated in my opinion. The sauce was a bit too sweet for my liking.

Wagyu Beef Carpaccio - it came with a black sesame-ish sauce, and it was fabulous. It was melt-in-your-mouth, and the sauce was really interesting.

King Crab Salad with Plum - OK, the crab was fresh, and the plum was a bit tart, and I never had this combi together anyway, so everything was eye-opening.

For mains,

I had the herb-crusted seabass with a coriander-ish sauce. 2 of us had steaks (one of them was the Angus steak), 1 of us had Cod, another had the Pasta with Ragu sauce and my vegetarian friend had the Blood Orange Risotto with Saffron (or something like that). Everything was good. Except maybe for the pasta with ragu sauce, which was part of the set dinner (now $40++), which was a bit...common.

Dessert-wise, we tried everything on the menu except for cheese. I found the portions for dessert all a little small for my liking, we had the organic dark chocolate flourless cake, the icecream in orange and milo flavour, some almond cake, and a sticky date pudding. The Sticky date pudding was the best of the lot.

Overall we had a great time, the bill was not a pretty sight (we had a bottle of wine too), but for special occasions, I'd say, it's a nice option.