Prego

Prego's just revamped its menu on 22 February 2010. Only the pasta selection has changed a fair bit, the rest are about the same. Best of all, prices have mostly stayed the same. They probably changed the menu in accordance with the seasonal pickings.

1) Minestrone di Verdure e Legumi ($15), rustic and hearty mixed vegetable tomato-based soup. Very good.

2) Zuppa di Funghi con Bianca e Olio Tartufato ($15), cream of mushroom soup with truffle oil and bianca garnish. This was really good, creamy and rich and full of mushroomy-goodness

3) Risotto al Funghi Porcini e Bottoncini con Spinaci ($33), a traditional Italian rice dish with sauteed porcini and button mushrooms and spinach. This was lusciously creamy and incredibly delicate.

4) Maccheroncelli all Amatriciana ($24), short tube pasta tossed with pancetta, onion, chili and tomato salsa. The pasta is made fresh in Prego's kitchens daily, which explains the evident freshness of the perfectly al dente pasta. I'm not a fan of tube pasta, but this was very yummy. Especially the sauce and pancetta.

5) Porcini e Gamberi ($27), wood-fired thin-crust pizza topped with porcini mushrooms and prawns. I loved how light and crispy the pizza was. This is one pizza that you'll be guaranteed to finish the crust.

Read more abt it at http://thehungrybunnie.blogspot.com

I have been in Prego few days ago, with friends. The service is not the same of few years ago, it's getting worst and worst! I asked for the bread several times and the waiter was unprofessional.

The food was good as usual, there are few new dishes in the menu, very tasty and genuine Italians. Try the new pastas, the pork chop (juicy and very well presented) and the new desserts.

At the daily shop, after 9pm there is 50% discount for cakes and dessertr. Must try!!!

 

Prego is an italian restaurant that is part of The Fairmont hotel.There were several entrances at the side but I just could not find the main entrance. Prego features a pizzeria, wine bar, rotisserie, takeaway counter and deli. Freshly baked breads, cakes, salads, sausages, cold cuts and pastas are available from the deli counter. Prego conveys a sense of fun in a casual atmosphere. Strategically located at the corner of bustling Bras Basah and Beach Roads, delight in a hearty Italian dinner whilst people-watching. One must try it’s signature dessert- The Tiramisu. I decided to had the February Executive 2 course set lunch priced at $45++ . There is only a choice of salad and 3 main courses available. Complimentary Bread It was just an ordinary bread roll but it taste terrific with the home-made tomato sauce & olive oil. This is a favourite and popular with the customers here. Insalata Di Pollo It is basically a salad with grilled chicken breast, mesclun, cherry tomatoes, cheese , balsamic vinegrette and olive oil. The portion is just too small and sadly, the grilled chicken breast taste bland and flat. Perhaps I am biased against chicken meat but this fared badly. I left the thin chicken pieces untouched. Fettuccine con panna funghi e Piselli This was my main course. The other 2 choices were beef and rabbit meat which I do not really prefer thus I decided to have the pasta. The Fettuccine pasta comes with mushrooms and green peas with cream sauce but I requested them to remove the green peas and replaced by vegetables. However, they merely add in more mushrooms. I asked them and they told me it wouldn’t taste good if other vegetables were used. This is a simple pasta that anyone could whip up. It’s just some Fecttuccine pasta, mushrooms and cream sauce. The Fettuccine was hard and it taste like chinese flour noodles, too starchy. The mushrooms were ok, chewy and flavourful. The cream sauce was a little heavy so I requested for some home-made tomato sauce to cover it. My verdict: Overpriced! I paid around $52 for the above 2 dishes ,the serving was so small and they are simple dishes that anybody could simply whip up at home. Definately not worth the hefty price tag.

Being a dine at Raffles member for a long time, Prego remain a quaintessential option for quick Italian fares without the big prices. Since for 2 it is 50% off.....I think this make Prego always a good option for me.
Ambience can be a tad loud, but usual great hospitality and good service with knowledgeable staffs more than compensate the noise....Tables by window must be reserved in Advance.
We love the simple Mazzarello Pizza and a Pasta to share, and the seafood Bisque soup is my favorite (don;t know why - probably because I am a creature of habit)...
I like the generous offering of bread with either Vinegar or Tamato puree or even butter....
Wine offering is also good, though usually for me beer suffices.
Still always happy with PREGO.

Hotel location without hotel restaurant feel. Attentive service, competent wide range of food and affordable for what you get. Prego covers the niche for certain business and semi-formal meetings and does it well. Always bustling and nice and bright with people and food moving at a pace that allows you to get in and out in one hour if that's all you've got. Fits the niche I believe they aimed for. Wouldn't go for a romantic meal with the wife, but there's plenty of others to cater for that.

The birthday girl (TBG) decided to have her dinner at Prego so who are we lowly minions to disagree with anything she says? My friend and I reached Prego early to get TBG a slice of cake and the staff were more than happy to serve it to us FOC. So a good start to the evening we thought? While waiting for TBG to arrive, we were served complimentary bread. It was nicely toasted, but a little too tough for my liking.

First up was the Zuppa di Funghi (Mushroom Soup) which was nothing short of fantastic. I know right, 2 awesome soups (District 10 being the first) in one day. The portion was again quite big and worth the price tag of 15$. Creamy, and full of bits of mushrooms, it was pure bliss in heaven.

The Calamari (23$) came next, and again the portion was huge. The calamaris were big, juicy and chewy. Batter that came along with it wasn't flaky either. It came with a tangy tartar sauce dip which was perfect when paired with the calamari. We also dipped the calamari in the tomato salsa sauce originally meant for the bread. Not bad a decision either!

Caesar Salad (19$) up next. Fresh lettuce tossed with mozzarella cheese, bacon and crackers, it was average. Definitely not worth the hefty price tag.

The mains started arriving. And first on the table was the Ravioli Faro Rosso (35$). In simple English, this is Ravioli with crab meat topped with sauce that tastes like crab bisque. It only comes in 3 pillow shaped pasta but it's filling enough. The filling in the ravioli was too mushy for my liking. Nobody liked this dish and the best thing about it was the sauce.

TBG changed the Aglio Olio (22$) from Linguine to Angel Hair Pasta and this was easily the best main of the night. I would never order this on my own because I won't spend 22$ on a dish with no "proper" ingredients. But the small bits of garlic and herbs here might make me change my mind after all. Good choice to change the pasta to Angel Hair. Tastes so much better!

Risotto of the day (34$) was apparently lobster risotto in cheese. We couldn't quite catch what the waiter was saying but lobster, risotto and cheese can't possibly go wrong right? Wrong. It was far too jelat and the cheese was too overpowering. We each took a few mouthfuls and decided that it was not worth the calories. The amount of lobster that they gave us was pretty generous though.

Lastly the Prego Pizza (27$) came. This was a Prego favourite, and came with parma ham, rocket leaves and mozzarella. I guess this was alright but at that point in time we were too fun to make discerning judgement on the food already. 4 mains, 3 starters for 3 people. What on earth were we thinking?!

Ambiance wise was a little too noisy for my liking, especially when we were in a rather posh restaurant.

For the price that we were paying, we expected top notch service. Sadly this was not the case. Service was slow, perhaps because they were understaffed. We had to prompt them to refill our waters throughout the night, and even then they were slow in reacting. When it came to paying for the bill, this waiter handed us the bill and walked off, without even waiting for us to give him the Credit Card. Shouldn't they wait for us to hand it back to them before attending to other customers? It took us another 5 minutes to get the attention of another waiter to hand it back to them. Absolutely ridiculous.That said, they readily sang TBG a hearty rendition of the birthday song and took many pictures for us.

I had fond memories of the place from previous visits, but I doubt I'll come back again. With average food and poor service, my money can be better spent at other restaurants.

Amex holders get 50% off for 2 people, 33% off for 3 people etc

I am very disappointed to say the least about one of the better eateries here in Singapore............what happened to the big Chef.........I was told after my lousy meal that he had moved on.....Don't these hotels understand the reason why people might go and eat there...........He was the highlight, a great chef, huge personality but always down to earth.............Where are you chef Salvatore??????????????????

The food is changing and not for the better.......Carbonara way too much cream, the home made pasta is like rubber now...........pizza like cardboard................I love Prego please do something about this..........it is a shame

Life starts easy just like Prego's calamari ($20). The light batter and tender squid rings were just very undemanding on the stomach. Squeezed on some lemon juice, drizzle some olive oil, dip into some tomato puree, my appetite became all ready for the main course.

Adult years tend to be heavy and full of choices. Carbonara ($24) is not for everyone, most people cannot stand the richess of it all. My first taste of it was divine, nothing beats eggs and bacon merging to envelope the al dente pasta. The more I ate, the more effort I need to work through the entire plate of pasta. Some people may switch to vongole ($25) along the way. Some people even demanded the clams in vongole to be changed to prawns. Life is all about choices.

Hopefully, the final lap of life is just like dessert. Tiramisu($12) was simply sweet, light and intoxicating.

If life is like a 3-course meal. The beginning years will be the appetiser, light, refreshing, easy on stomach even when one makes mistakes. The adult years will the main course - heavy, difficult and full of reponsibilties. Hopefully the dessert years will be as sweet and pleasant as tiramisu. Prego makes me ponder on life for it has been in my life for a long time from mummy ordering my first tiramisu, to JC outings, to many dates till now I just revisit for memories sake. There are countless Italian restaurants in town, some better than Prego some worse. It feels good to know that in midst of competition, Prego is still around providing consistent Italian goodness.

Do drop by muchadoabouteating for more on this trip in life!

My family had planned to dine some place different and had planned to dine at Prego. Knowing that Prego was a pricey option, we went ahead as we were under the impression that we would be entitled 50% off. My brother and his girlfriend had anjoyed this promo the night before. Little did we know when we had already sat down, that this promo was valid for a company of 2 guests whereas a group of more than 5 would only get 20% off. Understanding that this might have been a slip on our part, to not clarify the promo T & Cs, we realised we had a 50% dining voucher at home to which we asked if we cold leave one of our credit cards or even two (just in case one might be a bad card) while we return with the voucher the following day since it was already late. We didn't mind paying the full amount first, but we were hoping to get 50% back if we were able to return the next day. I don't understand what was the issue, if we weren't able to find the voucher, it wouldn't have made a difference cause we didn't mind paying the full amount first anyway.

I wish more room for flexibility was shown. Instead, all i felt was a fear that my family and I were trying to get a free meal ticket which we weren't.

Overall...food was ok, ambience was nice yet relaxed. I have to say, they could afford to be more generous with their parma ham on their signature pizza, i've seen lower priced parma ham pizzas with a mountain of parma ham and rucola salad.

Italian.
Sunday Brunch.
Prego.
Foodie in tow.

That pretty much sealed the deal for me. Prego's service has long been criticized and nitpicked and Italian food has been raved about, so it was a matter of time that I checked this place out. Their Sunday Brunch is so popular reservations are highly recommended. Arriving slightly before 12, there was already a crowd of people waiting to enter and clearly, they were quite booked for the weekend.

The encounter with Prego started off slightly rough..

First I had my name mispronounced not once, not twice...almost three. Is it not amusing when the person mispronounces, you correct...she still mispronounces but does it in such a certain manner, I'm not sure if I should laugh or cry.

Second, the certain courteous service was surely lacking even at the door. We were almost commanded into the restaurant rather than warmly welcomed.

Third, the table we were shown was in a corner but with rocky chairs. Thankfully they swopped them for us.

Salad bar with lettuce, anchovies, bacon bits, croutons, red bean-chick pea salad, preserved gherkins, roasted walnuts and sauces (balsamic vinegar/thousand island)

Of the lot, the red bean-chick pea salad was good, the beans were not overcooked, still retaining most of its bite. I stole a bite of the preserved anchovy, overly salty. Preserved whole gherkins were crunchier than those found in sandwiches.

Salmon Mousse Tartlette and Prego's Traditional Sauces

The egg roe topping the tartlette tasted like cod liver oil when popped, the salmon mousse was a tad salty, the tart was delicious though.

Ham Selection

On the bland side.

Preserved Salad (Cauliflower/Corn/Asparagus)

Like achar minus the punch.

Saffron with Green Pea Risotto and Smoked Duck

Sticky round grains of rice whose description sounded better than it tasted. Overall bland, hardly tasted the smoked duck.

Traditional Tuscan Bread and Tomato Salad with White Anchovy Fillets and House grown Basil

This dish came across too soggy, largely attributed to the tomato salad.

Potato and Chorizo Sausage Salad with Mustard Dressing

The Chorizo Sausage (smoked fermented sausage) was dry and tasteless, tasted more like a garnishing than focus of the dish.

Citrus Salad with Preserved Cabbage

The cabbage was well preserved, juicy and not too sour! Adored the idea of pairing oranges with this.

Soup (Minestrone)

Did not try this.

Complimentary bread was given with a portion of salsa. Neatly tucked in its jacket which failed to contain the warmth.Crispy on the outside, warm and chewy within...dipped in the cold salsa..simple yet soooo delicious. I tried to save it for later consumption but the warmth and toasty bread turned cold so very quickly.

Seafood (Oysters/Mussels/Prawns)

Fresh succulent seafood.

Cous Cous with Green Pea and Prawn

Not a fan of cous cous, overall bland for me.

Tuna Salad with Citrus Fruits

The crimson hue of the chewy lightly seared tuna with orange was marvellous. Did wonders whetting the appetite.

Veal in Tuna Sauce

Did not disappoint, the veal was sliced so finely but had a nice bite to it.

Insalata Caprese

Buffalo cheese is much like tofu, not as pungent as its distant cousins i.e cheddar or brie to say the least.

Parma Ham with Melon (Rock Melon and Honey Dew)

The melons were juicy and sweet, was a savoury-sweet treat otherwise!

Smoked Salmon (3 types)

They had smoked salmon in three degrees of done-ness. No huge liking towards either but the slivers of well marinated smoked salmon were yummy.

Pasta Salad

Penne was undercooked.

Tempura Oyster

The salsa it was soaking in made it soggy, the oyster still retained its plump and chewy texture though.

Grilled Zucchini and Peppers
Egg Omelette

Both were more bland than bland.

Roast Beef with Mustard

You can choose your level of doneness from the wagon. I liked how tender and juicy the roast beef was. A joy to eat.

Cured Pork Neck

Unlike our hawker roast pork, the skin was not crunchy, the pork neck full of fats...not quite a favourite of mine.

Pizza Selection (Cheese/Pepperoni/Seafood/Mushroom)

I should have just concentrated on the pizzas from the very start. These are freshly made and baked on the spot, baked in the traditional way and served almost immediately. These were hot favourites across all favourites. The molten cheese with thin crust...not much flavouring is needed, the pizzas tasted so good on its own! I reached a point (whilst waiting for the pasta), I stood there eating slices of pizza. The only downside, when the pizzas are cooled, the bread base gets a tad soggy. This came in a number of flavours, I only remember the sinful melted cheese that was simply, divine.


Potato Mash with Rosemary

Not too bad, in all buttery goodness.

Steamed Egg with Green Pea and Bacon

I've this soft spot for eggs with orange yolks, the best of both worlds wanting a firm yolk with slight runnyness. The green pea gave this a sweet edge whilst the bacon balanced with the savoury...found this just alright.

Pan Seared Red Snapper in Salsa
Oven Baked Lamb Leg with Rosemary and Garlic Jus

Both did not leave much of an impression.

Braised Short Rib Beef in Red Wine

Tasty tender beef.

Roasted Baby Chicken in Spicy Sauce

I enjoyed this! The chicken drumstick was well marinated with spices, maintaining the firm bite of meat.

Sauteed Venus Clams in White Wine and Chilli

Another delight with yummy broth.

Vegetarian Lagsane

Slightly disappointed with this Italian dish, the pasta sheets were pasty but the sauce was good.

Cheeses (Gorgonzola/Brie/Cheddar) with Preserved Fruit, Cracker and Poached Pears

The cheese addict in me was having a field day dabbling in all sorts of cheeses, molten or solid...the cheese platter got me smiling. Poach pears gave this an added deliciousness.

Bread Selection

The initial wow from the warm bread served set the expectations high so the bread selection was severely lacking. The fruit-nut loaf seen above was more of a dry-pastry-bread with sugared nuts and fruits within. I chomped off the sweet bits and abandoned the rest.


Spaghetti Live Station (Cream/Tomato/Aglio Olio)

Seafood Fettucine Alfredo

Apart from the crystal prawns I did not fancy, cream based pasta worked marvellously for me. Neat job by the pasta chef! I'm not a huge fan of carbonara because it gets jelard but Prego mastered it with such precision....tres impressed. The cream gravy is so drinkable, I stole slurps of it. Ribbons of pasta twirled round my fork with a clam on top, it brought great smiles.

Fettucine Aglio Olio

Comparatively, this paled...not to say it was bad...the pasta was well oiled, the even layer of oil, herb and garlic...

Lime Meringue Tart

Commendable tart but the meringue failed terribly.

Fruit Pizza

Basically just fruits with custard on top a puff pastry which was unimpressionable.

Banana Creme Brulee

Surprisingly bad, coming from Prego. The creme brulee curdled together forming a firm curd with air bubbles.

Hot Peach Strudel

Not too bad, in fact I liked this from the range of desserts. The crunchy crumbles that was scattered on top.

Fried doughstick with Raspberry Compote

The doughstick came across as "lao hong", lacking in bite. The dip was nice, not spectacular.

Raspberry Jelly Cake

Not a fan, if I can even put a finger to a specific taste.

Apricot Semolina Pudding

One of those hot desserts that was not impressionable.

Citrus Rum Baba

Wiki says it's a small yeast cake saturated in liquor, usually rum and sometimes filled with whipped cream or pastry cream. For me, it was a airy puffed up fried bread with lots of holes and very soggy.

Raspberry with Italian Meringue
Pistachio Panna Cotta

Good to look at, yuck to eat. That's the impression I have of shooters and sure enough, that was the case.

Tiramisu

Prego's tiramisu is arguably the best I've eaten. For once, Tiramisu is not soaked. Well defined layers, this tiramisu is one of the lightest around. I'm already sold.

Cassata Profiterole

These were ordinary choux pastry and chocolate cream.

Freshly made Waffles with Strawberry and Raspberry

I was looking forward to toasty waffles but these were not fluffy but dense hard wheat waffles with a biscuity finish.

Vanilla and Chocolate Icecream

Both milky and dense. Was trying really hard to find those beautiful black specks. These came with a wide variety of add-ons (Marshmellows, almond flakes, sprinkles, gummies)

Children's Menu (Fries/Nuggets/Muffins/Ham Sandwich)

For the fun of it and sake of it..the children's menu is definitely a child pleaser. The muffins were sponge cake and were not the most palatable, sandwich ordinary...same goes for the fries and nuggets.

What's a smoothie brunch without smoothies? Plenty of them! Freshly squeezed juices too. I lost count the number of glasses down but one thing's for sure, I was nearly rolled out of the restaurant.

or once, I did not suffer the after effects of MSG after downing so many glasses of smoothies and juices. The juice counter was clearly a favourite amongst the diners, leaning over and placing your order and getting it almost straightaway. My first Italian Buffet and a note I've taken, go straight for the pizzas and pasta for the best experience. The other appetizers are not too outstanding for Prego. Desserts too, save for Tiramisu had more misses than hits. Service is pretentious, though not severely bad..which I attribute partly to the number of foreigners dining in.


http://thefoodchapter.blogspot.com/2009/09/sunday-brunch-prego-swissotel.html