I decided to try something different this week by inviting a friend on my catch up list to join me on my food hunt for a change. I first heard of Ah Bong's Italian when I had a craving for basil pasta and I found them on Google. Back then, they only had one outlet at Tiong Bahru and closed really early mid day so it was really hard to make a trip down to try. (I really need to work for a living too!) Now with their second outlet opened till night, I finally addressed my craving with Supercai! (Nicknamed chosen by my friend)
Apparently Ah Bong's Italian's menu changes all the time. So if you wanted something not on that day's menu, basically you have to come back another time. Which is a good and bad thing because I happened to want something not on their menu that day! So they disappoint first time customers but of course the up side is that you get variety if you are a regular.
Our mains for the day were Crabby Aglio Olio ($14) and Fresh Pesto pasta ($12). I must say the food lives up to the hype. The Crabby Aglio Olio is rich in flavour something I don't really expect from the past crab pastas I have eaten and the pasta was done al dente. I like it that it's garlicky enough, not exceedingly spicy and not overpowering that it over kills. The Fresh Pesto pasta was true to its taste. The pesto sauce was made in house and mushrooms went well with the dish. I like it that the sauce was thick and not watery. Pasta was al dente and the proportions of ingredients to pasta ratio was just right.
We picked a side to share and we settled for Spicy Balls in Pomodoro ($10). The pork balls are amazing! Tender yet not overcooked. I felt that the spicy level is close to zero to be honest which was a little disappointing. However I give credit to the authentic tomato sauce freshly prepared in-house. The portions of cheese went well with the balls but overall I still felt disappointed by the lack of tanginess which I was expecting from spicy balls.
Supercai's conclusion along with mine is that this place is worth revisiting. Number one it's because there's stuff on their menu I haven't managed to try. Number two reason is that their prices are really decent and generally inexpensive for town sit-in dining. Number three reason would be their food quality. It really beats a lot of other pasta establishments in the similar price range by a big margin in my opinion.
Ah Bong's Italian
103 Beach Road, #01-02 (below marrison hotel) at Tan Quee Lan Street area
(Be sure to visit their Facebook page to check out their menu before arriving to avoid disappointment)