Restaurant Review: La Villa at 341 River Valley Road, Singapore

Went to La Villa at River Valley Road a couple of Saturdays ago for my birthday dinner with my uni friends. The place is apparently long-established and people who know their F&B in Singapore are supposed to know about it. At least, that's how I feel when I read about La Villa. With a name like that and a location that is highly inaccessible unless you know where it is, this italian place really does need some word of mouth to get customers visiting. When I was getting there my cab driver was completely lost - my GoThere.SG app was also not very helpful because it pointed at somewhere where its not really accessible. Finally, after a few turns around Kim Seng Road, we made it there.

It is a really nice pleasant and airy place with sitting at the patio, or al fresco if you would like. When I arrived at 7 it was still slightly empty.


There's also a bar area. They do serve alcoholic drinks beyond the usual wine list!


I quite liked the atmosphere, it was cosy yet not too formal, but a little romantic.
We ordered a bottle of their prosecco to share, and that went very well with the meal in general.


Now about the food! The bread basket, a source of contention with folks at HungryGoWhere, were alright by my standards that night. The flat bread was good, the bread was warm.


Next we had the beef carpaccio with shaved parmesan ($19). In my opinion it could have been better. Rather mediocre. The rocket leaves could have been more.


Next our table of 5 ordered the Tomato & Buffalo Mozzarella ‘Caprese’ style served with fresh Basil ($19). Again, not exactly impressive, though the mozzarella was quite refreshing. The one at Pizza Mozza did better.


Well, on to the mains! The 4 of em decided to order 2 pizzas to share. 

The first was Incazzata ($22), of tomato, mozzarella and spicy italian salami . I had only a taste of it, but I remember it was rather bland. The team had to sprinkle tabasco sauce generously to get their taste buds working.


Next the Funghi ($22) pizza with Tomato, Mozzarella, Mushrooms, Pancetta Ham, Egg, Truffle, which was a little bit more exciting with the egg in the center and truffle.


I ordered the Capellini ($22) which is Angel hair Pasta with Lobster Ragout ‘Sardinia’ style instead based on the HGW reviews. From what I read, it is like eating "mee sua" with lobster tomato sauce.

It is indeed exactly that.

Rather pleasant and appetizing I must say. The pasta was done al dente, and the sauce was not too overwhelming, to the point where I could finish it. There was also some sizable chunks of lobster inside, though I would have preferred if they are separated more so it becomes more like strips of it.


The highlight of the event for me however, was the desserts!

We had the La Villa exclusive Pannacotta flavoured with 1872 Clipper Tea’s Earl Grey ($14). It was such a delight, with the strawberry sauce beside. I love the hint of earl grey in the pannacotta, which was firm yet creamy.


Then we went in for the kill with the Cioccolata ($15). It is a hot dark chocolate lava cake with vanilla ice cream and requires 15mins preparation time. The chocolate was not too sweet and oozes out with enthusiasm. The vanilla ice cream had grounded vanilla beans inside - you can see the grey specks in the photo and it is very enjoyable. In fact this is the epitome of a dessert. Sweet, but balanced with bitterness, hot and cold. All in all a party in our mouths!


While we were leaving we saw that someone else celebrated their birthday there. Ha I was asked to take a photo of the plate and pretend it was for me -_-


And here's the gang! Thanks for your present, and the dinner. I am so fortunate to have found these bunch of guys. Aging is not so bad if I can get to meet all my good friends to have a meal together!

After the meal we walked to Zouk Wine Bar, and had a couple more drinks before calling it a night. 


This restaurant with its rustic charm and lovely ambience wins over my vote against the slightly normal cuisine. Service was great and company was even better. This is a great date or birthday venue, so do bookmark it but don't go with too high expectations of the food itself. Enjoy the experience! 

La Villa
341 River Valley Road, #01-03 Singapore
+65 68365286
Mon–Sat: 12pm–2.30pm, 6pm–10.30pm , Sun: 11.30am–2.30pm, 6pm–10.30pm
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