Take your taste buds on a tour around Italy and dive deep into the classic cuisine and flavours of various Italian regions in a new dinner series hosted by Osteria Mozza at Marina Bay Sands.
Each month, Osteria Mozza will take guests on a gastronomic adventure where they can discover the rich traditions and special produce paired with wine styles that are unique to a particular region of Italy.
Mario Batali, celebrity chef and co-founder of Osteria Mozza, was in town to launch the Italian regional dinner series with a wine dinner on 9 December 2016 that highlighted the region of Piedmont, with its prized white Alba truffles and Barolo wines.
“Italian food is a celebration of produce, and its cuisine is vastly diverse across the country as it is made up of twenty regions, each with its own distinct characteristics in food and culture. We welcome guests to eat their way around Italy with our regional dinner series and indulge in a dining experience that is bold and textural, showcasing a whole palette of flavours unique to each region of Italy, ” says Mario Batali.
Starting this month, Osteria Mozza will showcase the flavours of Piedmont. Piedmont is located in northwestern Italy and is the second largest region in the country. Its picturesque landscape is surrounded by beautiful hills and plains as well as snowcapped mountains in the Alps. Piedmont is most famously known as the land of the White Alba Truffles. These are the most coveted truffles in the world, celebrated by food connoisseurs at festivals held in the fall, when the prized truffles are in season. It is also in Piedmont that grapes for the elegant Barolo and Barbaresco wines are harvested.
Begin the Piedmont culinary tour with the Carne Cruda, a wagyu beef tartare that is a traditional antipasto in that region. The tartare is chopped to order with Wagyu hanger steak dressed with aceto balsamico and topped with crispy beef fat, rosemary and garlic chips. It is served with toast drizzled with beef dripping and finished with shavings of black truffles.
Next, savour the Vitello Tonnato, a classic Piedmontese dish with slow roasted veal loin thinly sliced, accompanied by confit of tuna belly covered in a creamy tuna aioli and sprinkled with a touch of capers and chervil. This dish stems back to the early 1900s when trading between what we now know as Liguria (a coastal region of northwestern Italy) and Piedmont took place, allowing the land locked region access to seafood.
Discover traditional Piedmontese pasta dishes such as the Tajarin with Alba Truffles, a thin and rich egg pasta tossed in Italian butter, parmigiano reggiano and finished with the “Diamonds” of Alba or shavings of the prized white Alba truffles. This symphony of fresh produce and bold flavours is followed by Agnolotti with Barolo Sugo, a pork and veal ravioli cooked in a rich Barolo wine from the Piedmont region and veal sauce. The agnolotti pasta is shaped to resemble the candy wrappers of the famous chocolatiers of Piedmont.
Enjoy the Braised Beef Cheeks with Celery Root as the feast builds up to a crescendo. This is a classic main dish featuring slow cooked beef cheeks in Barolo wine and veal stock accompanied by celery root puree and Gremolata, an Italian condiment consisting of parsley, lemon zest and garlic. Round up the meal with the Fig Crostata with Panna Cotta and Saba, a decadent dessert common across Italy and in Piedmont.
The Italian regional dinner series is offered daily from 5 – 11pm at Osteria Mozza and is priced at $128++ or $228++ with wine pairing. The Piedmont menu will be offered till mid-January 2017 and guests can look forward to the regions of Emilia Romagna, Fruili and Tuscany.
Inspiring the next generation of culinary talent
This afternoon (10 December 2016), Chef Mario Batali will be speaking to a group of 30 local culinary students from the Culinary Institute of America, At-Sunrice, and Temasek Polytechnic at an ‘In Conversation With’ session at the MasterCard Theatres Foyer.
‘In Conversation With’ is a series of exclusive conversations hosted by Marina Bay Sands, featuring prominent speakers – from film directors and producers, to TV personalities who hold a wealth of experience in their respective fields. The latest to star in this series are Hollywood actor Adrian Grenier and critically-acclaimed American film director Darren Aronofsky.
Chef Batali will be sharing his inspirations and how they have shaped him to become the successful chef, restaurateur, award-winning author and TV personality he is today. The dialogue session not only aims to inspire budding culinary stars, but also provide immediate career opportunities with Marina Bay Sands’ culinary team. Students are invited to speak to Marina Bay Sands’ Human Resources Team after the session to find out more about available Food & Beverage positions with the integrated resort.
This conversation is one of the many ways Marina Bay Sands gives back to the local community. Through the integrated resort’s corporate social responsibility programme Sands for Singapore, Marina Bay Sands provides opportunities where youth and beneficiaries can gain insights into the world of film, art and culture through the eyes of leading experts and celebrities.
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