M E D I A P R E V I E W
The event sells out in a flash. Yes, even the third date that was added after the initial two were filled, had all its slots taken up faster than a strand of pasta can be slurped.

Is it surprising though? I think not.

This is after all, the first 4-hands by the home-grown, much-loved Cicheti group that comprises of @cichetirestaurant, @barcicheti @caffecicheti restaurants. And the other pair of hands getting in on the action belongs to none other than Chef Yum Hwa of @benfatto_95, the private dining chef who has an almost-unhealthy obsession (but I applaud him for it!) for traditional Italian pasta.

Their menu is collaborative in the truest form, with every one of Chef Yum Hwa’s fresh hand-made pastas cooked by Chef-owner @limyewaun and Team Bar Cicheti in a different lip-smacking sauce to accentuate the uniqueness of each. To top it off, the overarching theme of this pop-up is minimal waste which means they have pushed themselves to think out of the box in mining the possibilities from each ingredient. The truth is, I would not have noticed the theme if it weren’t for it being highlighted by PR extraordinaire @bydanieleng because I did not feel the dishes were in any way forced or “out there”. Nor was the tastiness compromised. On the contrary, I was intrigued by how incredibly delicious and new a couple of their ideas were. Most notably, the second pasta, the Tajarin - its hand-cut strands glistening in a sauce of butter and drippings from the ossobucco (due to appear in the fourth course), and the deconstructed Bread And Butter Pudding by new-ish Group Sous Chef @dylancheong_. This dessert is an almost-misnomer as the lemon, truffle milkshake and upcycled crunchy bits of potato in there were too much of a delightful distraction.
To complement the courses served in order from the lightest in flavour to the heaviest, co-owner and sommelier @ronaldkamiyama has curated a few extremely small batch wines. Therefore, due to the limited quantity, do note a couple of the wines at the media preview (and therefore, my video) are stand-ins.
Last but not least, can I just say the complimentary housemade bread by @barcicheti is TO DIE FOR?! Apparently, having a carb-laden meal could not stop me and my dining companions from emptying the bread basket twice.

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