Italian restaurant Prego celebrates 40-year anniversary with S$40 two-course menu

Prego, one of Singapore’s longstanding Italian restaurants, has been part of the Italian dining scene since 1986. Located at Fairmont Singapore, the restaurant marks its 40th anniversary this year — a milestone that is especially significant in our ever-evolving F&B landscape.

Despite its legacy status, Prego doesn’t feel dated. Instead, it has a good balance of timeless Italian charm and a contemporary feel. 

Warm wooden tables sit against an earthy palette, giving the space a classic trattoria ambience, while a sleek bar with brass accents and a statement chandelier anchors the 133-seater space.

With natural light streaming in and pockets of greenery throughout, the restaurant feels elevated but relaxing — an easy setting to settle into.

40 years anniversary lunch menu

To commemorate its anniversary, Davide Bizzarri — an established Italian chef who joined Prego in 2024 as head chef — has curated a limited-time anniversary lunch menu.

The menu is available until July 5, and offers a two-course meal at S$40. Diners can choose from six antipasti e zuppa (appetisers or soups) to start, followed by a selection of nine pastas, secondi, and pizza for mains.

Given that a typical meal at Prego can lean towards the pricier side, this menu feels like a more accessible way to experience the restaurant. If this has been on your list for a while, this is a good excuse to finally check it out.

Here was what’s especially thoughtful and quite interesting: Each dish on the menu is tagged with a year, indicating when it was once a signature dish at Prego. It’s a testament to the restaurant’s history — a curated collection of dishes that have defined Prego over the decades.

What we tried

The meal begins with complimentary bread, before moving into starters.

We had the insalata di Cesare (Caesar salad) from 1986, a refreshing mix of baby romaine lettuce, homemade Caesar dressing, parmesan cheese, crispy bacon, croutons, and marinated white anchovies. The fish adds a gentle savoury depth that rounds out the dish nicely.

The prosciutto e melone (ham and melon) from 1992 pairs thinly sliced 18-month parma ham with sweet cantaloupe melon air-flown from Italy, alongside aquaponic salads and balsamic reduction. We really enjoyed the prosciutto — soft, delicate, and full of flavour. It comes together well with the rest of the elements for a clean, balanced starter.

Other starters include the 2024 cappuccino di funghi (creamy mushroom soup) with porcini “trifolata”, seasonal truffle and ciabatta croutons, as well as the 2024 bruschetta ricotta e pomodoro (toasted bread with ricotta cheese and tomatoes) alongside capers, olive, and oregano.

As for the mains, the 2024 casarecce alle costine e tartufo (casarecce pasta with short ribs and truffle) was a clear standout.

The handmade, twisted casarecce pasta holds onto the sauce well, coated in a rich ragout of 24-hour braised short ribs, mascarpone, and seasonal Italian truffle. Meanwhile, the beef is pull-apart tender and deeply savoury, and the truffle lifts the dish without overwhelming it.

We also tried the pizza diavola from 1994, topped with tomato, mozzarella, spicy pork salami, and black olives. 

While enjoyable, it didn’t quite stand out — the dough leaned slightly tough on our visit. Perhaps, we had let it sit for too long. That said, the pizzas are handmade and go through a long fermentation process, so we’d be open to trying other variations on the menu.

Other main options include the 2014 pizza 5 formaggi (five cheeses) with mozzarella, gorgonzola, parmesan, fontina, and smoked scamorza cheeses, the 2011 spigola (European sea bass) with sun-dried tomatoes, ratte potatoes, and mussels and clams in “Isolana” style.

There’s also the 1989 pancetta di maiale in porchetta (porchetta pork roast) — a slow-roasted pork belly, smashed potatoes, caramelised plum and rosemary jus.

Across the meal, you can also opt for extra parmigiano cheese, shaved tableside into your dish.

Here’s more good news: If you’re coming here for this lunch menu, you’ll also catch its daily Happy Hour, from 12pm to 7pm, with deals on housepour wines, cocktails, and beers.

We had the limoncello spritz (S$15, U.P. S$18) , a light, citrusy mix of limoncello, prosecco, and soda, as well as the 500ml Menabrea lager (S$18, U.P. S$21). Both were delicious and refreshing picks alongside the meal, and the Happy Hour menu is a lot more extensive.

Having walked past Prego a few times, it’s always been one of those places that catches our eye. If you’re anything like us, then this anniversary set lunch feels like a fitting way to experience it — a full, considered meal at a more approachable price point.

This was a hosted tasting.

For more ideas on Italian eats, read on the story behind Piadini Italian Streats and modern Italian spot Nolita with pastas under S$30.