Desmond Pasta – Pasta Stall in Ubi By An Ex-Chef From P.S Café with 8 Years of Experience

There have been many chefs from hotels, cafes and long-running establishments that have come out to venture on their own to enter the hawker scene with more affordable renditions of what they used to cook back at their previous jobs.

Desmond Pasta is a pasta stall located in Ubi’s Industrial Park where you can enjoy food cooked by an ex-chef from the famous P.S Café. He worked there for 8 years before he opened his own stall just 3 years ago. Read on to find out if his own stall can meet the standards as an ex-P.S Café chef.

First up, we ordered the Aglio Olio (S$6.80). Looking at it, we were intrigued by the choice of vegetables used. There were sweet peas, Chinese spinach, cherry tomatoes, chicken breast slices and a ton of garlic bits.

It is unusual for pastas to have Chinese vegetables in them, but oddly enough, it worked. The sweet peas added a sweet touch to the savoury pasta, while the spinach added a good crunch. The pasta was al dente, a little bland but it did carry the fragrance of garlic. The chicken slices were tender and it was definitely fresh chicken that was used.

This was a decent plate of aglio olio, however, not the best nor outstanding in any way.

Now, the Carbonara (S$6.80) was the real deal. Filled with lots of bacon bits, cherry tomatoes and topped off with an egg yolk, this pasta was so creamy, smokey and flavourful.

The egg yolk added to the creaminess, making the whole mouthful richer in flavour. The bacon bits added a smokey scent to the cream and we must mention that there were heaps of it. Bonus for generosity in ingredients because normally, finding bacon bits in pastas have always felt like a treasure hunt.

Though carbonara is generally a heavy dish, this was not. We swept clean the plate and really enjoyed Chef Desmond’s rendition where the cream leaves you wanting for more!

Lastly, we had the Chicken Chop (S$7.50) that looked absolutely mouthwatering. Served with two slabs of chicken thigh, mashed potatoes and a bed of greens, the portion was rather big.

As we were cutting through the chicken, we could hear and feel the crackling skin that got us really excited. We love a grilled chicken with crispy skin and a slight char! The tender meat was easy to cut through and like a match-made in heaven, it paired so well with the gravy that tasted like a mixture of mushroom and black pepper sauce.

But really, the star of this plate was the mashed potatoes. There were some chunks of potatoes amidst the smooth mash which had a buttery taste that coats your mouth. This is easily one of our favourite mashed potatoes in Singapore.

Overall, we really enjoyed the food from Desmond Pasta. At a fraction of usual café prices, the quality of his food makes every penny worth it. If you’re ever in the area, do yourself a favour by visiting this hidden gem that is located in the same coffeeshop as Mei Mei Roast and Thai Seng Fish Soup. We promise that you will not regret travelling into an ulu area just for this!

3024 Ubi Rd 1
Singapore 408718
Tel: +65 9851 7316
Mon to Sat: 11am – 8pm
Nearest Station: Ubi