The Naughty Chef – A Gem In Tanah Merah With Affordable Italian Fare

There are plenty of Italian restaurants in Singapore but to find one to dine at without having to bleed your wallet dry is a bit of a challenge—not counting fast food pasta and pizza of course. If you are hankering for some hearty Italian fare but restrained by a budget, we have found a casual spot with prices for mains starting at just S$6 nett!

Nestled within The Bedok Marketplace, The Naughty Chef dishes out a wide array of Italian fare ranging from pizzas done 3 different ways, a variety of pasta dishes as well as risotto. Not only are the prices here kept economical for the masses, but the naughty chefs themselves do not skimp on quality so you can expect real deal Italiano fare that’ll transport you to Italy.

On their menu, you can find close to 20 different pasta dishes. We opted for the Black Ink Pasta (S$9 nett) which features a portion of spaghetti that is tossed in an umami-packed black ink-based sauce along with small pieces of baby octopus.

Trust us when we say that this dish will take you by surprise upon the first mouthful—what we thought was squid ink sauce turned out to be a sweet and slightly tangy tomato sauce that is presented similarly to that of a squid ink pasta.

Serve al dente and tossed with baby octopus and mushrooms that were cooked to perfection, we reckon that their other pasta offerings are worth a try too.

You’d be glad to hear that The Naughty Chef also offers a wide range of other Italian delights such as handmade pizzas, filled pasta as well as their own renditions of the classic Italian risotto.

The Italian Roasted Pork Belly (S$15 nett) was the one that we were highly anticipating to try. Aptly creamy and luscious, the risotto impressed us with its texture but what stole the show for us were the slices of fried pork belly. The slight char on the outside gave it an added smoky flavour on top of the seasoning that was used, making every piece superbly flavourful and a delight to have.

Tender and juicy on the inside, we definitely appreciated that they were rather generous with the helping of pork belly slices.

Most of their dishes are extremely affordably priced, with pasta dishes priced mostly under S$15. Diners also get to customise their pasta by adding toppings of their liking to a portion of Sicilian Aglio Olio (S$5).

The Naughty Chef
348 Bedok Road
The Bedok Marketplace#02-14
Singapore 469560
Tel: +65 6920 4996
Tue to Sun: 12pm – 2.30pm, 5.30pm – 9.30pm
(Closed on Mondays)
Nearest Station: Tanah Merah