Kucina Italian Restaurant

Kucina Italian Restaurant is an Italian restaurant on the basement level of KINEX, a mall on Tanjong Katong Road near Paya Lebar. Two long-time friends, Alessandro Lo Giudice and chef Gero Di Maria, founded it in 2016. The restaurant says its cooking is rooted in the Sicilian kitchens the pair grew up in.

Chef Gero was born in London to an Italian family and moved to Singapore in 1996. Since 2022 he has built a large following on TikTok with short cooking videos, including a much-watched aglio olio tutorial. The name is a play on cucina, the Italian word for kitchen, spelled with a K to suit local pronunciation.

What to order

The menu covers antipasti, pasta, pizza, meat and fish mains, and desserts. Several dishes carry a chef's signature tag. Good places to start:

• Linguine al granchio: the best-selling pasta, with crabmeat in a creamy, mildly spicy tomato sauce.
• La Barca: Chef Gero's boat-shaped pizza with smoked scamorza cheese, mushrooms and truffle.
• Arancini di ragù: crisp risotto balls filled with pulled beef.
• Arrosticini: char-grilled chicken and lamb skewers with a spicy mayonnaise.
• Cioppino: a fisherman's stew of mixed seafood in a crab and tomato broth.
• Fettuccine al tartufo: fresh fettuccine in a mushroom and truffle sauce.

Other pastas include lasagne, porcini ravioli, a carbonara made with beef guanciale, and a seafood linguine baked in a paper parcel. Mains include slow-braised lamb shank, grilled picanha and a short rib risotto. Desserts stay classic, with tiramisu, panna cotta and crème brûlée. Ask the staff about the cakes and specials in the display chiller.

The setting

Kucina is a relaxed, casual restaurant. It works well for families, thanks to its kids' menu, and for groups of friends sharing pizzas and pasta. The restaurant also has a private dining space called Privato at the same address. It hosts birthdays, engagements, wedding receptions and company dinners.

Good to know before you go

• Tables fill up, and some diners say you may need to book about a week ahead. Reservations are taken online through TableCheck and by phone.
• A kids' menu offers a small pizza or simple pasta for children aged 10 and under.
• Vegetarian dishes are marked on the menu. They include the bruschetta, burrata, porcini risotto, ravioli and several pizzas.
• The drinks list focuses on mocktails, lemonades, tea and coffee.
• Delivery is available through the restaurant's online ordering page.

Getting there

KINEX is at 11 Tanjong Katong Road, and Kucina is in units B1-09 and B1-10. Paya Lebar MRT station, on the East-West and Circle lines, is about 400 metres away on foot.

Nearby

Paya Lebar is a good area for a food outing. Geylang Serai Market is close by and is a well-known spot for Malay food. Elsewhere in the area, Mutiara Seafood at Wisma Geylang Serai is popular for seafood. Tanjong Katong Road also leads south towards Katong, covered in our Katong and Joo Chiat guide. For more choice, browse all restaurants in Geylang and Paya Lebar or our list of European and Italian restaurants.