Il Piccolo Pizzeria had been one of those places that we had actually been to a decade ago — an establishment that is well-known around the Toa Payoh neighbourhood, Il Piccolo Pizzeria was actually once featured on Our Makan Places: Lost and Found Season 5 previously on MediaCorp’s Channel 5 in 2014. Having been located in the coffeeshop at Blk 78C Toa Payoh Central for quite a long period of time, the stall had recently made its move to the Chang Cheng Mee Wah coffeeshop at Blk 126 Lorong 1 Toa Payoh due to the change of coffeeshop operator at its previous location. Whilst the Il Piccolo branding was founded by a Romanian chef named Peter Bontoi some number of decades ago whom is also affiliated with quite a number of F&B establishments in his heydays before he left Singapore, the Il Piccolo Pizzeria stall is run by a Chinese-born chef named Zhou Zong Qing since then whom was an assistant to Peter Bontoi back then. The menu at Il Piccolo Pizzeria’s location at Blk 126 Lorong 1 Toa Payoh is similar to that of its time at Blk 78C Toa Payoh Central; it features categories such as Pizza, Pasta, Dessert and Baked Rice.

It is noted that Il Piccolo Pizzeria does not describe the elements that are included in the various dishes that they serve up; that being said, it can be observed that the Baked Salmon & Mushroom Rice does come with the same elements such as salmon and mushroom that is mentioned in the namesake of the dish — it is also an item that is being listed in the Baked Rice section of the menu as well. One thing we liked about the Baked Salmon & Mushroom Rice at Il Piccolo Pizzeria is how it came with the correct dining ware that one would expect at a more formal dining establishment despite how they are just an establishment within a coffeeshop. We also liked how it came with a layer of melted cheese that was sufficient to cover the mound of rice beneath. The melted cheese comes all soft, gooey and stretchy — great for those wanting to capture the cheese pull shots; all that whilst adding a light savouriness to the rice beneath that seems to be infused with butter for a subtle hint of fragrance that wasn’t too overwhelmingly savoury with the cheese. The addition of salmon provides a bit of a contrast to the cheese and rice; all that without being too heavy with the salmon carrying a distinct note signature to the fish itself, while the mushroom adds a bouncy bite with an earthiness to further add on another dimension of flavours to the dish itself.