Checked out the new Puteca Abate Italian Street Food and Deli Sandwich Bar; a new concept opened by the folks behind Pastaria Abate which is located within The Working Capitol at 1 Keong Saik Road — also known as the former premises of now-defunct The Daily Roundup, 1KS, The People Vs and more.

Focusing on Italian street food such as Paninis and all, Puteca Abate Italian Street Food and Deli Sandwich Bar is still currently in its soft launch phase — items such as pasta and pizza are *likely* to be available next week, along with a wider selection of desserts and bakes. Going for the specials for the day, the Monte Cristo is more of sandwich of a French origin that uses elements such as ham and melted cheese; all that in between two slices of bread and egg-dipped before being pan-fried — comes with a sprinkling of icing sugar and a drizzle of maple syrup over the top. Think of it as savoury rendition of a French toast; shaved ham that seems to be provide not only the savoury notes of cured meat, but also texture in between the slices given how it is layered out, all with melty, gooey cheese in between the egg-dipped bread that is done the same way as our local variant of French Toast — all that combined with the sweetness of icing sugar and that rich maple syrup that gives it a nice sweet-savoury balance. Certainly a sandwich I hope makes it to the main menu here, and something which I most certainly wish that I can have yet again!