Sunday Lunch - 7: Rubato

This first Sunday of the year was a quiet one. We played with train tracks all morning and as I sat on the knit ball that is my seat in Kid's room I browsed the net looking for lunch inspiration.

It turned out my first choice does not open on Sundays so I had to go back to the beginning and look at my lists. But my second choice was such a close second that I was very pleased when I called and they said they could fit us in. 

We went to Rubato in Greenwood Avenue. I've been to that bit of town a few times for playdatea but never knew that behind the lovely Watten Estate with its houses and parks was this little market. It's packed with restaurants and shops and looks like a place I need a few hours to explore. 

Rubato was bright and airy and full of light. The table tops were a lovely brown wood that looked new. They had a weekend menu but on request we ordered a charcoal grilled Squid starter from their weekday a la carte menu whose rave reviews were what drew me to them. It was all the reviews said, perfectly done with the smokiness of the charcoal melding with olive oil and just big enough for us to share. 

I had a chicken saltimbocca which was tender and tasty (unlike Singapore chicken which always tastes stale to me) and V had a spaghetti with tiger prawn dish. 

But the winner was the Margherita pizza that Kid had. Absolutely delicious and he finished most of it in no time, leaving just a piece for us to taste. 

It was quiet when we arrived - we are always early for lunch, arriving by noon so that kid can eat at the time he is most used to. It filled up as we were sitting there and by the time we left there was not a free seat to be found. 

It was raining when we left, sated. We shared a taxi and dropped off V to his errands before heading for the National Library to borrow some books. I'm encouraging him to choose books on his own now (while steering him away from his favourite) and this is much harder than one imagines. He chooses the first book he sees and while I guess there is logic in that this week it turned out to be a book beyond his years, one about an orphan boy living in a work camp with his camel. It's been hard to explain the story to him as we read it. It's an interesting age, 4.5, full of questions and opinions and feelings, many confusing and all valid. Needless to say we have a new plan to book borrowing next weekend. 

Home and an early dinner of tofu and noodles before I headed off for my Sunday night movie.