There are two Pen & Inc. restaurants in Singapore, one on the NTU campus and the other at the NTU alumni house, each serving different cuisines: the NTU location specialises in Tex-Mex and Southwestern cuisine, while the NTU Alumni House spot focuses on Italian cuisine. It's worth noting that the NTU campus restaurant is closed on weekends.

We dined at Pen & Inc. in the NTU Alumni House. While there are plenty of seats available, it's advisable to make a reservation through their website beforehand. The restaurant's ambiance is cosy and dimly lit, making it ideal for a romantic dinner date. Additionally, guests can enjoy a pool table and two dart machines. While the pool table is free to use, the dart machine requires payment. We didn't play, so I suggest checking with the friendly staff for the exact prices.

Wild Mushroom Soup

Shimeji, pure white mushroom, shiitake, cream, truffle oil, toasted garlic bread
💸 SGD 8.00
⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4/5

I love mushroom soups, especially when they're made with real mushroom bits and has a thick, creamy texture. Extra points are given if the soup is enhanced with a drizzle of truffle oil and served with garlic bread. Pen & Inc.'s Wild Mushroom Soup meets all these criteria for a delicious mushroom soup, though I'm torn between ranking it higher than the one at Poulet (perhaps I'll write a review for that restaurant too!).

However, the texture of the soup at Pen & Inc. might be a tad too thick; I doubt I could finish a serving on my own without needing plenty of water afterward.

Smoked Duck Carbonara

Linguine, smoked duck, onion, egg yolk, cream, parmesan cheese

💸 SGD 14.00
⭐⭐⭐ 3/5

The carbonara's texture was perfectly creamy, and the linguine was cooked to al-dente perfection. Often, carbonara pasta from other restaurants becomes somewhat overwhelming by the end of the meal, but that's not the case here. The combination of creamy white sauce, runny egg yolk, parmesan cheese, and pasta is just right. However, it could be better with a touch more salt.

Slow Cook Beef Cheek

Braised beef cheek, red wine sauce, sauteed vegetables, mashed potatoes

💸 SGD 24.00
⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4/5

Having never tried beef cheek before, I decided to give the Slow Cooked Beef Cheek a chance as it's a popular dish.

The beef cheek's texture was astounding - we marveled at how soft and tender it was, practically melting in our mouths. The blanched vegetables served alongside were well-seasoned, and the mashed potatoes were creamy and flavorful. It was delectable for the first half of the dish; however, we found it slightly too salty and had to pair it with the Carbonara Pasta, which, thankfully, was slightly undersalted. Overall, it was still a fantastic dish that I highly recommend, especially if you've never tried beef cheek before.

Lava Torte

Chocolate cake, summer berries compote, vanilla ice cream

💸 SGD 8.00
⭐⭐ 2/5

We ordered a chocolate lava cake for dessert, but unfortunately, it fell short of expectations. The chocolate cake here had a disappointingly dry surface. The vanilla ice cream wasn't very impressive either, only the the summer berries compote stood out - a sweet sauce made with berries and possibly citrus zest that complemented the sweet chocolate filling and vanilla ice cream nicely. Overall, I wouldn't recommend this dessert.

Strawberry Lemonade

💸 SGD 6.00

Skipping the rating of this as this is just a drink. But it was a refreshing drink that we needed to complement our hearty mains. It offered the perfect balance of sweetness and tanginess.

Pen and Inc. (One-North)

📍NTU Alumni House at One-North - 11 Slim Barracks Rise, #03-01/02, Singapore 138664