When talking about uni dishes in Manhattan, the Linguine ai Ricci di Mare (Uni Pasta) at Basta Pasta often comes up. So I figured it was about time that I gave it a try. I had a few friends visiting and we were able to get a last minute reservation for 4 at around 8PM on a Friday night. Not bad.
Overall, the atmosphere was nice and easy going, but nothing really stood out besides a huge wheel of cheese that you can get your pasta dipped into, and the uni pasta. The food here is not too remarkable. If you’re looking for a memorable Italian meal, you won’t find it here. The dishes are simple and tasty, but they lack the bold flavors you might find in your typical Italian dishes. Guess that’s where the clean Japanese-fusion flavors come into play.
I feel bad for bringing my visitors here since I always want to show my friends the very best of New York eats! Not much would compel me to go back unless I was really craving uni pasta, but then I might just go cough up the extra $13 to have an uni Italian dish at Marea instead.
