Basta

Hadn’t been to Basta since having to eat outside in the snow during deep Covid, but thought it was excellent. We did the fixed menu and loved everything. Bread, risotto and pork were highlights. The dessert was the only thing that was a bit underwhelming, tasted good but was behind everything else. Staff was super nice as well.

Small but well designed space, tastefully decorated. I ordered the prix fixe that includes the small bites, risotto, pork chop… it was a lot of food! I had to take most of it home…All were excellent . Well seasoned, balanced, flavorful. Nicely cooked pork, very tender. Service was outstanding. Nice wine list. Small bar. That wood fired bread is out of this world! Highly recommend. Will be back!

My girlfriend and I were vacationing in Colorado. In researching Colorado restaurants, Basta came up as a Michelin Bib Gourmand and was regarded as an up and coming restaurant. So we swung out of our way to visit Boulder just to try this restaurant. I really wanted to like this place. But I was very disappointed. First, the physical location is on the ground floor store front of a condominium complex. It was unclear where to park. When we asked the hostess, she told us the condominium residents had an underground parking, so any parking outside was fine. But some signage outside would be nice. Second, their seating arrangement is odd. We were sat between a wall and a wooden barrier. They have a beautiful open kitchen with a wood fire oven. It would have been nice to be able to have a view of that. Third, the food was definitely the high point, but again they fell short. Some of the dishes were outstanding! The chicken and the Caesar salad were standouts. The chicken had nice crispy skin and perfectly paired with polenta and spinach. The Caesar salad had pistachios instead of the traditional croutons and it works. Someone had written somewhere that their clam pizza was comparable to Sally’s in New Haven. I am here to tell you that this is flatly false. Their clam pizza is fine, maybe above average. But if you come in expecting Sally’s, then you will be disappointed like me. And their popular burrata was off balance. They use the same dough to make the bread that comes with the burrata as they do their pizza. And they wood fire the bread and salt it. The bread way over powers the delicate taste of the burrata. You have to heap a lot of burrata on the bread to taste it all. Fourth, the biggest problem I had was with the service. Izzy did an okay job at the “service” component. But completely lacked in the hospitality aspect. I asked her to take a picture of my girlfriend and I with the entree on the table and she seemed like this was inconveniencing her. She even raised her voice in her curt response, “Of course I can!” Again, the words are fine, but the delivery and inflection said something completely different. Oh! And this restaurant charges an automatic 22% “service fee.” So in summary, this restaurant has some major shortcomings. I disagree that this restaurant should be a Michelin Bib Gourmand.

Great food fantastic service. We had the Cesar salad you can tell the dressing is home made with the perfect acidity and pistachos it’s perfect. We also had the Roberto pizza delicious and the lamb I loved red and juicy inside crispy out side it was perfection.

A lovely intimate dining experience! On a solo business trip so I sat at the bar, and my bartender Avery was great at making beverage and food recommendations! I loved having a direct view of the wood fire oven - very cool!! The pizza is SO GOOD you cannot pass it up when you visit. And if you love ice cream… get them all. I loved the bay leaf but I regret not getting the smokey vanilla!