In Manhattan, respectable Italian restaurants are about as common as pigeons. In Phoenix, they’ve got a handle on pizza, but stray from the wood-fired oven and it’s more of a crapshoot. However, some chefs have managed to bridge the gap, including Wade Moises, who worked for Mario Batali at Babbo and Lupa before teaming with Sassi lieutenant Nick Gentry on PastaBar in early 2009. In just over a year, they’ve managed to carve out a casual Italian niche that would no doubt be welcome in L.A.
The pasta-driven restaurant is located in an increasingly relevant stretch of downtown, just a block from Matt’s Big Breakfast, which rates with the nation’s best breakfast parlors. PastaBar is set back from 1st Street, in a former collection agency. We arrived mid afternoon, during a lull in service. Only one other table was full in the artsy, mirror- and art-lined space.
Local Farm Vegetables normally cost $10, but run only $5 during weekday happy hour that lasts from 4-6 PM. Vegetables and preparations change seasonally.
PastaBar’s focused menu features a handful of antipasti and nine different pasta dishes, which are all readily identifiable as classic pastas from Italy, all pairable with sides like Slow Roasted Pork Shoulder, Beef Meatballs and Desert Sweet Shrimp. Only one dish costs more than $15, Fettuccini Tagliatta with rib-eye.
Moises bombarded al dente noodles with crunchy, licorice-tinged fennel pesto, raisins, pine nuts, hot peppers, lemon, and nearly imperceptible anchovies. The topper: crunchy bread crumbs and a dill nest. This was very good pasta with layers of flavor.
Moises and Gentry developed a focused menu with reasonable prices. If PastaBar opened in my neighborhood, I would be a regular diner.
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