Basta

Loved the food, ambiance, and service. We celebrated a birthday and they did a very good job with the service. All the food we ordered was the perfect amount for six people. We ordered the chicken livers mousse, burrata, and the Caesar to start. The bread to spread ratio was off and there was more spread than bread. I think that's not a bad thing though. We did have to order more bread. The chicken liver mousse was perfection. Loved the liver with the pickles and would definitely get it again. The focaccia bread it came with was divine. The burrata lacked a bit of flavor for me but the piada bread was incredible. We got another piada bread. The Caesar was great. Strong anchovy flavor which was great. For drinks we had the matcha cocktail, the gin and apple cocktail, the carrot mock tail, and the chocolate whiskey desert drink. The matcha drink was beautiful and tasted nice. Not sure if I really got all the notes they mentioned though. The apple gin cocktail was refreshing and was good as well. Apparently the mock tail was really good and the rim of tajin worked well with the drink. The dessert drink was good but not mind blowing. Overall thought the presentation was nice and I liked the glasses but the drinks didn't blow me away. We ordered the fall pizza, the daisy, and og cart with half sausage. The fall pizza was great. Interesting mix of flavors that worked really well. The daisy pizza was also great. They made a classic perfectly. The og cart was a good pizza as well and I love kale on pizza. Didn't taste the fennel pollen at all though. Loved how they brought out fresh Parmesan, chili's and chili oil with the pizza. We also ordered all of the sides. The sunchokes, carrots, polenta, potatoes, and arugula. The sunchokes were great with the cream. Perfectly cooked. The carrots with the cream and the sunflower seeds were really yummy as well. The carrots were crispy and also soft at the same time. The polenta was cooked beautifully and seasoned well. It was a bit spicy with the chili. The potatoes with the olives were my favorite. They were Smokey and I've never had Smokey potatoes like that before. It was so good. The arugula was basic but was dressed well. The desserts were also good but I'd say the meal was better. We had the donuts, budino, parsnip sorbet, campfire vanilla ice cream, and the caramel apple ice cream was the birthday dessert. The donuts were good and not dense but lacked flavor. The budino was not as nice of a consistency and was too sweet. I've definitely had better donuts and budino. The ice creams were definitely a standout. I loved the vanilla. Never had that kind of incredible Smokey vanilla flavor before. The parsnip sorbet was so good. I loved the unique flavor and I couldn't believe how creamy the sorbet came out considering there's no dairy. The caramel apple ice cream they gave us was also great. Loved the flavor and texture. Overall the service was friendly and they brought out everything timed pretty well. Loved almost all the food and the ambiance was beautiful. Great bathroom was well.

Cute cozy spot in Boulder. They are farm to table, have tie up with many farms and have their own small garden in the back which they use for their cocktails and drinks. The servers were very friendly and quick. They walked through the menu and provided recommendations for drinks and food that would pair well. I tried the rotolo with sourdough piada. It was awesome. The piada is fresh baked, warm . The rotolo is so flavorful and yummy. The heirloom tomato sauce is the winner in this dish. I also tried the summer pizza with truffles, mushrooms, onion cream sauce. These days I am into truffles and this combo is great! For dessert I had the burnt honey ice cream. This is really fresh and sweet. Perfect conclusion to a great meal. Must try place!

Food was delightful. Ordered the burrata and Roberto pizza. The burrata is seasonal. Ours was served with peaches and balsamic. The burrata is served with their sourdough piada, which is simple and great. The kitchen uses their pizza dough but form it into a loaf. The Roberto was more sweet than spicy. Perfect Neapolitan-style pizza components: all about the dough and the red sauce.You trade-off needing a reservation for a bit more intimacy, given the table count. My husband and I walked in without one and were able to get a spot outside. The restaurant is on the smaller size, which makes sense given its surroundings. This location is mighty odd; in a small, albeit cute, condo complex. Unexpected locale for sure.

When we attended the 2024 James Beard Awards, I made a point of wanting to dine at one of the Id Est Hospitality Group restaurants. It was recognized with the award for Outstanding Restaurateur.With family in Boulder, I dined at Basta, the first restaurant of this group to open in 2010. Basta is the Italian word for "enough."Like many farm-to-table restaurants they source most ingredients locally, grow vegetables in their own garden and feature breads from their own Dry Storage bakery.I was really surprised by its location in a condo complex. It certainly doesn't attract diners driving by. Diners come here because they know its reputation.The dining room has been described as industrial looking and kinda loud. It is small, with a concrete floor and an exposed ceiling. We experienced no issues with noise. But the dining room is small and may be hard to get reservations at, which are recommended.Although they have a full bar, they have a limited menu of craft cocktails. Most of the liquors they stock are from boutique distillers.With three of us dining, we started with the highly acclaimed Burrata, followed by the Chicken Liver Mousse. Both lived up to the advanced billing, but the Burrata was the show-stopper.The wood-fire oven plays a starring role in preparing many dishes, so we knew a pizza was in order. We selected the Roberto, featuring pepperoni, calabrian chili and honey. Perfect thin crust and char, plus yummy meats and cheeses.For our entree, we split the 18-ounce New York Strip. It was cooked exactly as requested, sliced and super tender.We ordered the Potato side with castelvetrano olives. Very unique and filling.Although we were super full, we knew we needed to try their ice cream or gelato. The Palisades Cherry Strudel Ice Cream was incredibly flavorful and decadent.Can't wait to check out some their sister restaurants in Denver.

I can't say enough good things about this place. The cocktail menu is fantastic, they have an extensive whiskey selection, fresh espresso, and a wood fire oven. Amazing vibes and great music. Service was amazing their team is great. We started with the Burrata and piada bread and also got their citrus one. Definitely get both. The burrata was placed ontop of an eggplant red sauce that paired perfectly with the burrata. Let me tell you the house piada bread is addicting. Had 3 of them. It's perfectly crunchy with a slightly char taste and their citrus bread is so moist and salty and crunchy on the outside. Ordered the fall, mushrooms- that were perfectly crunchy and cooked down, olives, taleggio, rosemary chive. The pizza is 10/10 perfect crust and undercarriage. OG Cart- young kale, pork sausage, chili flake, mozzarella, fennel pollen. This was my favorite and accompanied by their house chili oil nothing is better imo. Cacio e pepe - perfectly aldente and with a delightfully full body sauce. I got their hand crafted cocktails, the mezcal was great. Next time getting an espresso martini.

5 Stars for exceptional food, including a chicken liver mousse dish that will leave you licking the jar, and a great atmosphere.Before arriving in Boulder for a short conference, I did my homework and booked a couple of dinner reservations based on Yelp reviews. When booking Basta, I saw that they were featuring wine pours from a woman-owned natural wine maker, Emme Wines, on one of the days and quickly snagged a spot. I'm a big fan of restaurants that make a point to bring in and feature wine makers from around the country. Food: We opted to get a few smaller dishes to share along with our flight of wines. They were all SO GOOD. Here are my recs:- chicken liver mousse: this mousse is served in a small jar with a pickled tomato jam and crusty bread. Wow wow wow. We couldn't get enough. The sweet and tangy jam perfectly paired with the rich mousse and left us calling this as our favorite bite of the trip.- caesar salad: simple and boring, right? NOPE. This Caesar salad had pistachios, was perfectly dressed, and grana padano cheese (similar to parmigiano reggiano) grated finely all over. It was hard to stop eating this and my dinner companion had to remind me to leave some for her...- mussels with added herb focaccia: these mussels are in a pool of chorizo, garlic, tomato, and herb sauce and beg for you to add the focaccia or sourdough. Long after we consumed the plentiful mussels, I was dipping the focaccia in the soup that remained to continue to savor it. Beyond the food, the service was attentive, meeting the winemaker was a true highlight of our trip, and the ambiance made me feel like I was in my favorite little neighborhood gem back home. Though it may not be right on Pearl Street, this spot is not to be missed!

Exceptional . In all ways. Get over to Basta and taste the experienceWe will be back and back again.

Basta's Italian definition means "enough". However, I'd say the definition of Basta is "intentional".The atmosphere of Basta is simple, industrial and inviting. The kitchen and bar are exposed to the audiences in the room, and it's set up in a style where every seat in the house is favorable. There are places for pairs and groups to sit both inside and outside. There are even two cool bar areas, an inside and outside, for solo guests or small parties to enjoy. We sat at a table for two inside. We were kindly escorted to it by one of the waitstaff and promptly given water before being introduced to our main waitress, Rachel. She had a very calm, collected and cool essence about her. She knew the menu to a T, and gave us a great background of the restaurant and restaurant group Basta was a member of. Most importantly, she mentioned how Basta is big on locally sourcing produce. That they have their own local farm where they source all their own grain for the restaurant, and it is from that grain that they make all their own breads, pasta and pizza dough. As you can imagine, dinner was easily decided after she said that. We knew we had to try the dishes with the homemade breads: Burrata & Roberto.The Burrata came with the most delicious sourdough piada, cherry tomato, basil, garlic and onion crema! I'm not kidding when I say, "I'd have it every time as an appetizer." The sourdough piada is served fresh out of the wood-fired oven. It establishes this beautiful char across the bread! Before serving it to you, they drizzle it with the purest of olive oils and a sprinkle of salt shavings. It becomes the perfect vessel for you to spread the creamy burrata on top. You'll want bite after bite! The Roberto is a pepperoni, mozzarella, oregano, calabrian chili and honey pizza. If you like a spicy, slightly sweet pizza, this is your ticket to a satisfying meal. My husband absolutely demolished it! To accompany them, we ordered a menu special of Hamachi Collar. Now, Hamachi Collar is a rarity to ever see on a menu. In fact, this was my first time ever seeing it on a menu. So, if it's there, order it. I cannot even begin to describe how filling and tasty it was. It's such a treat!Finally, let's talk about what everyone really wants to know... How were the cocktails and how was the ice cream? Absolutely divine. We thought the cocktails were reasonable priced for their outstanding quality. They were well-balanced and smooth, which made it extremely easy to order another round. We loved that they were served with fantastic ice. If you love cocktails, you know how key this is to pushing a cocktail above and beyond! We appreciated this element very much.The ice cream was a complete surprise to us! Our server, Rachel, brought us a scoop on the house -- which was so kind. She explained how the unconventional flavor, Campfire Vanilla, is made by the chef. We were blown away by the smokey n' earthy elements of the slightly sweet vanilla ice cream. I cannot wait to go back and try it in an affogato! Overall, Basta is a restaurant that I'd share and recommend to anyone.

What can start with1. An almost empty restaurant and was told if I didn't have a reservation it would be 15 min.i waited thinking it was going to be worth the wait. IT WASN'T!2. A 22% service fee after I finished my dinner RIDICULOUS!3. Asking for an additional tip on top of the 22% they extorted from me. NOT4. The food was marginal at best. The chicken was bland. Not my first choice the lasagna they were out of. I travel all for work and definitely will not be coming back.

honestly...meh...c'mon. open table gives it some "icon" awards. wonder what the price to pay or "standards" are for those awards. food was very ho-hum...if in Boulder seek out finer dining.