Basta's Trattoria

This is the place to dine in NW! more

This is one of my favorites. I go here for all my hot dates and special events :) The mussels are my favorite. I always order the bread/olive oil, and their martinis are very good. Dirty, of course. The wait staff is knowledgeable and diligent, and good-natured despite me stumbling out drunk a couple times. The atmosphere is intimate and sexy - a cozy Mediterranean delight! more

The Happy Hour menu is at the top of the list of our favorite menus at any restaurant (and we eat out a lot), and it's available until closing time. The pork tenderloin in a port wine sauce with feather-light fried potatoes at $8 is a full meal accompanied by a $4 caesar salad. Delicious! Anytime sausage is on the menu, order it and you'll be transported to a Tuscan village. Ditto the regular menu. Watch silenced but subtitled movies projected on the wall while you enjoy the full bar and comprehensive wine menu with dinner. Join the late-evening crowd in a friendly, robust bar scene. The kitchen and serving staff are all Basta's veterans; friendly, knowledgeable and hard-working. Owner Marco Frattaroli is a restless creative always raising the bar on making dining at Basta's a memorable evening. He goes to great lengths to procure the freshest and finest ingredients. He was mentioned in an October, 2011, Wall Street Journal article in reference to the series of historical dinners he created at Basta's and which were hugely successful. Basta's has grown and matured into a comprehensive, superb Italian restaurant which continues to add subtlety and variety to its solid base. more

My friend and I wandered into Basta's because we were walking down the street and wanted a drink (no preconceived notions) and the sign said Happy Hour All Day (really 5pm to close, but still cool). It was exceptional. Our waitress (can't remember her name, but she had bright red hair) was HILARIOUS. I don't know the last time I had service by someone who seemed to enjoy her work so much. The cocktails were delicious, fairly strong and moderately priced ($8). Didn't taste a ton of the food, but what I did have was really good (and cheap! $4 for the little eggplant, zucchini and mozzarella rice fritter and $2 for a huge plate of yam fries). Overall, our server really made an impact and I hope to be back for more soon! Pros: Cheap (and tasty!) happy hour, delicious drinks, fun server Cons: None that I found! more

I saw Basta's on Forkfly. They were promoting the braised wild boar with polenta and grilled radicchio for $10! I had never been there before but had to try it! It was in a great part of NW with on-site parking. It happened to be 1st Thursday so they were pretty busy, had live music. The staff was all very friendly, we were seated immediately. The food was perfect as was the atmosphere and my overall experience. I will definitely spread the word! more

This is a great locals spot. I've been to a bunch of restaurants since I moved here and Bastas really has a neighborhood feel. If you can catch it you may even see the bartenders change the music from jazzy classical to Bowie before they close. It's an upscale dinning experence in the back and on the porch (only on Friday and Sat) but the lounge plays old Hepburn movies and the Happy Hour is outstanding. And try the drinks! Ask any server or bartender to match a wine by the glass or what's good and you'll never be disappointed. Pros: happy hour, service Cons: old burger joint building, kinda cool though more

Good crowd frequents this restaurant. All the wine by the glass are good and there is bottled wine available, which is well priced. I would like to see the wine selection by the glass swapped out more frequently as I have gone there for months now and see the same wines over and over, which there are 4 non-house wines that are always listed. Pros: ambiance, parking, customers, location, wine selection (all wines are good) Cons: bar staff sometimes could be more informed and attentive to customers more

The food at Bastas is prepared with care an I can honestly say that I have not ever had a bad meal there. One can pop in and have a simple item from the lounge menu or enjoy some of the more hearty meals served off the dining menu. The Cafe Bastas Cocktail is a must! The staff is polite but not in your face which makes it a good place to take a date. They know their stuff. From preparation of the dishes to wine pairings of the expansive Italian wine list. They are pros. It is no wonder this place is a NW institution. Pros: Interesting Specials such ad shaved Beef Tongue or Duck Confit Cons: It can get pretty crowded - get a reservation and be willing to hang out with a glass of wine while waiting more

For many years I enjoyed the good food at Bastas. There are many items on the menu, from Pasta, Pizza, Meat and Cheese Plate, Hanger Steak etc. The recent changes to offer Happy Hour all day, which is served in the lounge only, has many added dishes. Next to the regular offered itmes there are one or two specials added on. A few month ago it was a 'house-made chicken sausage'. Pros: Specials, Parking in the back, outdoor seating in the front, service more

This quaint italian bistro was surprisinly good.. The food was imaginative as it was good. with everything from pork tenderloins in a port & veal reduction to simple meatballs and spaghetti. All was top notch. The service was very good as well. The waitresses paid attention to every table and detail to enhance our dining experience. I would highly recommend this restaurant Pros: Food quality and portions. good value for the money Cons: None to be seen more

Avoid this place at all costs if you think it is anything like Italy; warm, friendly and relaxed, it is NOT. They take themselves very seriously and are rude and stuck up. Went there last night. We were given the option of sitting in the lounge because we didn't have a reservation, this was fine with our group of 4. The server asked us to stand and wait while she cleaned the table and then she walked off while we stood waiting for her to clean the table. Dark haired girl with dark rimmed glasses. After a few minutes two of us sat down while the other two milled around feeling like idiots. The server returns and became all huffy because we sat, removed the glasses but left the cloth on the table. Five minutes pass so I wiped the table and put the cloth on the next empty table. The server then returns and starts wiping down the table. I told her ""I have already wiped it down"" to which she responds "" Oh really and pointed to a tiny spot on the table."" Really poor form and horribly rude!! By this time one of our party had managed to organize a table in the restaurant and so while we ordered a bottle of red wine, this seemed to somehow irritate the server even more than our presence. We moved to the table after a few minutes. The service and food in the restaurant was much better, but the evening had been ruined and none of the 4 of us would ever go back. Pros: Nice pasta dish. Cons: Small portions. Rude, rude staff. more

Simple, I've always had great food at Bastas and have always had great service. I've tried almost everything on the menu including appetizers and cannot think of anything I didn't like. Recently tried the brunch and loved it. more

I've been to Basta's several times over the years -- often in combination with a trip to Cinema 21, which is just two block down. I went there for dinner with my wife and 22-year old son last week, and all three of were very pleased with out dinners. In addition, when we told the waiter that we had less than an hour before our movie, he made sure that our appetizers and entrees arrived in good time without making us feel rushed. more

Me and my girlfriend decided to try this place out the other night. We ordered through delivered dish and had it delivered to us. When the food arrived an hour later we were so excited to dig in. We were shocked of the size of the $14 dinner. We both just kind of stared at it like seriously? We both ordered the same thing (thyme cream chicken over penne), and it looked like they took one normal sized order and then divided it into two child's size boxes. We decided, however, to give the grub the benefit of the doubt. Maybe it might actually be astounding. If the food was good I would not have a problem with the small quantity, but the food was worse then at the olive garden, no wait, worse than the restaurant at ikea. The pasta obviously cheap and the sauce tasted exactly, I mean the essence of garlic butter spread, the stuff that comes in a tub that tastes impossibly processed. Not to mention the chicken which was few and far between and was insanely dry. How this place charges 14 dollars for a meal that is not only smaller then something on the children's menu at the olive garden, or any other mediocre chain but undeniably less enjoyable to eat is beyond me. Oh and how could I possible forget the bread. Supposedly it was garlic bread but the observation results were none other than a random block of dry french bread and some other kind of bread that literally took about a minute to chew one bite. So yeah, please do yourself a favor and never ever go to this restaurant. Pros: finally found a restaurant bad enough to warrant creating a citysearch account and writing a review Cons: complete waste of a good space on a good Ave.. Horrible food, way over priced, just lame. more

I went to Bastas for brunch this weekend. I've always been a big fan of their dinner menu and was delighted to hear that they were opening for brunch. Their menu is fantastic... finally something on offer instead of the usual tired Benedict or Omelette dishes you see everywhere. I had the Uova Tegamino (baked eggs) with a side of their home made chicken sausage - fantastic! My friend had the Polenta dumplings with sausage gravy. To die for. And you must try their belgian waffle. Ridiculously delicious. I'll definitely be making it a regular brunch destination. Pros: Parking, new and unusual menu items more

After 15 years of serving the best Italian dinners in Portland, owner and head chef Marco Frattaroli is finally offering his fine cuisine for brunch. Open Saturday and Sunday from 10am-2pm. The menu offers unique egg dishes from several regions throughout Italy as well as a few surprise fusions thrown in. I have been patron of Basta's since its first year and I have never been disappointed. Pros: Parking! Cons: you cant sit outside in November more

I have enjoyed dinner at every Italian restaurant in Portland! I have visited Basta for years...it is STILL my favorite! I pride myself on knowing the latest-greatest new restaurants in our awesome city...and this one roKs my world! Make sure you tell Marco ""hi"", he is super cool. Hip, swanky drinks, and beautiful Portland people....we are so lucky to have Basta in our town. Mangiamo! Pros: Hip before Portland was Hip! more

Consistant great food great service great everything, they even have parking, in the nob hill area!! Pros: everything Cons: nothing more

We consistently receive good food and good service at this restaurant. We have been going for years. I would highly recommend this place. Best Appetizer is there Mussels (my favorite)! Pros: Service more

Food is delicious & attention to detail is never overlooked. The best martini I have ever had (italian vodka with a blue cheese stuffed olive) more