Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Breaking the curse

Cucina Basilico serves authentic Italian in a La Mesa strip mall

One third of the Insalata di Barbabietola ($7.55) with beets and goat cheese
One third of the Insalata di Barbabietola ($7.55) with beets and goat cheese
Place

Cucina Basilico

7200 Parkway Drive, La Mesa

There’s a strip mall near my home in La Mesa that seems to be a black hole for restaurants. They seem to disappear almost as soon as they open. Some of the places that have failed include the Chicken Nest and a Mexican restaurant whose name I can’t remember that closed quicker than the time it takes to say, “Two beef tacos, rice, and beans por favor.”

I’m optimistic that Cucina Basilico can break the curse because already the locals are telling each other about the excellent pasta dishes (many of them vegan or gluten-free) and reasonable prices.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Take the lasagna ($14.95). The sauce is an authentic Italian bolognese. In America, bolognese is basically a meaty marinara, but the Cucina Basilico version is more of a meaty gravy. Both can be delicious, but the Italian version favored by Basilico has an outstanding mouth feel. It practically melts in meaty juiciness. It matches well with the cheese and that homemade pasta. It reminded me of a bolognese I had in — where else? — Bologna on my honeymoon.

The Insalata di Barbabietola ($7.55) is also a treat. The greens are fresh, the goat cheese is tangy, and the beets add the right amount of earthy sweetness. The salad is served with either a balsamic dressing or a lemon dressing (I preferred the balsamic, but not by much). The salad was perfectly sized to feed my daughter, wife, and me.

My wife was happy with the evening’s pasta special, a Spinach Pappardelle ($11.95) that she topped with a garlic olive oil sauce that came with whole garlic cloves, which my wife appreciated. She was able to get the flavor without it being overwhelming. Me? I took those delicious roasted cloves and mashed them into the homemade rolls. She made me brush my teeth three times later.

I was pleased with the arrabbiata sauce ($11.95), a garlicky tomato sauce with hot peppers. I like it hot and spicy. The owner recommended I have it with fettuccine. So I did, as well as with the homemade sausage ($3 extra), which was served as chunks, not links, on top of the bowl. The sausage was mild in heat but full of flavor.

For dessert, my wife and daughter couldn’t decide between the $4.95 panna cotta with berry sauce ($4.95) or the tiramisu ($5.95), so we got both. I liked the smoothness of the panna cotta custard, and the coffee-kissed tiramisu worked well.

Cucina Basilico is the type of spot I can imagine spending a Friday night with my family while imagining my return trip to Italy, the place where we honeymooned.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

March is typically windy, Sage scents in the foothills

Butterflies may cross the county
Next Article

SDSU pres gets highest pay raise in state over last 15 years

Union-Tribune still stiffing downtown San Diego landlord?
One third of the Insalata di Barbabietola ($7.55) with beets and goat cheese
One third of the Insalata di Barbabietola ($7.55) with beets and goat cheese
Place

Cucina Basilico

7200 Parkway Drive, La Mesa

There’s a strip mall near my home in La Mesa that seems to be a black hole for restaurants. They seem to disappear almost as soon as they open. Some of the places that have failed include the Chicken Nest and a Mexican restaurant whose name I can’t remember that closed quicker than the time it takes to say, “Two beef tacos, rice, and beans por favor.”

I’m optimistic that Cucina Basilico can break the curse because already the locals are telling each other about the excellent pasta dishes (many of them vegan or gluten-free) and reasonable prices.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Take the lasagna ($14.95). The sauce is an authentic Italian bolognese. In America, bolognese is basically a meaty marinara, but the Cucina Basilico version is more of a meaty gravy. Both can be delicious, but the Italian version favored by Basilico has an outstanding mouth feel. It practically melts in meaty juiciness. It matches well with the cheese and that homemade pasta. It reminded me of a bolognese I had in — where else? — Bologna on my honeymoon.

The Insalata di Barbabietola ($7.55) is also a treat. The greens are fresh, the goat cheese is tangy, and the beets add the right amount of earthy sweetness. The salad is served with either a balsamic dressing or a lemon dressing (I preferred the balsamic, but not by much). The salad was perfectly sized to feed my daughter, wife, and me.

My wife was happy with the evening’s pasta special, a Spinach Pappardelle ($11.95) that she topped with a garlic olive oil sauce that came with whole garlic cloves, which my wife appreciated. She was able to get the flavor without it being overwhelming. Me? I took those delicious roasted cloves and mashed them into the homemade rolls. She made me brush my teeth three times later.

I was pleased with the arrabbiata sauce ($11.95), a garlicky tomato sauce with hot peppers. I like it hot and spicy. The owner recommended I have it with fettuccine. So I did, as well as with the homemade sausage ($3 extra), which was served as chunks, not links, on top of the bowl. The sausage was mild in heat but full of flavor.

For dessert, my wife and daughter couldn’t decide between the $4.95 panna cotta with berry sauce ($4.95) or the tiramisu ($5.95), so we got both. I liked the smoothness of the panna cotta custard, and the coffee-kissed tiramisu worked well.

Cucina Basilico is the type of spot I can imagine spending a Friday night with my family while imagining my return trip to Italy, the place where we honeymooned.

Comments
Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Nation’s sexy soldiers stage protest at Pendleton in wake of change in Marine uniform policy

Semper WHY?
Next Article

2024 continues to impress with yellowfin much closer to San Diego than they should be

New rockfish regulations coming this week as opener approaches
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.