Tucked away in a nondescript strip mall on Sebastian’s U.S. 1 is a place that has become a favorite dining spot for the lucky ones who have found it. As suitable for a date night as for a large family celebration, Basil Ristorante Italiano serves up dishes that could have come straight from grandma’s kitchen – if grandma happened to be a skilled Sicilian cook.
But grandma in this case turns out to be long-time Sicilian owner and chef Giusseppe, who opened the place more than two decades ago after ending up in Sebastian by way of South Florida.
While not a professional food critic (our restaurant reviewer will be back soon from medical leave), I have been to Basil many times over the past dozen or so years. On this occasion, I came with a companion who had never sampled Giuseppe’s creations.
After ordering a glass of chianti, we moved to the difficult task of deciding what to have for dinner.
For starters, we ordered the fresh mozzarella and prosciutto de Parma appetizer. The savory prosciutto was a perfect complement to the creamy, fresh mozzarella.
Entrees come with either soup or salad, so we decided to order one salad to share and to sample both of the house soups – minestrone and pasta e fagioli. Our server recommended the pasta e fagioli, a tasty interpretation of the traditional bean soup definitely made from scratch, and the minestrone was surprisingly good, also homemade, with fresh herbs and a slightly spicy broth which was more to my taste.
The salad was crisp and fresh, with a good house Italian vinaigrette dressing. For entrées, we ordered the veal picatta ($16.99) because my companion, a frequent visitor to Italy, felt the preparation of this dish would be a good indication of the quality of the rest of the menu. Basil’s veal picatta, he said, had the perfect seasoned coating, accompanied by lemon, capers and a freshly made sauce.
Our second entrée was the snapper Livornese ($17.99) – snapper with black olives, capers, pepperoncini, basil, and fresh tomatoes in a red chardonnay sauce. The fish was cooked well and set off nicely by the sauce.
The sides of spaghetti with marinara sauce served with the veal and the fish were about average. Our only quibble was that the pasta was slightly overcooked.
Lovers of al dente noodles might want to order them that way. On previous visits to Basil, I have ordered one of their vegetarian selections, the spaghetti with garlic and olive oil, which is excellent. Other tasty meatless dishes include the classic eggplant Parmigiana, pasta con pesto and spinach ravioli.
With the remainder of the snapper boxed up by our server (every bit of the veal was eaten), we eagerly anticipated dessert – made from scratch by Giuseppe and nothing short of amazing.
My companion ordered the tiramisu ($4.75) and I ordered the cannoli ($3.00). The tiramisu was rich and creamy – everything you’d expect from this delicacy – and the cannoli far exceeded my expectations (Giuseppe adds dark chocolate chips into the creamy filling).
To top off a wonderful meal, I disregarded our server’s warning, “It’s huge!” and ordered the cappuccino ($5). It was huge, served in a daiquiri glass, dessert style with a mound of fresh whipped cream and a maraschino cherry – and worth every calorie.
The entrees, with appetizers, wine and dessert came to under $90, including tip. My companion and I agreed it was a good value, and that we would return sometime very soon to try a few different items on the menu.
Our restaurant reviewer, Tina Rondeau, is on medical leave (not from anything she ate). She will be back in the new year.
In the meantime, she welcomes your comments on North County restaurants, and encourages you to send feedback to her at tina@sebastianrivernews. com.
Our reviewers dine anonymously at restaurants at the expense of the Sebastian River News.
