Hubby treated me to a birthday dinner out last evening, and I chose Basa, largely based on everyone's raving here. Indeed it is quite excellent.
The decor is lovely and restful and the candlelight sconces are an incredibly nice touch. We were fascinated by the host station. It's a desk with one side attached to the wall and then the other side is suspended by wires anchored to floor and ceiling. Really it stopped us mid-step and the owner (I'm assuming) told us a little about it. Check out this little engineering marvel.
For salads, hubby had the fried calamari salad. Crunchy calamari with a lime dressing. I got none of it. I, however, got the heirloom tomatoes minus the bacon on mesclun with the 50 year old balsamic. mmmmmm . . The tomatoes tasted like, well tomatoes, which I only get from my own garden, and for not long enough. The balsamic was thick, sweet and tart and actually tasted like the real thing, not the reduced younger balsamic that some kitchens offer.
Hubby had the ahi tuna served med rare over a mesculin and asparagus salad. The asparagus was shaved which made for a pretty salad. I had the salt and papper shrimp with Jasmine rice. It is amazing that a dish that sounds so simple in name could taste so velvety and rich on the palate.
Hubby gave me my present at the table, and since it was in a little jewelry box, I think a few nearby tables and our server thought it was a proposal. It was a beautiful necklace. (Hubby has excellent taste in sparkly things.) Anyway the server noticed and I verified that it was my birthday, so my dessert was "their gift." How nice!
I had the lime tart with meringue and gastirque. This is what a key lime pie wants to be when it grows up. Crunchy pate sucre filled with creamy tart limey goodness, topped with a dollop of meringue. Hubby had the Vietnamese chocolate can't remember the rest of the name. It's sort of like a chocolate panna cotta. It was intense with a pronounced coffee flavor and not much sugar (really it was not sweet) and packed quite a flavor punch. Since he's the chocolate mousse connoisseur I asked him to compare it to the bourbon chocolate mousse we enjoyed last week at Bourbon's. His answer, I had chocolate mousse at Bourbon's? Oh yeah. This is way different. Helpful . . .
$79 excluding one dessert +$20 tip. For us Basa won't qualify as an I don't feel like cooking tonight place, but for special evenings out, we'll be back. I do however want to try the tofu and veggie dish that's only $12, so maybe if we don't abandon all reason during ordering we can afford it more regularly. Are they open for lunch?
