Basta Pasta Japanese-Italian Fusion menu. [Click image to enlarge]
I think we can safely assert that when it comes to fine dining, "the 2000s" is the decade of Fusion Cuisine. I am not complaining, because I love anything East-meets-West. I love a good
mélange. A creative juxtaposition of tastes.
In New York, we are lucky to be able to sample some of the more
outré concepts in fusion, such as Indian-Chinese (
Chinese Mirch,
Indo Munch, Indo Wok) and Japanese-Italian (
Basta Pasta), as well as the more accepted but still pretty delicious Cuban-Asian (
Asia de Cuba), Japanese-Brazilian (
Sushi Samba) and the long-standing Upper West Side curiosity, Cuban-Chinese-Caribbean (
La Caridad 78).
I suppose when you've eaten all there is to eat, and are still seeking something totally new and unexpected, Fusion is the new frontier. Tonight I am off to Basta Pasta on W 17th Street to sample some Spaghetti with Fresh Sea Urchin. Or perhaps I will just stick with the Homemade Silk Handkerchief Pasta with Mixed Mushroom. Having sampled
Shakey's Squid, Seaweed and Corn Pizza in Japan a few years ago to mixed reviews, I may just have to gently ease my way into this particular juxtaposition of tastes.
Labels: going out, japan, things to do in nyc, treats and eats, trend