Oh How I Love Basi Italia – Takeout Style

If you venture into the heart of Victorian Village, you’ll stumble upon Basi Italia, an amazing little restaurant that offers Mediterranean and Italian inspired cuisine. It is one of the best in Columbus – not only because of the outstanding food, but also due to the authentic atmosphere and top-notch service. In my younger days (before kids!), Basi was the site of many girls’ nights out, date nights and Vino on the Veranda Wednesdays (where you could wine taste some of their most loved wines).

In the summer, sitting on the terrace (which is complete with a lively outdoor bar) is a dream. In the winter, you can cozy up inside the tiny interior – the lighting is perfectly dim and the air is filled with warm scents of delicious food and wine. Now, keep in mind that this would be under normal circumstances – not those that have come along with 2020 – and unfortunately, Basi is currently still closed for dine-in service. However, I am hopeful that they will again be able to open their doors soon!

Since we can’t visit right now, you can imagine our excitement when they announced that carry-out would finally be available as we had missed Basi Italia in 2020! And if we’re looking at the bright side, this also gave us the opportunity to give our kiddos a taste of one of our favorites. (I’ll be honest, it’s not the best place to dine-in with little ones – I would definitely save it for a night when you have your babysitter booked).

Our dining experience was superb – the food was every bit as good as when we ate AT the restaurant – kudos to Basi for nailing the takeout option. And the ordering process was easy – a simple call, a set pick-up time and a safe curbside delivery option – all of which made for a super pleasant experience.

I’ll tell you that you probably can’t go wrong with anything on the menu so if something is catching your eye, try it. Here’s what we went with…

First, and probably most crucial element of the meal during a pandemic (and, if you’re not pregnant like myself) was my husband’s Barrel Aged Old Fashioned – one highlight of 2020 would definitely be to-go cocktails! This version was made with Maker’s Mark, Cherry Heering & Grand Marnier.

We started out with one of our ABSOLUTE favorites, the Zucchini Pronto which includes fresh zucchini tossed with toasted almonds and topped with melted pecorino – it is likely my favorite appetizer in all of Columbus – and you feel like you’re eating (somewhat) healthy 😉

We also tried the Pistachio Flatbread – another perfect shareable appetizer (or you could make it your entree) which included the ideal combination of fontina, truffle honey & arugula.

And for our main course, we went with the Spaghetti & Meatball Dinner – this traditional dish, which comes with a Caesar salad to start, was perfect even when eaten out of a to-go container!

Lucky for us, the Spaghetti Dinner also came with their delicious Tiramisu, which was the perfect way to end an amazing meal.

As always, Basi came through with delicious cuisine, a stellar presentation and impeccable service. We can’t wait to get back to the restaurant, but in the meantime, takeout is a pretty solid option B.