Thursday, October 22, 2009

Ordinary pastas @ Bona Fides, NYC


We were on a mission to get some Italian food after my friend Fay was talking about truffle pasta all day. I was meeting friends in East Village for drinks so we decided to head over that direction and look for food. After trolling the street for an Italian joint, we stumbled upon one. Bona Fides is a unpretentious place that seems intimate and homey to be family run. They have a patio which is apparently a great spot for non-rainy days, and indoor seating which is dark and dim. The menu is very reasonably priced at less than $20, even for their filet mignon entree. The veal scaloppine with marsala wine and mushrooms looked tempting but I didn't want to over stuff myself before the bar. My friend Jan and I finally set out stomachs on pasta.

Carafe of white wine

Our waiter brought over bread and complimentary bruschetta made with garlic and tomatoes.

Linguine with clams in white wine sauce.
This is my favorite type of pasta dish because it has seafood and the sauce is typically light. It's funny how they only served two clams in shell and the rest were probably from a can. This is a sign that the restaurant is not your high end joint but I suppose it is to be expected given the prices. I still enjoyed it though and it hit the spot.

Rigatoni Pomodoro Secchi
It was cooked with bell peppers, sun-dried tomatoes and carrots in a marinara sauce. Very simple vegetarian dish but I thought it was boring. Seemed like the type of dish from Lean Cuisine microwavable dinner.

Bona Fides is a decent place; nothing that will knock your socks off but it was good for our pasta fix. The prices are very reasonable (pasta priced around $12) and the flavors were simple. The portions were manageable, not your over sized Cheesecake Factory portions. There was a group of elderly gentlemen at the next table who were friends of the owner, that kept trying to buy us drinks. So, if you're on a tight budget, step into Bona Fides: You'll score cheap pastas and if you're lucky, free drinks.

Hits: price, low key
Misses: canned clams, a bit ordinary
Rate: **

Bona Fides
60 2nd St.,
New York, NY 10003
(212) 777-2840

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