This was our first time and because we are moving, it may be our last, so I thought it was worthy of giving them a review since everything was so wonderful. Anita was our server-top notch! The fried crab ball appetizer was one of the best ever. We were shocked when our (included) salads came out in a huge bowl with tongs (haven't seen that in a coon's age...) Then Anita grated fresh parm on top-yum! The house dressing was delicious. That with the wonderful breadsticks would have been plenty for me but then our (gynormous) entrees came, we had to find a bit of room (most went home in a box...smile) The seafood pasta was to-die-for and the chicken cacciatore, while not as good as I've had, was never-the-less tasty. We took cheesecake home, which was the best I've ever had out. Our only negative was the cannoli-which I've never been a huge fan of anyway, but hubby was a bit disappointed. The bottom line is that this is a great place and we highly recommend it. p.s. their attention to safety was as good as it gets... read more

Don't get me wrong food is incredible and been going here for years but after tonight never again. I feel like we were judged as soon as we walked in the door. Service was poor 10 mins to be asked what drinks we would like and place was dead. We had left over salad and always take it home but for some reason tonight this wasn't allowed and the women manager was nasty about it. The manager and a few staff kept staring my wife and I down whispering very uncomfortable situation. My wife and I love this place so much but after judging that was done tonight never again read more

One of my favorite local establishments! I try to swing in as often as possible. The staff is consistently kind, inviting, and attentive. Management, as well as the owner, always make me feel like I'm not a customer, but part of the family. I'm addicted to the veal oscar! Yummmmmmmm.... I absolutely love that sauce and they happily accommodate me whenever I want to sub for it in another dish. Try that Oscar sauce on the seafood linguini... Oscar sauce, shrimp, crab, scallops, oh my! read more

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I picked up a catered dinner for my sons graduation and Basta hit it out of the park. Crab cakes, blackened chicken pasta and salad / breadsticks. Basta made it easy, the food was amazing and overall a great value. I will definitely order catering from these guys again. read more

Love the Fallston location. Love the salad! Every entree we have tried is delicious! You absolutely must try the tiramisu or cheesecake- unbeatable!! Breadsticks have changed a bit since we started going there and we still like them but miss whatever they used to do to give them a bit more flavor. I really miss the homemade pasta too. It was a very special treat that I looked forward to every visit. read more

Quick summary, food wasn't fresh and red sauce tastes like it's out of a can. Overpriced for the low quality food they offer. Went for lunch on a Sunday. Restaurant was nearly empty. Ordered bruschetta as an appetizer. Bruschetta was not fresh and the bread loaf wasn't fully cut into slices. So basically it was old tomatoes on ripped up bread. Not off to a good start. On to the salad. Lettuce was old and wilted. I'm guessing it was made the previous night because nothing in it tasted or looked fresh. Bread was okay but not a good as most Olive Garden-eque breadsticks. Main course was seafood pasta. I ordered it with red sauce and linguini. My wife got the alfredo and fettuccine. Alfredo sauce was pretty good, but the marinara was horrible. Very acidic and tasted like it was made from a can. Both of our pastas were slightly overcooked as well. Service was good and the place looked clean, but no matter how nice they are we will not be revisiting. Food was pretty terrible for the $18-22 a plate cost. read more

AVOID - High Prices/ Low Quality - sticky floors throughout, slow, uninviting service and an over priced menu. Food isn't fresh. Mostly reheated frozen fair. Breadstick are horrible. AVOID the avacados, not sure where they get them from but, NOT good!!!! Save your money and go elsewhere. There are 6 Italian restaurants in Bel Air/ Falston area. read more

I have had hit or miss food experiences here. The "olive garden" style salad and bread is good but sometimes a but skimpy on the lettuce or dressing. The pasta are definitely their signature dishes. I have never had a bad pasta dish. Most of the servers are younger and can get chatty with their coworkers at times but once I made eye contact she came over. read more

Exceptional service and great food yesterday with our group of 60 at Basta Pasta in Fallston. Wonderfully organized.

Was in town and craving crab cakes. My parents recommended Basta Pasta and it was quite good. The crab cakes that I ordered were excellent and really made me remember how GOOD they can be. Lots of meat, little filling. Almost all back fin. Wow! Best of all it's all very VERY reasonably priced. The pasta dishes my parents ordered looked great too! read more

My gorgeous lady and I tried Basta Pasta out tonight. We must have arrived there at the busiest time of the Friday evening. We were pleasantly surprised with a short 15 min. wait. Our waitress Katy was very up beat and delightful. Sevice was very good, and our food courses were timed perfectly. Everything was fresh and delicious. Both of us started with crab blend soup(1/2 Maryland and 1/2 cream of crab soup). GREAT. A nice salad and bread was next, then honey salmon for myself and pan seared Scollops for my lady. Everything was excellent. Looking forward to a return trip. read more

I have literally never had a meal I didn't love at Basta Pasta. It's owned by a very hardworking family that takes pride in every part of their business. As perfect for a special occasion as it is for a casual bite! read more

My husband and I have always loved this place, but lately they haven't been living up to what they use to be. We just celebrated my daughter's birthday there with a large group of people, the waitress was awful. She was not friendly, had an attitude, she was nowhere to be found, never asked if she could get us anything, never asked is the meal okay, no refills on drinks, my son had to go to the bar himself to get a drink. This whole meal was a complete disaster, we left very angry and upset. The waitress didn't apologize nor did the manager come to speak with us. I don't think we will be returning, this was totally unacceptable. read more

Wow little afraid to go after reading all the bad reviews. We went for lunch on Thursday, not too many people. Sat down waitress was friendly. Had an appetizer, tomato and cheese. It was ok not super not bad. For lunch we both got crab cakes very good. My salad had a different salad dressing than my friends. Neither of us specified. My balsamic dressing was too much, basically drowning the bottom of the bowl. Over all we were taken care of, had a decent meal. Food pretty good. Waitress very attentive. Restaurant clean and restrooms were spotless. read more

We have eaten here on many occasions and the food is always consistent, service is great! I have never had a bad experience or meal and neither has my family. The only negative I have is that they were out of Smith island cake- my favorite read more

I wish this place were better...but sadly the food is just awful, freezer bag stuff...every time. Put some effort into it...I would patronize this place far more frequently were its crab balls and calamari more than one step above dog food. Bread sticks: Olive Garden trash at best. I will at least give them a second star as the folks working there are nice enough...they just need a far better food product to sell! read more

Wonderful service and food and great atmosphere. Love the family style meals and pizza.

We stopped by yesterday afternoon for an early dinner. Both entrees were very generous portions and had good amounts of sauce. The food is always good here but the short coming is how they usually ration sauce. Not yesterday though, the only thing dry this time was my side of spaghetti. read more

Friendly and attentive staff. Wonderful salad and large portions. Food was delicious! Great atmosphere with family and friends. Go to spot for great Italian cuisine. read more

My go-to Italian restaurant in Fallston. In fact, my husband and I had our rehearsal dinner here a few years back. The caccatoire is great. My husband likes the shrimp Fra Diavolo and the chicken Oscar. Kids love the stuffed shells and chicken parmesan. Really, everything hear is great, you can't go wrong. Plus they're cheesecake is Amazing!! read more

We are so happy that Basta is delivering during quarantine and hope they continue this after the pandemic is over. Large portions, salad is amazing, red sangria is fab! I love their diavolo sauce and wish there was an option to order just spaghetti with diavolo sauce. Alfredo is perfect and the delivery service is always on time and friendly. read more

cream of crab was like no other I have ever had, it was watery. wings were not great crab dip was not great filet mignon made my friend sick Pizza was great cheese cake was great service was great read more

Unfortunately this place has changed for the worse! New owners or managers maybe? Was one of our regular places. Food quality and food preperation has gone down. Spice palette and quality are unacceptable and not what they used to serve. Used to be a better place to go for Italian type food but it's no longer an option. Lower quality food and ingredients have us going elsewhere, just cheap tasting and poorly made. read more

Basta Pasta in Fallston, Maryland is a laid back restaurant that caters to all kinds of people. I have eaten here numerous times and I love most of their food. Their fried calamari is delicious and the chicken parmesan is one of my favorite dishes. The only bad item on their menu that I tried is their pizza. It is VERY bland with almost zero taste and a little pricier than most pizza places around (it is also smaller than most). My advice is avoid their pizza's at all costs. read more

The new brunch menu was fabulous!!! The new napolean tower was the best french toast I have ever had. The service was exceptional as always!!!! I would give this brunch a try!!!! read more

Took a party of five on a warm Saturday night. Sat outside, was nice. However food just so so. But the thing that got me was with our server. They had a family style salad that comes with every table. We had a party of five so bringing us one of these salads was stretching it. Olive Garden serves the same size family style salad and a party of five would get you two salads. We quickly polished off the one (with very small portions each) and when we asked for another, there was an immediate himming and hawing and a definite reluctance to bring us another one. He tried to talk us out of it by saying the meals were coming soon but we told him we'd take another. He went back to the kitchen and came back and said it would take awhile to cut up lettuce for another salad. This was at peak serving time for a popular and busy restaurant that serves salad to virtually every table. So we knew this was not true. They then brought our dinners and the server asked if we really still wanted the salad and then emphasized that we couldn't take the leftover salad with us. So he not only lied to us, he then insulted us by implying we only wanted the salad to take it home. So we drop $175 and would have been higher if we had another drink and maybe desert but after being insulted, we knew it was time to go. Not an altogether bad place but I don't appreciate being nickel and dimed, lied to and insulted over a half of a $2 head of lettuce. read more

Although the food and service were outstanding I'm sorry we won't be going back. They have remodeled and the chairs were so painfully uncomfortable we just couldn't enjoy ourselves. Such a shame as it's been a favorite for years. Either put cushions on chairs or bring back booths. Hint. Have a supply of cushions available for seniors. read more

This was my first experience at this place! They have a nice menu and I will return to try more! I noticed online they had Veal Oscar so I had to go! The food was great! Veal was perfect and the asparagus fresh, crabmeat was succulent and their version of the sauce was a wonderful surprise and so good! Super service and nice place! Can't wait to go again! read more

Basta Pasta - Fallston - Veal Oscar! Absolutely Wonderful! - Italian Near Me - Fallston, Maryland

My wife and I enjoyed basta pasta this evening and LOVED it- out server, Alex, was very attentive and knowledgeable about the menu. He made great recommendations- my wife had the chicken umbertina- which she loved - great iltalian dish and I had the shrimp parmigiana- we also had the calamari- the best calamari we have had on a long long time! Thank you to Alex for taking great care of us! And thank you Basta Pasta for an awesome meal- we will be back!! read more

Basta Pasta - Fallston - Italian Near Me - Fallston, Maryland

Have been coming here for years this was my first disappointment. Salad was day old at best with small portion for a family of four. We asked for more and in was even worse. Meals have been down sized and prices have not. Will think twice before returning. read more

Recently moved into area. Ordered 4 dinners for takeout, timely service, friendly staff, large portions. We had enough for leftover lunch next day! Owner introduced himself and walked me to pickup station. He was enthusiastic and talked to me like family! When he learned I was new in town, treated me to a delicious slice of cheesecake! Growing up in an Italian home and being from NY, I consider myself a good judge for Italian food and cheesecake -- Basta Pasta passed the test! Cheesecake tasted just like my grandmothers, which is a hard to beat! Will definitely return for dinner and get a slice of that strawberry cheesecake :) read more

I waited 3 hours on Mother's Day for pickup. After waiting 40 minutes, they said they were an hour and a half behind. By the time I waited an hour and a half, it was 630 with no other restaurants taking orders. The first 2 and a half hours of waiting not one single manager came out to tell anyone anything. When I finally saw a manager, all he did was argue with customers and actually kicked one customer out who waited for 3 hours. Then to "make up" for the 3 hour wait they sent me a $15 gift card. I have been to other restaurants that have made smaller mistakes that have more than $15. Awful customer service makes it easy for me to say I'll never be back. read more

My family made a reservation here for Mother's Day dinner at 5:30 p.m. We arrived 10 minutes early and were told we would have to wait another 15-20 minutes. After 30 minutes had gone by, we asked about the status of our reservation and were told they were waiting for another table to leave. Upon looking around, it seemed as though there were only 2 places to seat large parties despite the fact that the manager had authorized his staff to seat multiple large parties. We were also told that despite the fact that they were allowing people to make reservations (on a holiday where it is necessary to do so), they were still taking walk-ins, including large parties of walk-ins. We waited an HOUR AND A HALF outside on benches in chilly weather with my grandmother and aunt who both have difficulty standing for more than a few minutes. I also had my 1 and 5 year old children who, of course, were starving by this point. After this outrageous wait for a 5:30 reservation, they called us in, only to let us get into the restaurant and head to our table and then it was STILL not ready. We stood awkwardly in the middle of the restaurant and were told "We are doing our best." We were never given an apology for the unprofessional way they handled this situation. When attempting to speak with the manager, he blew us off and gave flippant answers to our frustrations and he walked away. He also never offered an apology for the unprofessional way he was managing his restaurant. I cannot comment on the food, as we decided to leave since our table was STILL not ready. I am so incredibly disappointed with the lack of consideration from the manager and his staff. The staff and manager here need to not take reservations if they are not going to honor them. And when you make a mistake as a manager, learn how to offer a sincere apology and train your staff to do the same. read more

So, I will start this by saying this restaurant has the most amazing white pizza I've ever had!!! We frequently get it for dinner. This past Wednesday we decided to get a large white pizza (as usual) and it was the worst pizza I have ever tasted, completely disappointed. It hardly had any garlic,broccoli or tomato and barely put a tablespoon of ricotta cheese on the entire pizza, and on top of that the whole pizza was so dry!! And normally they pile on the ricotta cheese, garlic, broccoli and tomato. I'm not sure what the issue was, but it just put a bad taste in my mouth read more

Our server was very friendly and our food was wonderful, but management was disappointing. The busser brought a coke to the table and spilled it down my sister in laws back. He appologized, however when he brought the replacement coke, he bumped into our server and spilled that coke down my brother in laws back. again he appologized but then proceeded to stand at the table next to us laughing about it with the manager and host. Not once did the manager come appologize or even take the sodas off of the bill. an appology from the manager would have gone a long way, but he instead laughed and said nothing. read more

The staff at Basta Pasta is very friendly, warm, and accommodating - they make sure they fix any issues quickly and with a smile to make sure everyone is satisfied with their food and experience! read more

Beautiful restaurant. My first encounter was through a catered event; MAN are their catering trays big! They definitely make sure you have enough. Very good food, and great staff. Highly recommend you try Basta Pasta if you consider it. read more

We eat out twice weekly and like to try different places. Although the atmosphere is relatively nice here, we found the prices to be on the high side and the food quality mediocre at best. Portions are fitting enough, but again, the quality is more of chain rather then homemade quality. We've been three times, giving different menu items their just opportunity but the bottom line is they all rack up in the mediocre category. For a much better Italian experience in Harford County, Scotto's in Festival or Enotria in Forest Hill fare much better for the money. read more

Very nice atmosphere, wait staff very friendly all they need is a chef. I think there motto should be, if it doesnt have sugar or cornstarch then we dont cook it. linguine and clam sauce. Canned clams, cornstarch. Chicken francaisse loads of cornstarch. Dont live in the area but surely there must be better. read more

Great lunch dining experience . Started off with the crab toast - excellent. I got the tortellini pesto with basil sauce. Best ever! My bf got chicken parm and he loved it. We topped it off by sharing the molten lava cake with ice cream. We were stuffed and very happy! Gotta say our waiter, David was awesome. Great service. It was a very expensive lunch ... with tip,$70. I'd pay it again in a heartbeat. Everything was that great! read more