:: Arrivederci ::

Monday, June 07, 2004

Pasta Man's been here forever, on the north-west corner of 10st and 1st avenue. There's an entire mural on an adjacent building, to the left of his shop's entrance, dedicated to him. He kept parochial hours, but the food was top-notch. And cheap.

Pasta Man was... decisive. Every time I ever bought anything from him we engaged in a little ritual. The first time I wasn't prepared.

PM: What kind of sauce you gonna put on that?
MO: Um... Marinara?
PM [head shaking slightly, eyes firing daggers of shame]: No.
MO: No?
PM: No. You drizzle some pesto and a little lemon juice - room temperature - on top. Just a little.
MO: Ok.

After that I knew what to do. Didn't matter. It went the same way every time.

PM: What kind of sauce you gonna put on that?
MO: Pesto sauce! And a little lemon juice. Just a little.
PM [nodding suspiciously]: Pesto sauce. And a little lemon juice.
MO: Yeah, that's what I, um...
PM [staring]: Just a little.
MO [shuffling feet]: Rightokwellumthanks.

Pasta Man can't afford the rent anymore. Good luck to him. More than just a little.

Posted by morland @ 11:28 PM

:: Comments ::

i will testify here. Mike showed me pasta man about 8 months ago and he was right. Pasta man made amazing pasta. His meat tortelini were fantastic. Plus, he set me straight on sauces as well. I salute you pasta man

Posted by: rob on June 8, 2004 05:15 PM

so sad. i used to go there all the time when i lived nearby. very inexpensive for the quality. he never gave me sauce advice, not once. i wondered back then (8 yrs ago) how he stayed in business. did he still have the fat white-ish cat?

Posted by: chris on June 24, 2004 12:59 PM

I saw no pets, though they could have been concealed in the back room from which he would emerge to serve customers.

Posted by: morland on June 24, 2004 03:03 PM

He had two cats.
The fat white and grey cat is Rigatoni. Rigatoni retired to Pasta Man's mother's house in Queens.
The more recent cat was Rigatoni's daughter, I think her name is Luna.

Posted by: Kevin on June 25, 2004 10:08 PM

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