The Basil Leaf Café — Restaurant in Lawrence

This Place... Amazing! My wife and I would eat here on special occasions while we were attending the local University and we often visit this establishment whenever we find ourselves back in Lawrence.

Every dish I have consumed from this place has proven to be a new and truly enjoyable experience! I can honestly say that I've never had a bad dish at this restaurant, if anything I've found myself inspired by their food. They used to , and still may, offer a butter burger which helped me to understand how a person could be passionate about hamburgers. When I bit into that burger I actually found myself stunned. I had approached the burger in the same manner I had all previous meat patties place between to pieces of bread and, so doing, expected the usually bland greasy presence on my tongue... Unfortunately, I have neither have the words nor the clarity of memory to accurately depict the sensation which actually graced my taste buds upon first chomping down on that manna like sandwich. Needless to say, since that experience I have been perusing a similar burger nearer where I live.

My uncertainty in there continued offering of their butter burger is due to the fact that I don't think I've ever ordered the same dish twice at this place. Traditionally, I am a very complacent eater and, when dining out, I find a menu item which I enjoy and that's the thing I will forever eat when visiting that eatery, I often dread and am overwhelmed by menus which are often closer to a novel than a selection of proffered food items; This has never the case when I've place an order at the Basil Leaf. Their menu has a very neat and refined feel to it, they keep their offerings to a manageable number and instead choose to focus on truly crush both the presentation and quality of each plate they make.

Their dining room has a very pleasant ambiance too; good for any occasion from an intimate dinner, to grabbing a bite with friends or family before the show. In fact, if my memory serves me correctly, each time we have visited them the dining area has been comfortably busy with few to no empty tables and yet we have never felt crowded or overwhelmed by the noise or activity of the other guests. Often I forget that there is anyone else there and am able to loose myself in conversation...

Edit-1: The restaurant replied to my comment, that's certainly admirable. I decided to give them another shot sometime soon because they replied. Will post another personal, honest review then.

We went to the new location for dinner. Be careful, this is not an authentic Italian eatery. Your Google search of "Basil Leaf" will show some information about this place and you will read "affordable italian cuisine made from scratch"! Italian food CAN actually be affordable, but Basil Leaf's prices are too high for the quality of food they serve. We ordered Shrimp Scampi and Creamy Basil Chicken, each for $19! TOO SALTY! I don't know what the cook is thinking, but you use this much salt only to hide the poor taste of your dish. The bread that comes along pasta is NOT FRESH, it's similar to a pizza joint's breadstick! We also ordered Calamari, it was also TOO SALTY! The nice server asks you "how's everything tasting" and I feel like it's rude to say all of this to her, which is not her fault but there it is... I wish I could say more. I know it won't change much, but I don't think I will be back. I honestly cook better pasta at home myself. The new sign outside is nice. The restrooms are ... I think the QT on 9th and Iowa has better restrooms. All the servers seem nice, they rush and walk too fast, I don't know why, the place wasn't half full. I felt like I had to rush with my food. You know what's funny, I bet some other person thought that same pasta tasted delicious on the same day. Oh well, this is just my opinion. One positive comment of this place, you go on to their website, they don't advertise "Italian", so I commend them for that. I write this because I wish we could have a proper Italian place in Lawrence... If you know a place,...

First time at this restaurant. It's tiny! There's probably 10 or 12 tables tops, and that's not likely a function of Covid... Not much more room for additional tables. We arrived at 715pm for a 730 reservation, and were promptly greeted and seated. There was one server and one bartender to service the entire restaurant. Probably could have used one more server. Our server was working fast and furious to keep things moving, but still was a bit inattentive. Took a bit to get our drinks from the bar. The service wasn't great, but not so bad that we wouldn't go back. Maybe someone called in sick tonight... Who knows. I'll give them the benefit of the doubt.

Now, the food. We ordered bruscetta as a starter... Pretty tasty, and plenty for two people, maybe three if you aren't like us and can exercise some portion control! I ordered the tortellini cordon bleu. Really good! It was a scallopini fried chicken breast, sliced and placed on top of fantastic stuffed tortellini. I'd definitely eat it again. My wife had arrabiatta, and added a grilled chicken breast for some protein...kind of like spaghetti with fresh green peppers in it. Very fresh and light. Good stuff! Both of our dishes were huge, and could easily be shared with someone... Lots of food left for lunch tomorrow.

We both decided it was a good experience, and definitely tasty enough to go again. I want to try their chicken tender entree next time. Make reservations, for sure! Would happily give it 4 stars next time if the servers were...