Borti Pasta Bar — Restaurant in Miami

We were in downtown Miami celebrating New Years day and wanted Italian. I did a quick Google search and this place popped up. I called and confirmed they were open. It was about 15 min away from where we were at so easy to get there. The neighborhood is not the best and you can see that the city is regentrifying the area. Parking is street side via parkmobile app. I quickly realized that this is NOT a mom & pop Italian joint but a fancy food court located inside a large building called "The Citadel" a trendy meeting place. We want to try something new, so we didn't hesitate and entered the food hall which consisted of several different types of food and eateries.

We walked up to Borti Pasta Bar located on the back wall and the young lady at the counter was very pleasant. We ordered meatball and calamari appetizers which were Very Good, although there were four meatballs but only three pieces of toasted bread? For main course we had Rigatoni alla Vodka (Excellent), Bucatini Amatriciana (Excellent), Fettucine Alfredo (Good) and Lasagna (Poor)! The Lasagna was "black" like burnt! I took it back immediately and the young lady without any hesitation made me another Rigatoni alla Vodka as a replacement.

We did enjoy ourselves and the food was good, but for $120.00 I don't want cafeteria style serving. I would have preferred a proper sit down dinner at a restaurant. Also, looking at my recipe there is a State tax, Local Tax and get this... Technology Fee? What is this???? The place is interesting and the shop next door "Sir Thrifty" had some really cool items from my childhood, so definitely an interesting place to visit but there are way to many other options closer to home at this...

UPDATE! 5Stars across the board: Wow, the owner is outstanding and I completely understand why he is in business. After one weird visit I received a follow up, I was compensated for my food and offered to receive to come back an have a do over. As a business owner you always have to be a customer first. Thank you for turning one awkward experience pleasant. I will continue to be a return customer.

Old review/3stars: So I’m disappointed for the first time ordering from borti. Yesterday after a longggg work day I called and asked if they had lasagna (because it’s normally sold out) and if I could come pick it up. I was told by the nice man who answered he’d reserve me a piece. So I headed on my journey over to citadel. When I mentioned this to the cashier she goes “oh that was probably the owner you spoke to, we are often to busy to look at the phone so please place the order online for pick up in the future, but we do have it” so I paid and waited for my to go order… when I got home and went to eat… the lasagna seemed over done like the piece was left in the oven too long. There was little to no sauce in the plate either. If I didn’t go all the way home I would’ve simply asked for a refund. The calamari was good but the thing I wanted most was poorly put together. Sucks because it’s the only thing I get from here and it’s a treat for me everyone...

While deciding where to eat in the Citadel food hall, Borti caught our attention. It was their staff that lured us in. Their movement in the kitchen, their focus, body language, esthetic - professional in other words. The woman at the cashier taking our order greeted us with a smile, eye contact, and was interested in helping us. I am vegan, so they happily volunteered to adjust their menu dishes in order to serve me. The chef came over and offered something that wasn't on the menu, it fit the profile of what I like, I went with it, and it was delicious! (The fact that I am vegan does not mean that I don't like eating great food. Food is the highlight of my day, everyday and they did it right.) The pasta was home made, the ingredients were fresh tasting, and most importantly the dish was done right. My wife and son felt the same all around. I don't live in the neighborhood, but the next time my wife and I are around, or on our way downtown we will visit you...