Off the Beaten Plate: Tortellini Cordon Bleu at Basil Leaf Cafe
This is like chicken cordon bleu turned inside out and poured over pasta. Tortellini Cordon Bleu features ham, bacon, caramelized onions, sun-dried tomatoes and coarse-ground black peppercorns in a blue cheese-chardonnay cream sauce over cheese tortellini. The chicken is panko-crusted, sliced and served on top.
A foam container and plastic fork may seem underdressed for such an elaborate pasta, but the upside is that you don’t have to box up your leftovers from this practically family-sized portion — that’s what they’re served in whether you’re eating in or carrying out.
It should be noted, however, that the whole no-dishes thing isn’t going to continue for long. When Basil Leaf Cafe moves out of its gas-station location in about a month, it plans to have real plates and silverware at its new home.
Where to get it:Basil Leaf Cafe, inside the Phillips 66 Miller Mart at 3300 W. Sixth St. (Note: That’s for now. Basil Leaf is moving to the old Joe’s Bakery spot, 616 W. Ninth St., tentatively in mid-August.)
What you’ll pay: $11.95
Try it with: A blue raspberry slushy (which, like fountain drinks, you’ll have to pay for at the gas station register) — not because it will taste good, but because you can. When else are you ever going to find these cuisines in the same room again?
Also on the menu: Parmesan and Basil Fried Shrooms, a Sicilian Steak Melt Sandwich, daily soups, lasagna, other pastas and a cheesecake of the day. The Basil Leaf menu also features a few Italy-meets-Bayou dishes, such as Red Beans and Risotto and Cajun Penne.