Perfect Pasta & Gelato opens in Bay Shore
Perfect Pasta & Gelato in Bay Shore lets patrons choose a fresh pasta, sauce and toppings. Credit: Newsday/Marie Elena Martinez
Bay Shore is the latest town jumping on the fresh made pasta pop-up trend. Perfect Pasta & Gelato has opened, offering fresh made pasta for takeout as well as cappuccino and gelato.
The create-your-own pasta concept, which invites diners to choose a shape, add a sauce and load up on toppings, is popping up all over Long Island, from the Pasta Joint in Huntington to Pastaru Pastificio in Mineola and Pasta Project within Gino’s of Farmingdale. The new Pasta Perfect is in the former Roto Grocery and Kismet Coffee Co. space on Main Street in downtown Bay Shore.
The tiny, white subway-tiled space serves espresso drinks and has a nearly a dozen gelato flavors, from hazelnut to rainbow cookie. But if you’re a savory eater, you’re here for the pasta.
First, pick a pasta base ($12.95): There’s spaghetti alla chitarra, fusilli and rigatoni. Next, add one of six sauces, including tomato and basil, meaty Bolognese (+$2), creamy Alfredo (+$2), garlic and oil, pesto Genovese (+$3) or spicy arrabbiata. From there you can add chicken, shrimp, sweet Italian sausage or heavenly meatballs. Veggie options include mushrooms, spinach and cherry tomatoes. And don’t forget the cheese: ricotta, shredded mozzarella and Parmesan. In about 10 to 15 minutes, a brown paper bag from the kitchen appears and you’ll be sent on your way with a hefty — and we mean hefty — serving of carbs.
"The Bolognese is a 9-ounce serving of rigatoni with six ounces of chunky sauce," said Phil Krumpter, the vision behind Perfect Pasta & Gelato. Krumpter owns nearby Roadtrip, which uses a travel theme to highlight the foods of different states across the country.
"We’re using high-quality ingredients, pasta is being made fresh all day long, and we’re being generous with our portions. This is easily a $35 pasta dish, but we’re a value-driven concept," he said. The concept came from his own after-work cravings. "When I get home from work at 9 o'clock and don't feel like cooking, I want to order a bowl of pasta, but I don’t want to spend $40 on delivery and eat processed sauces with tons of sugar."
Perfect Pasta & Gelato is also making its own syrups for its coffee, which is being sourced from Mongo’s, and the gelatos are so boldly flavored, so silken in texture, that they’re giving Italy vibes. Although the space is mostly a takeaway storefront, when the event-driven Fire Island Vines next door isn’t booked, that space will open up for diners to eat their macaroni. Also stay tuned for upcoming wine and pasta pairing events in a marriage of the two spaces.
Perfect Pasta & Gelato, 17 E. Main St., Bay Shore; Open daily 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
A global freelancer who has checked her suitcase to raise her young daughter on her native Long Island, Marie Elena will always make time for good mezcal, even better tacos and killer conversation. Preferably, in a corner bar seat. She can be found on Instagram at @mariesworldeats.
