PAPA’S GOT A BRAND NEW BOA
Table Talk,Videos
Watch the video below. Better yet, listen to it. There’s a certain cadence in the voice of Payton Curry that reminds us of a seasoned bluesman, yet the guy’s still a baby (by bluesman years). Maybe he picked up the blues working at Digestif, the right restaurant run by the wrong guy. Maybe he picked it up at the second Digestif, a wrong move for the right chef. Or maybe it’s the lack of sleep from having a newborn, taking on the menu makeover at Tempe’s Caffe Boa and helping the owner—Jay Wisniewski—open a version of the Italian spot in Mesa by year’s end.
Curry lists more farms on his menu than a Farm-Aid concert lists beneficiaries. Some are abbreviated (“Q.C.O.O.”), others get the whole spellout (“MJ Artisanal Breadcrumbs”). And at first glance, the menu looks like a giant locawhore marketing scheme. But then you get down to forks and knives and you realize Curry’s really singing a soulful tune with all these farms and fresh-made pastas and simple flavor profiles.
Before our first dish even arrived at dinner there last week-ish, we were just happy to see and feel enthusiasm breathed back into the ‘ole place. Our last few visits to Boa were wrought with disappointment, so here was a chance for a fresh start (pun intended).
THERE’S AN APP FOR THAT
Kicking off with an appetizer of McClendon radishes set the simplicity tone. Tossed in Banyuls vinegar, Slovenian pumpkin seed oil (Wisniewski’s from Slovenia, so maybe they get a deal on pumpkin seed oil?!), shallots, parsley, plugra butter, and chives. With every bite, we kept wondering how Curry turned a simple pile of radishes into a killer, stand-alone app. But he did, and he did it with finesse. We tried a couple other things (all were great) but the radishes were a stand-out fave.
SHOWING OFF HIS NOODLE
Every single day, Curry and his crew turn out fresh pastas. But it’s the combination of ingredients after they’re shaped that will make Boa our new hit whenever we get the itch for good pasta. From packed agnolotti to extra-long maccaroncello, the current pasta menu seems tailored to the season, with butternut squash, sweetbreads, and grilled forest mushrooms as main ingredients. Most are priced around $16-$18, and portions felt spot-on.
THIS IS HOW WE DID IT
The menu’s built to order a starter, maybe split a pasta, then go entrées. We failed in that regard – blowing our order load early with a couple apps and three pastas. It’ll be tricky to go back and dive into entrées though, knowing that those noodles just came out of the flour earlier that day.
Wisniewski’s got some remodel plans for the dining room, playing up the bay windows and brick walls. But first, Curry needs new kitchen digs to keep up the pace of change in back. You know it takes a lot for us to endorse a place, and this one definitely gets it. View the menu here.
398 S. Mill Ave.
Tempe, AZ 85281
(480) 968-9112
www.cafeboa.com
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