Basta la Pasta is a tiny storefront restaurant that serves up pasta, risottos, pizza, burgers, and paninis. It’s no frills: you pay at the register and the seating is sparse. Outside of a few posters emphasizing the restaurant’s main staple, pasta, the decor isn’t anything to write home about.

But Basta serves up delicious, inexpensive food quickly. I prefer to stick with some of the more traditional pasta — bolognese, chicken parmigiana, alfredo. The gorgonzola & walnut sauce sounded good but was too watery for my taste.

The pizzas are also an excellent value — I had the buffalo chicken pizza and it was excellent. It’s a big pie and a better quality pizza than most of the delivery joints in this part of Cambridge.

Basta Pasta has a lot going for it. The food is delicious (I hear the chef studied in Italy). The menu has a wide range, from the Pasta dishes (their specialty) to pizza and hamburgers. You order everything at the cash register, so it’s very informal and prices are cheap – most pasta dishes are $10 or less. They give you a lot so even people with big appetites will be bringing leftovers home for another full meal.

If you want Italian in Cambridge, there’s really no reason not to go to Basta.