$8 Pasta Vs. $100 Pasta

(fast exciting music) - Oh, what's up? Hey, Andrew! How are you? No, come on, let's go, I have another food adventure for us. - What do we eat? - Pasta. - Alright. - Yes it's correct. (fun rhythmic music) This boy right here, that's my boy. Woo hoo, let's go! - This is wet, now I'm wet. -Baby

pasta

. We're on our way to eat three of the best

pasta

s in Los Angeles at three drastically different prices, to find out which one is worth the money. - It's worth it. - The last stop we're going to, I don't know if you're ready for it. - I've had $300 steak, $130 pizza, I think I'm ready for pasta.

I have a feeling I know which one will be the highest. - No, you don't, you're not ready. You were not born ready. - Is it truffle? - Don't worry about it, man. We're on our way to Pasta Sister right now. Can I go this way? - No! - No no! - Do Not Enter! - If I can. Where? - Oh, yes, it's one way, you can go down there. - Damn guys. - If you start to see cars coming towards us, stop. (serene and happy music) - I'm Francesco, I own Pasta Sister with my mother, Paola.

We decided to open this place because we thought that in Los Angeles there are many great places, but very little freshly made pasta and low prices, like us. We start early in the morning making the pasta. We make it with Italian flour, because not all flours make good pasta. And not all flour makes it yellow and pretty enough to stay for seven days, like our pasta does. - You are not sisters, obviously. I don't see any sisters here. -Sometimes they say I'm the prettiest. (people laugh) But my mom and her sister work here. My sister Georgia works on the front lines with us.

Today we are going to prepare the tagliatelle arriabata, our slightly spicy tomato sauce. Add olive oil, chili flakes, a little garlic oil, when the pasta is ready, add the tomato sauce and add the parsley, the last ingredient. And the pasta is ready. (exciting rhythmic music) - Greetings. - Health. - Wow, this tastes like the grown-up version of root beer. Are we going to eat from the same plate? - Today we have a lot of pasta to eat, let's avoid any Tramp Lady type situation. - Here. - Great, I hated that. It is a very good pasta. - That was intense. - Each noodle is simply covered in sauce. -I also have the feeling that I am in her mother's kitchen in Italy.

She had never been to Italy before but... (man laughing) -We are going to prepare, too, gnocchi, with porcini mushrooms and cream sauce. We use the boletus that we made in the morning, adding a little cream. Everything made from scratch. -Fresh gnocchi, she described it as pillows. -Everything that has ever been described as a pillow has been great. - This is like the ultimate pillow fight for my mouth. Holy suffocates. - That's crazy. - So gnocchi are pasta? - These are easily the best gnocchi I have ever had. Oh man, we haven't eaten any of this bread yet. - Look how easy it is to disassemble, without any effort. - It's the best for mom. - These are all my mom's best recipes.

But from our secret menu we have spaghetti alla bottarga, with dried fish eggs from (murmurs). - We will definitely get it, yes friend. - Yes. - You know when you've been a good boy and your mom just gives you an extra gift. Hmm. - I mean this flavor is crazy, it tastes like it's covered in cheese, that's how good it is. - Why is this on the secret menu? My stomach is full but my heart is (murmurs). - I'm not going to say anything, so let's go. - Talking about those sisters, I mean, not in that way. (men laughing) - It's like a neighborhood deli that also makes the best pasta you'll ever taste. - They don't apologize for being themselves. - And they don't even have a bathroom.

Speaking of which, we have to get to the next place as soon as possible. - Pasta fact! - Fact of pasta, fact of pasta! (man screaming) - According to the International Pasta Organization, how many different forms of pasta are produced in the world? - Is there an International Pasta Organization? 100. (man shouting loudly) 600? - Oh! You cheated? You cheated. - No, I did not do it. - There are more than 600 types, yes. - Actually? - Wow! So now we are on our way to Osteria Mamma. How do you say sorry in Italian? -Scusa. - No, it's not. - Yes it is. - Actually? - Scusa, pasta scusa potato. - There you go. - Does that sound even remotely correct? (fun and exciting music) - I'm Osteria Mamma, my name is Filippo Cortivo.

I am the owner. We opened this restaurant, a gift for my mother. That's why mom is the name. This is our house. The dough, we have flour from Italy, very delicate double zero flours. You can't be too fast, you can't be too slow. - And that's why it has to be made by hand. - That's why we do everything by hand, because we like to keep control of that process. Then we let the pasta dry for a while, and it's ready. - What are you going to serve us today? - Today we will try two pastas.

The first dish we are going to prepare is the black squid ink bigoli, with bottarga shrimp. But first we added cherry tomato, scraped the bottarga and as always white wine. - What makes pasta really good for you? - For me, the perfect pasta is when the noodles are combined with the sauce, that is the flavor you have exposed in your mouth. - Second round, first course. Bigoli neri alla bottarga. - I have a second stomach, I just like to move it when I need it. - I always have my second stomach busy. (light and serene music) - Greetings. (man moaning) - This is really special. - It's true what he said, the noodles absorbed all the flavor from here. - This is an explosion of flavor. - And then when it's in your mouth. (strong puff of air) - The second course for you will be green spinach pappardelle in duck ragout sauce.

It is extra virgin olive oil, a little garlic, the ground duck, everything is already pre-cooked, so you add a little cherry tomato. - White wine? - You know, we are Italian, so we like to put wine everywhere. (men laughing) What we are trying to take is like a small leap in Italy. I talked about the explosion in the mouth before, and wine is part of it. - It reminds me of Andrew and me, we are two very imperfect people, but together, a perfect explosion in the world. - Sure. - How is that wine? - Luxurious. - Mmm, that has a deep smell. - How deep does it smell? - Something like your deep voice. - Let me get that pasta. - Health. - Yes. - That has a lot of flavor. - Control it in your mouth, please. - Irrepressible, you know what? - Flavor explosion. - No, it's not even an explosion anymore, it's like dynamite. - That's an explosion. (loud sniffles) It's the first time I've made that sucking noise on today's show. - This pasta is not only more expensive. - You'll get more there, you'll get that meat sauce, you'll get that whole fish dish. - And it's still simple.

If one of us is pasta and the other is sauce. Who is the pasta, who is the sauce? - Say who you think you are in three. One two three. - Pasta. (men laughing lightly) Do you like that? The squid ink pasta, I have never had a noodle like that. It was very imperfect and rough, but it was also a thick thread. - I think the best dish we have tried so far was the duck ragout. - In fact, some of the first recorded reports of noodle consumption come from China as early as 5000 BC. Made of pasta. - Very good, the last place, the last place.

Let's go find pasta with truffle. - I called it. - But this is going to be different. They are going to set fire to a slice of Parmesan. It's dinner and a show. As for (mumbles), I love white truffle. - Do your pasta dance. Stop doing that. - Pasta. (intense dramatic music) - What kind of noodles are you making there? And you do it here? (men laughing) - So it's an Italian dish, but you're giving it a French twist. - Excited. Ready for a show. - Come on. That's the white truffle, you've already started... Here you go, Andrew.

Thank you very much Chef. But to end the day, we have the $100 flambéed pasta dish with white truffle. You are ready? - I ate five pastas today, I think I am more prepared than ever. This is the first time some theater has been added to our dining experience. Are you going to drink wine? - I'm going to try it. (light, serene music) This is splendid. I need a moment to prepare to eat it. So if you want to grab a bite first, I'm happy to watch people eat. - I don't like that you just watch me eat.

Damn. You better come in here. - I feel like the cameraman should take a little before me. - Are you going to take any of this because it's really good and I have no self-control? - Okay, I'm going to take a bite. - How are you? - Hmm. - Upset? - Hmm. - No I dont think so. - Wow, the white truffle is indescribable. And today we talk about explosions of flavor, this is the most intense explosion of flavor. - I just live life one explosion of flavor at a time. - More like you do it like a lot at a time, you never stop eating.

Do you feel like our French (mumbles) has been cemented? - I feel like my stomach has been cemented with like two pounds of pasta. - Just admit it. - I don't admit anything. -We just ate six different pasta dishes in one day. Do you know what's coming? Which pasta was more worth it? I think the $100 dough was worth it. You have to interact with the chef. - The fact that it flambéed... - Yeah. (silent burps) - Hey, that's a $35 burp. - But to me, that wasn't the most worth it, for the price. - Osteria Mamma, you have handmade pasta, accompanied with a great sauce, it is definitely worth it. - My winner today, without a doubt, goes to Pasta Sister. (bell rings) - Yes, I also choose Pasta Sister. -Yowza.

A25 to enjoy authentic Italian cuisine, straight from the handmade pasta to your mouth. (man laughing) Incredible. - They had the most amazing gnocchi I have ever had. -I guess we should ask Bianci what she thinks, considering she's the most Italian person in this car. -She grew up in Ohio. - Oh, me too. Lavista pasta. - No! I love it when you call me big pasta. (men laughing) I just remembered that. - Oh yeah!