Basta Pasta doesn't look all that different from any of the hundreds of pizza shops around the Boston area: the menu board hanging over the counter, shakers of parmesan and red pepper flakes on the tables, uncomfortable benches, and stock photos of subs and greasy pizza in the takeout menu. But take a closer look at the menu, and it becomes clear that Basta Pasta is unlike its competitors. Most pizza joints don't offer risotto.......

--Miguel Perez, 22, was shot around 1:00 am while standing in the rain outside the bar Gigi's Palace. Brian Ballou at the Globe writes that the owner of the bar didn't let Perez in because he thought Perez was "trouble" and may have been involved with a shooting that happened inside the bar two weeks ago. The owner, Andy Barros, can't be blamed for not wanting trouble--his cousin died outside Gigi's Palace last year, and......

--Suffolk District Attorney Dan Conley and police commissioner Ed Davis were able to be in the same room this weekend despite their ongoing public spat. But someone has BPD detectives have been distributing flyers around Government Center denouncing Conley's actions. The flyer pulls no punches and even likens Conley to a feudal lord: "Dan Conley is a politician who only wants to flex his political might over the serfs beneath him." Can everyone involved in......

Everyone's doing it, so why can't we? MORE COWBELL! The Globe announced that highway officials are considering bringing back dangling cowbells under the warning signs before the Storrow Drive and Memorial Drive overpasses. The cowbells will be hung before the overpasses, so truck drivers will hear the sound of the cowbells and theoretically stop before they hit the overpass itself. Of course, if the truck driver/college student is blasting loud music or talk radio, no......

We saw so much of Denzel Washington in the local press recently that we're feeling a little left out, even more so since he's probably left town by now. Boston media was so Denzel-happy that we half expected someone to run a post saying, "I threw my panties at Denzel!" It's like Denzel Washington was here, there, and everywhere in Boston. Washington was in town for the shooting of The Great Debaters, about a 1930s......

Maybe Romney is upset that he can't pronounce Ahmadinejad correctly (who can?). Perhaps he's afraid that there aren't enough of the Chargers for the Staties to drive. Or maybe he's just making another calculated move for a potential 2008 Presidential bid. Whatever the case may be, Romney has ordered to refuse all requests for security details in protection of the former Iranian president, Mohammad Khatami. A visit by Khatami has been scheduled for this Sunday,......

This week finds (this) Bostonist on Cape Cod, trying to soak up a little sun while keeping Baby Bostonist (who is fast becoming Toddler Bostonist) from catching a wicked burn or wandering into the ocean. It is a lovely place, especially if, like us, one has the good fortune to have relatives with a house here. However, we would not recommend to anyone not already here that they attempt the trip this week or......