Chef Paolo Laboa adds basil that had been soaking in water to pine nuts and olive oil at Solo Italiano. Soaking the leaves in water makes them heavier and helps them blend better, Laboa says.

Chef Paulo Laboa's verdant, velvety pesto alla genovese.

Chef Paolo Laboa adds two kinds of freshly grated cheese into his olive oil, pine nut and basil mixture.

Laboa tastes his pesto. At Solo Italiano, diners go through so much pesto the staff must make it in an industrial-sized blender rather than with a mortar and pestle. Laboa is OK with that: "I think 200 years ago, if they had a blender, they'd use a blender," he jokes.

Laboa begins prepping basil for his pesto at Solo Italiano.

Laboa and line cook Ruth Connelly stem basil to make pesto at Solo Italiano.