We tried the restaurant that wants to make cheap pasta the next big thing in fast food — here's the verdict

• Pasta Flyer is a new fast-food restaurant that's aiming to be the McDonald's of pasta.
• Meals range from $7 to $10, and sides and snacks are also available.
• While not bad by any means, the food doesn't live up to expectations.

The McDonald's of macaroni, the Burger King of bucatini, the Chipotle of casarecce — call it what you will, Pasta Flyer has landed. 

Mark Ladner's pasta-focused fast-food restaurant is a far cry from famed New York City restaurant Del Posto, where he was formerly executive chef. 

The concept is a familiar tune: successful chef wants to bring the fast-food format to something other than burgers and fries. The ultimate aim is to create a chain that lures fast-food customers with higher-quality ingredients but the same speed. But fast-food pasta? That's a tall order. 

We visited Pasta Flyer to see if it has what it takes to break into the competitive fast-food market.

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The restaurant is located on Sixth Avenue between 13th and 14th Streets, and it's only open from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. right now. It's a soft open until lunch hours are established.

The interior seems to be centered around the concept of a made-up Fellini film exploring a lurking fear of extraterrestrials in 1960s Rome (frankly, I'd watch that). There's some tasteful Italian-focused decor, slightly tweaked with the eponymous UFO flyer.

Then, of course, there's the giant satellite dish hovering above the entire dining area.