Many home cooks are puzzled that their finished pasta dishes just aren't as tasty as pasta they get at a restaurant. There are three secrets:

1. Restaurant kitchens tend to salt their pasta water more than home cooks; it should be salty enough to taste like sea water.
2. Drain the pasta when it's still al dente, reserving a bit of the cooking water. Toss the pasta immediately with some of the sauce you'll serve it with; the hot pasta will soak up some of the sauce, punching up the flavor.
3. Use a little of the reserved cooking water to add starch to the sauce, thus thickening it.