Otto Enoteca Pizzeria

[Sethro]

I ate Otto on Sunday night.

Started out with delicious crusty bread with a really nice olive oil. I asked for salt and got a surprisingly big dish of the expensive stuff.

Escarole and sunchoke salad was perfectly dressed; bright and delicate. I was as excited as I get about a salad. My companions arugala with cherry tomato was less exciting but still good.

I had the margerita and my companion had the vongole. I was underwhelmed by both. The sauce on the margerita was a little too sweet and light on spice for my liking. The crust was also less crisp than I hoped for. The Vongole was flat out ridiculous, with a huge pile of clams-in-shell slopped atop the pie. It took us almost 5 miutes to "clean" it before we could even start, and at that point it had been rendered soggy, sandy and salty.

For dessert we ordered three gelato coupes. First was the olive oil coppeta, which was amazing--just as perfect in every way as a dessert can be. Second was the "Black & White", which I thought was a little boring except for the ganache enrobed hazlenuts slyly reffered to as chocolate-chips on the menu. Last was Goat Ricotta with dates, which was very subtle with only a slight twang. This would have been great to have first, but after all the citrus and chocolate it couldn't really hold its own. Still, texturally the gelatos are all masterfull and well appreciated.

Edited May 9, 2006 by Sethro (log)

[Megan Blocker]

Went to Otto tonight for dinner with my aunt, two cousins, and my cousin's girlfriend. Had a very good meal, with lots of the pizzas, two pastas, and some salad and carne. Also sampled some desserts, but let's begin at the beginning.

We started with three salads - the caprese, the arugula and tomato, and the escarole and sunchoke. I loved the arugula, and the pesto in the caprese was delicious. I didn't love the escarole, though - the sunchokes and escarole were great, but there were also some nuts in there, which I felt detracted from the sunchokes and even tasted a bit off/rancid.

We also got a plate of the coppa - delicious. Salty, just a little bite, and luxuriously fatty.

I couldn't convince the team to order the lardo pizza (or to order any of the pizzas without cheese), but we got the pizza bianca (with mozzerella added ), the pepperoni, the margherita and the quattro stagioni.

I loved the pepperoni - I usually hate pepperoni pizza (it's fatty and boringly spicy), but this was some of the better pepperoni I've had. Also loved the bianca and the margherita. Nothin bad about tomato, basil and mozzerella.

For pastas we had the spaghetti carbonara, which they make with slivered scallions, something I've never done. It added a lovely kick to everything, though the pancetta was not as good as the bacon I usually use. We also got the special bucatini alla gricia, which has guacinale, red onion, garlic, and some chiles, I think. I really liked that one a lot.

For dessert, gelati! Chocolate and coffee...very good, and intensely flavored. And creamy, of course. A lovely dinner overall, and even with two bottles of wine, dinner was about $40 a head, including tip. Not bad.

Also had an odd celeb sighting - Emeril Lagasse walked past our table on his way out, dressed in Mario's signature orange. Huh!

Edited June 5, 2006 by Megan Blocker (log)

[achevres]

I was just at Otto with my daughter. I had the pizza if the day, Capriciosa, which had tomato sauce, buffalo mozzarella, prociutto cotto, artichokes, mushrooms and capers. I would've never come up with that combo, but it was really good. Every bite different. I added the arugula from my daughter's pizza and it was even better. She had the pizza with prociutto and loved it.

For dessert (and the reason I'm posting) I had the olive oil gelato copetta, one of the best desserts I've ever had. It had the gelato, chopped strawberries, passion fruit granita, basil syrup, olive oil (minor amount) and Maldon salt (also minor amount). The olive oil gelato is as good as everyone says on this thread. It has depth and roundness of flavor, without being heavy. The combination in this copetta is inspired. Passion fruit doesn't normally do anything for me, but here it was a perfect tart foil.

Just go and get it .

[Nathan]

For pastas we had the spaghetti carbonara, which they make with slivered scallions, something I've never done. It added a lovely kick to everything, though the pancetta was not as good as the bacon I usually use.

hmmm...they used to use guanciale not pancetta for the carbonara...

[Megan Blocker]

For pastas we had the spaghetti carbonara, which they make with slivered scallions, something I've never done. It added a lovely kick to everything, though the pancetta was not as good as the bacon I usually use.

hmmm...they used to use guanciale not pancetta for the carbonara...

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It was definitely pancetta, I think. And I think I got that off the menu, rather than by taste...because I remember thinking it was odd.