otto, New York

OTTO Enoteca Pizzeria, is the embodiment of everything I consider wrong with the US dining experience.

The food was pretty terrible, from my friends sludgy and tasteless pasta to my below average pizza. The pizza seemed to have been warmed up from a pre-frozen state and did not taste like it had been made with real mozzarella. I get better (frozen) pizzas from my local Sainsbury's (no joke).

In your typical (budget, even!) Italian restaurant you'd get a basket of bread rolls or bowl of olives or bruschetta or pizzabread before your meal, gratis. Here at OTTO's you get slices of bread wrapped in wax paper. All just plonked down directly on your table. No plates. Nothing.

We drank alcohol but if I'd ordered a lemonade or iced tea I would not have been surprised if it were served in a 500ml plastic cup and was constantly being refilled by the passing waitrons.

For that matter the service was pretty impersonal too the thrust of the evening seemed to be to get you out as soon as possible.

OTTO's does have a wine menu of 200+ items. One of which costs $1600. I'm not sure how to process the juxtaposition of food of such abysmal quality with such expensive (and therefore of good quality?) wines.

Ultimately the whole thing comes together as tacky and strikes me as insulting to its patrons. OTTO's tries to hide behind the facade of an upscale eatery when in actual fact it's nothing but a glorified fast food joint. There is better Italian food to be found at the same prices elsewhere in the city.

Highly NOT recommended.

Pros
- interesting wine bar area at the front of restaurant
- extensive wine menu

Cons
- terrible food (frozen pizza?)
- impersonal service
- tacky decor
- mass market McDonald's like philosophy

opened its doors January 2003. Modeled after an Italian train station.

Here you find classic Italian pizza, pasta, extensive wine selection, and warm atmosphere.

Sound Level: Medium-loud at lunch, very loud at night, especially near the bar. The Service is friendly and well-informed.

Otto is lively, noisy and fun.