Otto, On Its Own

    The day began bright and sunny, yet cold.  However, by noon, the sky had managed to cloud over again.  Good!  Cloudy and cold means needing to eat something rich and warming.  I jumped on the local bus and headed up towards Notting Hill to Otto, a pizzeria that had been recommended to me by an accomplished food blogger and chef, so I was hoping for something pretty great. 

     The pizzeria is small, on the edge of a neighborhood, but sitting near the corner of the busier cross street, Westbourne Grove, which is covered in shops and restaurants.  I pushed open the wooden door and stepped onto the unfinished concrete.  It was fairly quiet for a Sunday afternoon, just a few small families having lunch, but the counter girl was quite friendly, smiling happily as I entered.  

Otto makes their pizza by the slice, and they do not make it until you order it.  They can also make whole pies, but by offering it by the slice, you can order a full pie of 6 different pieces (20gbp- a bit pricey).  Although, I was really tempted, I decided to order only three slices. They change the menu fairly often, so on this particular day, I ordered:

1. Potato & Leek: creamy leek, mild feta and roasted potato with parsley garlic

2. Cheese and Tomato: mozzarella, just a tad of cheddar, provolone, roasted tomato, parmesan, parsley-garlic, oregano

3. Roasted Cauliflower: roasted cauliflower with spinach, Gorgonzola and white wine sauce

    All three were incredible.  The cornmeal crust is textured and rich.  It is thick and filling but just perfectly delicate so that it melts when you bite into it, but does not crumble in your hand.  It is full of the flavor of fresh olive oil.  The toppings were all roasted to perfection, while the cheeses were robust and complimenting.  They have some great vegetarian options (as you can see) in addition to meaty choices.  They even have a vegan slice with homemade red curry.  Otto's has created its own pizza, that compares to no other.  It is not Italian, it is not American, it is Otto's.  I hope to go back at some point, who is coming with me?