Otto

Time Out says

Thu Sep 9 2010

London hardly needs yet another pizzeria to add to the thousands already here – unless it’s good. Otto sets out to distinguish itself from the me-too pizzerias in the capital by doing things a little differently, mainly by using cornmeal-crust pizza.

The owners of Otto, two ex-bankers, were inspired to use novel pizza bases following a visit to pizzeria in Portland, Oregon. The cornmeal method is not uncommon in the US, and various recipes are available online, for example on www.marthastewart.com. These bases are not gluten-free, as cornmeal is used in combination with wheat. The result is a deep-based yellow pizza base with an appealing granular texture, not the thin, slightly elastic base of the Neapolitan version.

Otto’s also chosen to use a few offbeat toppings. We’re not sure the pizza purists would approve, but we enjoyed our toppings of vegan ‘cashew cheese’, and the roasted aubergine with blue cheese.

On the evening of our visit, Otto – a small restaurant, with lots of hard, reflective surfaces – was filled by two large tables of revellers. The noise from them drove us away earlier than we would have liked, but we still had time to savour a brownie for dessert. The friendly, but amateurish service became patchier as the pace picked up. Try to visit on a quiet night, if you can.