From Donuts to Delirium

Come on in!

After a long flight and a sweltering hot taxi ride without air-con, I was anxious to get to our room. Welcome to the Royalton Hotel daaaaahlings. Isn’t this a lovely lobby? It’s so Art Deco/ Goth. It kind of feels like I’m in an episode of Bat Man. So, where have I traveled to? I am indeed in THE Gotham city my dears: New York. Woo hoo the Housewife has arrived. Bat Man beware, you are no match for me…  and for goodness sake, put on some pants on. Did your mother really let you leave the house looking like that? Show some shame man!

While Mr P checks out the horrifically overpriced snacks in our room ($5 for some M&Ms and $8 for water?!?),  I think I’ll have a nice soak in the tub, before dinner.

For our first night in the city we opted to go to most casual of Mario Batali’s New York restaurants: Otto Enoteca & Pizzeria. That place is buzzing! As soon as you walk in you are bombarded with bright colors and loads of lively chatter. I was later to note that the noise level in New York restaurants is much greater than anywhere in the UK. Okay, but I’m not going to complain about noise, that’s just going to make me sound like I’m old, and we all know how young and pretty I am. I am also wise… so very wise LOL. Am I digressing already?

On a hot day, I can’t tell you how lovely it was to be greeted with some icy cold water without having to ask for it. I don’t know about you, but it’s little things like that which really endears me to a place. The water was later followed by a packet of thin and crispy breadsticks and a hunk of chewy but pleasant  bread wrapped in brown paper. The bread sticks were no taste sensation.  Actually, they were a teeny bit bland, but they were cute, and cuteness factor counts in my book. The bread was nice, but it was even better when we asked for some olive oil for dipping. The olive oil they gave us was exceptional. It was very light and fruity. I couldn’t mop up enough of it.

We had a wonderful waiter who seemed very knowledgeable about  the items on the menu, which was good, because many items were listed by their Italian names. Funny, but our waiter actually looked a bit like Mario Batalli himself. Apparently, from a conversation I overheard, Mario Batali does visit the restaurant occasionally, but at the time of our visit, he was not in NY. How wonderful it would have been to see him. I admire Mario Batali very much. He is one of my all time favourite chefs because I really sense his love and passion for what he does. When I see him on TV, I find his enthusiasm really infectious. And his creations? Art.

For starters Mr P and I got some giant Sicilian olives. You can’t really tell in this picture, but these suckers are big! Actually if you compare the olive to the base of the spoon, you  might get an idea of what I’m talking about. They were also very delicious and had the faintest taste of the lemon rind which was sitting in the oil along with the olives. The man at the table sitting next to us was so impressed by them, that he had to order them too: copycat .  Next was some very good eggplant caponata.  My favourite caponata, is the one at Carluccio’s (which tends to be on the sweet side, while this one is more savoury), but the one here at Otto could definitely hold its own. The best of these starters, for me, was the sweet corn fregola. Really, I had no idea what fregola was, but the waiter explained that it was pretty much the same as giant/ Israeli cous cous. The fregola was nutty  and delicate, and the corn tasted so fresh and sweet. You could tell that the corn was cut straight off the cob, as there were actually some little kernels that were stuck together. I was totally won over by this particular starter. I know it might not look like much, but believe me, looks are deceiving here.

So, it was here that I had my very first New York pizza. While I did like it very much, I was later to find that there are much better pizzas in the city… much better. Despite that, it definitely wiped the floor with any pizza you would get in the UK (and that includes London–oh god, am I ever going to be able to enjoy Pizza Express again?).

Here is a picture of my potato, ricotta, and anchovy pizza. The crust was nice and crispy. The anchovies very salty (I like salt), and the ricotta was smooth and creamy. It was a great combination of flavours. I preferred Mr P’s selection of Pasta alla Norma, however. His was a fabulous and perfectly al dente pasta which consisted of tomato, roasted eggplant, basil, and bufala ricotta. The pasta was generously coated in the rich and flavourfull sauce, and when you got a bit of the cheese, well it was divine. A rare and bright smile could be seen on my Hubbykin’s face, and so I will now have to figure out how to duplicate this dish at home. Mr P is a very friendly and happy person, but funny enough, he doesn’t smile all that much. I love it when he smiles!

I wouldn’t come to Otto and not try their gelato. It’s what all the bloggers rave about. From what I’d read before my trip, this is supposed to be some of the best gelato in the city (although we later found something way better– that will be in an upcoming post). Otto offers loads of tempting flavours to choose from, and between Mr P and I, we tried 6 different gelatos.

Mr P’s selection was a vision in white, as he chose coconut, vanilla, and olive oil (a blogger favourite according to the reviews I read). My favourite of these was probably the coconut, though I think it would have been even better if it had little coconut pieces in it. The vanilla was sweet and creamy, as good as vanilla gets. As for the olive oil, well, while I can understand why one would like it, the fact is that my tastes run toward the more traditional. I did, however, try it with the idea that I was going to love it, so I was more than open-minded.  I feel like as a food blogger I am committing a sacrilege by telling you that I wasn’t feeling Otto’s famed olive oil gelato, but I’m not about to start lying to you. I like my ice cream to be sweet and full of sugar and cream. Salty gelato is a bit too complex for my palate.  Mr. P, on the other hand absolutely raved over the flavour with its fantastic texture and the rivulets of oil which ran throughout the mixture.  Mr P. says he is going to Baskin Robbins kick up a fuss until they put it amongst their 31 flavours. Trust me, he can kick up a fuss when he wants to.

As for me, I had salted caramel, hazelnut, and dark chocolate. Of these, the dark chocolate was my favourite. There was something about it that tasted very pure and singular to me. It was strong and unabashed, super chocolatey. Next was the hazelnut, which tasted almost like Nutella ice cream with little chocolate pieces in it– it was a close second. As for the salted caramel, another blogger favourite, it just wasn’t as amazing as I’d imagined. It was creamy and salty with a slightly “burned” flavour. It definitely had a uniqueness about it, but it just wasn’t to my personal taste. Even Mr P agreed with me on that one, and truth be told, I think his tastes are much more sophisticated than mine (I hope he doesn’t read that). Overall, I have to say that all the gelatos had a marvellous creamy texture and come to the table beautifully presented. It’s just up to you to pick the right flavour.

Otto is excellent value for money. Mr P was shocked when we got the bill and it was under $70! Don’t fret my little pet, I’ll find you something else to spend your money on.

I deffinitely would reccomend Otto. The starters are fresh and exciting. For the mains, I’d go for the pasta rather than the pizza. The pasta was fab, and the pizza is good, but you can do better if you are in the city. As for the gelato, there are so many wonderful flavours to choose from, you are bound to find one you love wether you are the adventurous foodie or the cautious and picky.

Overall score for Otto: 8/10.

Our bedroom at the Royalton Hotel. Note to self: Must buy feather pillows.

Whoah, this post has taken me forever to write! Bed time for me. I always get tired after a big meal. Time to climb into my super comfy feather bed. Some people like to count sheep, I count bread rolls (with buttah of course). Sweet dreams daaaaahlings. Do come back, I’ve got loads of good eats and fabulous adventures to share with you.

*Goodnight Kisses*