OTTO Unfortunately Underperforms

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A recent lunch for two at Otto consisted of the following:

– small octopus salad

–  grilled radicchio with smoked mozz

gnocco fritto (fried dough strips)

– short rib ravioli

– tagliatelle with ham and Spring peas

– ice cream dessert

To make an expensive, disappointing story short, the radicchio was billed as grilled, but tasted so strongly of  kerosene that all nuance (not to mention flavor) was obliterated. (Side note: ELV loathes the chemically-odoriferous scents left on food from gas grills, and wonders why chefs even bother.)  The gnocco fritto were as tasty (and about as complex) as something you’d get at a county fair, and the two pasta dishes were seriously flawed.

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Eat This Now – Pastas at VALENTINO

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Luciano Pellegrini is a pasta master. Of this there can be no doubt. Whether he’s dressing squid ink garganelli with fresh sea urchin and caviar, or tossing thick ribbons of tagliatelle with braised rabbit and Australian black truffles, or using gemelli to show off his crunchy house-cured bacon, he never fails to hit the right balance between rich and light, earthy and ethereal.

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