Otto in Rome, gyoza all'amatriciana and gnocchi cacio e pepe in Ponte Milvio

Otto in Rome. New season, new places to discover. October has brought another venue to Ponte Milvio, which boasts a wealth of dining and drinking options: it's up to Otto, as it's called, to stand out from the area's vast offerings. Otto presents itself as a trattoria that blends traditional recipes with modern cuisine, mirrored by its furnishings and ambience. Outside, there's a small terrace, while inside, the dining room seats about 40, featuring wood paneling, a black-and-white checkered floor, lamps, and wall art featuring works by artists like E.Art, Vincent Pop Art, Delavega, Red Zone, and Léon, all for sale.

Otto's proposal

To open Otto (to be precise, it is located at Via Flaminia 496 A), the three partners decided to rely on the consultancy of Federico Del Moro and Matteo Lo Iacono, whom we already met with Crunch (our 2023 Puntarella d'Oro in the Pizzeria category) and Dazio.

Otto is open from 5:30 pm until 2 am. It starts with an aperitif, with a menu of small tastings from the kitchen paired with cocktails created by bar lady Elisa Pelagalli: the result is a fusion drinks list, with ingredients ranging from tradition to international influences such as in the Drink Pinky (a twist on a spiced rum and ginger beer base, Fabbri black cherry syrup and sweet yet tangy coconut syrup). In total there are 6 signature drinks by Otto (12-14 euros), the classics (9) as well as mocktails (alcohol-free cocktails) and a selection of Spritz (Spritz Saint Germain; Cherry Spritz; Spritz with chamomile liqueur). Or you can choose to try one of the over 140 labels on the wine list.

Otto's menu

And now we move on to the actual menu, created by executive chef Matteo Lo Iacono. To start, we find the amatrigyoza (11 euros), steamed and grilled amatriciana gyoza, confit cherry tomatoes, Sichuan pepper, pecorino romano fondue and balsamic vinegar glaze, or the carbotartare (13), a hand-cut beef tartare, Madagascar pepper, crispy bacon, carbocrema and enclosed in a circular crouton.

Among the first courses, porchetta becomes the filling for ravioli (15), with celeriac cream, homemade peach in syrup, Syrah reduction and dill oil. And then there is the revisitation of spaghetti alla Nerano, which is transformed into the Nerano Ripiena (16), a single tagliatelle of fresh pasta filled Nerano style, with black garlic bagna cauda, ​​Provolone del Monaco fondue, crispy basil and black pepper. And again, the cacio e pepe (13) becomes a dumpling filled with cheese, cooked and grilled, a three pepper decoction (Sichuan, Madagascar and black) and flambéed apples. Make way for the second courses with the beef fillet wrapped in Patanegra lard (27) and the Ottogiana (13), or rather the parmigiana according to Otto: baked aubergine, aubergine bavarois, 24-month Parmigiano Reggiano fondue, basil oil, confit red datterini tomatoes, Greek and purple basil, bread croutons.

As for desserts (all 8 euros), Otto has a small display case, the Dolciotto, through which customers can watch the desserts being completed: pistachio and raspberry, trifle, basil and apricot mousse, almond and mulberry semifreddo.

Otto. Via Flaminia 496 A, Rome. Tel. 393 6632068. Instagram. Open Tuesday to Sunday from 5:30 PM to 2 AM.