Otway — Restaurant in New York

First; the bread is next level. 6 stars for the bread. And overall this is a good restaurant that’s mostly hits but has a few details I would change. This was almost a 4 for me, but I’m swaying in the 4.5-4.6 direction so full 5 star credit is granted.

The drinks are quite good and the Tepeche is something I haven’t seen before! It’s a mild pineapple kombucha; super tasty. The margarita was also top notch, not overly sweet. These are from a well considered bar.

The bread is life changing. The butter is perfect. Why have dinner after? Just get a loaf. In all seriousness it was a generous portion of amazing sourdough and it changed my life and became my friend for just a moment.

The melon is far too simple of a dish and needs to be portioned differently and come with some other flavors in tow. It’s just a slice of cantaloupe and salt; so this was a let down after the divine bread. We found the burger and desert to be spectacular (that’s strawberries and cream), although the cream leans into feeling a bit oily and the dish could have been slightly colder.

The steak was another slight miss. It was good but for the price point ($40+), I need to see something really amazing to not feel out of sync here. Meat was slightly dry, could have been more tender. Nothing much to say about its flavor and it wanted to be part of the sauce but was plated oddly and separately… sort of inviting you not to mix them. The accompaniments were ok, a little too much salt forward-ness in the mushroom marmalade. But it was tasty overall: would rather have had 2 burgers. Fries were on point and well cooked. A lot of unique savory notes in the burger that put it a cut above competitors.

I know it feels like I’m roasting this place, but I’ve been to restaurants at every price so I have hundreds of points of context for this review. It’s a top 50 in Brooklyn, brunch is awesome here apparently, but it’s not in my top 10-20, roughly.

Anyway; that’s the review. Thanks for...

Otway Review Tuna tarta- so good. Just the right amt of acid. I do think maybe a little less soy sauce bc was a little on the saltier side. The celery did give it good balance, along with the toasted noodle crunch.

Duck wings, like the sweet & heat.

Endive salad- was so delicious! Love the layers of flavors and texture with the cheese and nuts. The light dressing was refreshing.

The potato side dish was so flavorful. Nice balance of heat, sweetness and crunch on top of warm soft potato yumminess. This reminded me of comfort food on a cold rainy day or after a break up lol

The mackerel fish was spot on. Light, flaky and I liked the crunchy refreshing salad on top. The butter beans I wouldn’t have thought to be paired with but it was also very comfort food-esk and filling for a cold wintery Saturday night.

The steak I did not like. The meat was chewy and lacked flavor for me. But I did like the sautéed endive on the side.

The hazelnut tart I loved. But I love nuts and sweets. It was the perfect combination of sweet & salty hazel nuttiness and the blood orange was a perfect layered taste on top of the whipped cream and tarte.

I was disappointed by the s’mores dessert. The mousse and crunch was a little too dark chocolate bitter tasting to me, but it was nicer when mixed with marshmallow. But please keep in mind I am not a fan of the more purer concentrated dark chocolates. I have a sweet tooth lol

Overall I thoroughly enjoyed the food tasting experience. I would love to do more of that if you like feedback.

The ambience was very simple, classic, farm to table type of feel which I do love. The servers were really nice. I love that you have a boozi-less drink menu which I’m sad that I didn’t get to try bc I wanted to leave space for the yummy eats. But I will be back and would love to try...

Overall, this experience was a disappointment. As new parents, my wife and I were on a rare night out without the baby. The meal immediately started off on the wrong foot. After we ordered a couple appetizers and told the waiter we wanted to spend some time thinking about our entrees, the waiter came back from the kitchen to tell us that the Chef wants to know our full order and didn't want to do just the appetizers. In other words, the Chef wanted to rush us. This is shockingly unacceptable for even the lowliest restaurant. I have worked as a waiter in a lot of restaurants, and I could not fathom the chef or myself saying anything to a guest that would make them feel rushed. It's bad for business, as indicated by this review and the fact that we will not return.

The food was also pretty bad. One of dishes we ordered was the uni (sea urchin) crepe. Clearly, it was rancid. I have never tasted anything so foul in my whole life. We told the waiter, who took back the dish. BUT WE WERE STILL CHARGED FOR IT. Again, I have had a lot of restaurant experience and when you're paying the kind of prices that Otway charges, you take the dish off the bill no questions asked. Also, we asked the waiter about the dish before we ordered it and he didn't say anthing about a "strong" flavor. When we said we didn't like it, he said it was a "polarizing" dish. I know the dish was rancid. But even if it wasn't, the waiter should have said the dish was "polarizing" before we ordered it.

Lastly, the drinks were boring. I ordered some margarita-like cocktail and it tasted like someone sapped it of flavor. It was muted and uneventful.

The service was bad. The food quality was clearly bad, as demonstrated by the rancid dish. And the cocktails...