Otto's Kitchen & Comfort — Restaurant in Pittsfield

The staff at Otto's is racist, so if you are a minority be very careful. My family just went through a distressing experiences at this place. I wish I could write about the food, but my family (I, my wife, and our 10 year old daughter) were humiliated by the staff and the manager and were told we "will never be welcome in their restaurant"--all because I told a waitress that their reservation system does not work. If the owners care, I want them to know who I am. I am a person of color who was talked down to on November 23, 2022 by a waitress and her manager, and humiliatingly told to leave. We live nearby and my family has been going to this place off and on for four years. The waitresses wear shirts that say, "I am a rude waitress" and it used to bring a smile to us, but over time we realized this would be funny if the waitresses were actually not rude. My family has not experienced aggressive, racist behavior in Pittsfield generally. Today's incident shook us. Once before, when we came in they told us they were full and it would take 45 minutes. We looked around and saw plenty of tables empty. Maybe they are understaffed, we thought. We put our name and number down and were told we can't wait inside. We stepped outside and within 3 minutes my wife got a system text that a table was available. It felt odd, but we didn't care. Today, the same thing happened. It was cold outside, but again we were told to wait outside for 45 minutes. And again within 15 seconds the text came that a table was available. They could literally see us walk out and stand there as they sent the text. When we sat, I told the waitress serving us menus: "I am sorry, but I didn't appreciate the manager sending us out like that into the cold only to bring us back in." The waitress responded: "Well, I don't appreciate your tone!" I was taken aback, because my comment was made in a gentle tone, with absolutely no malice. I consider myself an ally of working people, especially people in low-paid service industry. I go out of my way not to appear overbearing. To make sure she hadn't misunderstood my comment, I said, "Sorry, I am speaking about the reservation system..." I couldn't even finish my sentence, when she said: "I am not serving you, you are not welcome here." She left and told something to her manager, who came and said to me: "Why are you arguing with my worker?" I said, "Sorry, I am not at all. I was just telling her the reservation system..." And again, she interrupted me and said: "You and your family are no longer welcome here ever again." I looked at my daughter, who was distraught by this bizarre exchange. We stood up and walked out. On our way out, the manager told my wife, "There are restaurants in Lee and Lenox, why don't you go there! Do not come back here." In moments like these we gather our strength; my daughter gave me a hug. She knew these people wouldn't treat us so poorly if I was white. I was left speechless by this strange aggression and couldn't comprehend how a mild comment about their reservation system could have caused them to retaliate by banning my family from ever coming to their restaurant! We took their advice and drove down to Lenox for our lunch. I am not sure what to say or recommend. All I can say is there should be no place for racist behavior...

0/5. I never had good experience coming here but today was the last straw. Terrible attitude and dirty, the health department needs to come here and check ASAP. Me and my friend came here for breakfast. When she found hair in her eggs, the waitress gave us terrible attitude and took it off the check. Later on, I also found hair in my plate, to which the waitress accused me of putting it there. She said “ I don’t know what to tell you, it couldn’t possibly be ours because the hair is brown, just like yours.” Never coming again.

**EDIT: A reply to Otto’s owner

While our experiences differ in some aspects, I appreciate your perspective.

Let me clarify a few points. First, regarding our alleged "stank attitudes," perhaps the "Be Nice or Leave" signs around your restaurant set a bit of an unusual tone, different from the usual relaxed atmosphere one expects for a casual lunch. We came in with good intentions, hoping for a pleasant lunch.

Secondly, the hair in my friend's meal was undeniable. We politely brought it to the server's attention, and while we initially declined a replacement, the later discovery in my untouched waffles was concerning but not surprised. The suggestion that I planted my own hair is certainly unique – one worthy of a mystery novel, wouldn't you agree? 🤣

In regards to the leftover food, the entire experience, hair and all, left us feeling quite disoriented. We never intended to take the food home after that point, despite any alleged discussions about paying for it. Perhaps the excitement of the moment caused some miscommunication.

Your comment about our past visits is interesting as well. Well 🤷🏻‍♀️, sometimes familiarity breeds a desire for change. We were hoping a return visit might offer a different experience. Unfortunately, it seems Otto's magic touch continues to be elusive for us.

As for your reflection on negative reviews, I leave that to your own good judgment. Perhaps a focus on creating a more lighthearted and welcoming environment, where guests can relax and enjoy their meals without any unexpected plot twists, might be a more fruitful direction rather than public debates with reviewers. In that spirit, I want to assure you that despite the issues we encountered, we did leave a tip for the waitstaff that served us.

While I’ve heard rumors about restaurants paying to remove negative reviews, I trust that Google’s platform allows genuine feedback to be seen by potential paying customers. I hope this honest review can contribute to a positive change for future diners at Otto’s, unfortunately, I won’t be back to see it myself.

Regardless, wishing you all the best in your future culinary...

I moved to Pittsfield in August and found Otto's in September. Since then, I have averaged one visit each week, either on weekends or during the week, including peak weekend hours. I have never had a meal that wasn't fantastic. I strongly recommend their homemade hash—it is the best I have ever had. The home fries are better than average and come with omelets. My go-to meal is their omelets: never runny or overcooked, and perfection for me. In fairness, their coffee is horrible—like Starbucks—but everyone else seems to like it. The wait staff are friendly, funny, helpful, and provide great service.

The ownership will not tolerate—and rightly so—abusive behavior towards the people working there. Some reviewers seemingly believe they should be permitted to mistreat the wait staff. Those negative reviews are the source for staff t-shirts. I particularly like one reading, "rude and obnoxious." As a former New Yorker, is that a complaint or a compliment? (To the owner: please reorder t-shirts—I really want that one in XL.)

Within the negative reviews, there are ones that can at best be described as unreasonable, unrealistic, absurd, and written by the ignorant and/or insane. Allow me to help some of these folks with simple explanations and advice. For some, my explanation won't help only because I can't use pictures and puppets.

Customers not being permitted to block the entrance area: Stop being stupid and take a moment to figure out why you are not allowed to do it. Hint: staff need to move through the area to take care of customers, others need to come in to add their name to the waitlist, and people who have finished need to leave so your stupid self can be seated and fed.

Otto's not taking reservations: Other customers don't want to wait for a table because you are late or don't show up. Get in line. You not being seated until everyone is there? Reread why reservations aren't taken.

On the weekends, having to wait for a table: People like Otto's and like to eat there, especially on weekends—just like you. If you don't want to wait, don't go during peak weekend times. Try going after 10:00 or 10:30; they are open until 2:00.

Food taking time to arrive or their being out of something: When there are lots of customers, it takes time to prepare meals. Customers who ordered before you get their food first, and sometimes things run out. In kindergarten, you should have learned that being first in line means you go first. I survived them being out of feta cheese the first time I ordered an omelet. If you can't wait to eat, go somewhere else, stay home and eat frozen food, and if you are about to starve to death, the hospital is...