Feeding the Frontline has hit $100K!

At OTTO, giving back to our communities has always been a priority. In the past year, we’ve begun two ongoing programs: our monthly specials donations, in which we’ve partnered with Cooking Matters in MA and FEED Kids in ME to donate $1 from every monthly special pizza sold, and Feeding the Frontline, where we’ve turned customer contributions into countless deliveries, feeding thousands of healthcare workers on the frontlines of the pandemic.

We are so excited to announce that, as of this month, we’ve reached $100,000 in donations to our Feeding the Frontline program! We’re so grateful to our incredible customers for making this initiative so successful. Both Feeding the Frontline and our monthly donations program would not be possible without your support. We can also say firsthand how appreciative the frontline workers we’ve delivered to have been to benefit from this program.

Because of your generous donations, we’ve been able to make deliveries to over 75 healthcare facilities in Maine and Massachusetts, including:

  • Maine Medical Center
  • Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
  • Boston Children’s Hospital
  • Massachusetts General Hospital
  • Tufts Medical Center
  • Maine General Hospital
  • Mercy Hospital
  • Boston Medical Center
  • Fenway Health
  • Beverly Hospital
  • Mid Coast Hospital
  • Mount Auburn Hospital
  • Emerson Hospital

Although we have reached an amazing milestone, we’re not out of the woods yet. If you’re able, please consider making a donation with your next order, so we may continue to support our healthcare heroes and fuel them through their shifts as they work tirelessly to keep our communities safe.

Make your own Masher!

KR1_96621This Labor Day weekend, we’d like to share the recipe for our award-winning Mashed Potato, Bacon and Scallion pie!

The pizza named one of the ‘Best Pizzas in America’ by The Food Network is not only a joy to eat, it’s a blast to make.

If you’re feeling adventurous over the three-day weekend, give it a try! Share pictures of your experience with us via Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram.  We’d love to see your take on this fan favorite!

Ingredients
1 16-ounce proofed pizza dough cornmeal (to taste)
Olive oil (to taste)
Black pepper (to taste)
2 tablespoons grated Asiago
1 cup mashed potatoes (recipe follows)
7 ounces grated low-moisture mozzarella
Heavy cream (to taste)
½ cup chopped cooked bacon
½ cup bias cut scallions (1⁄8-inch thick)
1 tablespoon chopped mix of parsley, rosemary and thyme Salt (to taste)

Instructions
Stretch the pizza dough into a 16-inch circle and place on a peel that has been dusted with cornmeal.
Brush the dough with olive oil.
Season with the black pepper and Asiago.
Break up the mashed potatoes and distribute evenly around the pizza, spreading all the way to the crust.
Top with mozzarella, making sure to cover the entire pizza, and drizzle generously with cream. Top with the bacon, scallions, parsley and salt.
Bake in a preheated 500 F pizza oven until golden brown.
Rotate the pizza half way through for an even bake.
Cut and serve.

——————————–

Mashed Potato Ingredients
Ingredients
Mashed Potato
1-2 pounds Maine or red potatoes
½ pound unsalted butter
¼ cup kosher salt
2 tablespoon black pepper
2 cup heavy cream

Mashed Potato Instructions
Fill a large pot with the potatoes, enough cold water to cover, and half the salt.
Bring to a simmer.
Cook until the larger potatoes can easily be crushed with tongs.
Strain in colander.
Immediately add the potatoes to a large container with the butter, remaining salt and pepper.
Mash until smooth and no large lumps remain.
Stir in the cream.
Refrigerate immediately.

OTTO/Rising Tide Spring Collaboration Launch Parties in ME and MA

1609996_1190159957662599_4654903827232278965_nPlease join us on Wednesday, March 30th as we launch OTTO and Rising Tide Brewing Company‘s spring collaboration, Oscar Tango Tango Oscar — a crisp, snappy, and sessionable pale ale brewed with rice.

The celebration will be happening simultaneously in Portland and Massachusetts, with launch parties at two OTTO locations on Wednesday, March 30. Join OTTO and Rising Tide team members at 225 Congress Street in Portland’s Munjoy Hill neighborhood or 289 Harvard Street in Brookline’s Coolidge Corner from 6-8pm, as we start pouring this delicious brew. Lucky attendees will receive Rising Tide and OTTO schwag!

This limited special collaboration will be available exclusively at OTTO.

12745742_1171284872883441_949013297044290465_nThe brewing process kicked off on February 23rd, with OTTO team members on site. This is the second year of this annual spring collaboration, which currently holds a respectable 3.71 rating (with 218 check-ins) on the popular social drinking service Untappd.

Oscar Tango Tango Oscar’s citrusy snap goes perfect on our sunny patios while sharing one of OTTO’s spring pies — eggplant, ricotta and basil, or roasted chicken, caramelized pears and fontina.

Oscar Tango Tango Oscar’s profile is sure to provoke an onset of Spring Fever. Proceed with caution.

Aroma: tangerine, orange peel, grapefruit, rose
Taste: tangerine, grapefruit, cereal, crisp with a snappy bitterness
Malts: 2-row, flaked rice, carapils
Hops: amarillo, mandarina, cascade
Yeast: house american ale
Specifics: 4.4% abv, 1.044 o.g., 4 srm, 25 ibu

Cheers!12144691_1171284999550095_5301404358084709220_n

The 1st OTTO Oscars! Submit your OTTO-themed Movie Poster and Win $100 Worth of Pizza Delivered to your Door on Oscar Night

It’s that time of year again – Oscar season! In honor of the 88th Academy Awards, we inviteTheShining you to post your own versions of OTTO-themed movie posters on our Facebook timeline and WIN!

Submit your movie poster by Thursday, February 25th. On Friday, February 26th we will choose the three best entries and award the following prizes:

1st place: A pizza party of $100 worth of pizza delivered to your home on Oscar Night* OR a $100 gift card & an OTTO T-shirt
2nd place: $50 OTTO gift card & an OTTO T-shirt
3rd place: $25 OTTO gift card & an OTTO T-shirt

A couple of rules to follow:

  1. You must incorporate one or both of the following: A photo of OTTO pizza AND/ORSpottolight the word ‘OTTO’ (Otto’s or Otto’s Pizza will not be accepted)
  2. Please use an existing film poster for your entry (see the Facebook gallery for examples)

Entries may be posted on our Facebook timeline or emailed to contactus@ottoportland.com. Winners will be contacted via Facebook or email on 2/26.

OTTO reserves the right to remove and/or disqualify entries that are not suitable for all ages, or which are otherwise not aligned with OTTO’s good taste.

We will add the very best entries to our ‘OTTO Oscars’ Facebook gallery, and elsewhere.

Get to it and good luck!

*The address must be within delivery range of one our locations in Maine or Massachusetts to qualify for an Oscar Night delivery

 

OTTO Honored By Yelp As One of 100 Top-Rated Businesses In North America

OTTO has been selected by Yelp as one of 100 “top-rated businesses” in America, and has been invited to a historic event taking place at Yelp’s San Francisco headquarters this November 4-5 called Coast-To-Coast: Coming Together Because We Mean Business.

12143320_10153662423869555_3043876664846898214_nOTTO was the sole Maine business selected by Yelp for this honor. Businesses were first nominated by Yelp’s North American community managers as “businesses that have a great reputation in their communities and on Yelp.” That list was then whittled down to 100 by Yelp HQ.

Yelp’s Business Outreach Manager, Corey Dane, describes the selected businesses as savvy in their approach to (and acceptance of) new customer feedback channels: “This choice group of business owners doesn’t get hung up by 1 and 2 star reviews; they use feedback to make necessary changes. Social is very much a part of their marketing strategy, and that includes taking an active role in managing their reputation on Yelp and in the community.”

Although the 100 businesses chosen for the honor range wildly in category, experience levels, and years in business, Dane says they have one thing that unites them: “their steadfast desire to build a robust business in their local market.”

OTTO is extremely proud to have been selected for this honor. As an independent restaurant group built and sustained on word-of-mouth exposure, OTTO has embraced Yelp as a valuable awareness tool, and as an important channel for engaging with its valued guests.

OTTO is looking forward to attending the events at Yelp HQ and hopes that the seminars and discussions will provide additional tools and knowledge to further harness the power of online feedback to continue to make OTTO the best it can be.

OTTO Alum Leads Uganda to Little League World Series

Uganda Final (3)-7441

Evan with Team Uganda

If you tune into ESPN at 1pm on Thursday, August 20, you will see Newburyport’s own Evan Petty, managing the Uganda Little League team in their opening game of the Little League World Series.

Evan, a Syracuse grad with a degree in Journalism and a love for baseball, worked in OTTO’s Newburyport location in its first few months of operations, before heading to Uganda to teach English. In his spare time, Evan assembled a juggernaut of a baseball team.

Read more about Evan in this Boston.com profile. It’s an inspiring story on many levels, and we hope you’ll join us in cheering on Team Uganda.

Today, two OTTO drivers from our Newburyport location (Aidan and Ryan) headed to Williamsport PA with 15 large pizzas to feed the team. We hope that we can help to fuel a win, although our gesture pales in comparison to what Evan has contributed.

We at OTTO are incredibly proud of Evan, and we wish Team Uganda the very best of luck during the series.

28 Pizza-Themed Gifs That Will Restore Your Faith In Humanity

1. Put a ring on it
beyonce

2. Chicken riding a pizza-eating kitten rug. Duh.
cat

3. Laser-eyed space kitten is adorbs
catlazers

4. Liz Lemon, seductress
30rock

5. Walter, that’s a perfectly good pizza.
breakingbad

6. Tobias Funke, space cowboy
cowboy

7. Zac hearts pizza
highschool

8. Homer hearts pizza
homer

9. Even monsters heart pizza
iheartpizza

10. The Blueprint is pizza
jayz

11. J-Law hearts pizza
jlaw

12. JT *really* hearts pizza
justin

13. Bobby can’t wait for pizza
koth

14. Smells like pizza
kurt

15. Nine lives
mario

16. Mary Kate (or is it Ashley?) hearts pizza
marykate

17. When is it *not* pizza time?
pizzatime

18. Cinder(mozza)rella
princess

19. The Ramones heart pizza
ramones

20. Rigby scores pizza
reg

21. So hot. (And Ryan Gosling’s not bad either)ryan

22. One thing Congress can agree on
schoolhouse

23. Zoinks!
scoob

24. Jerry hearts pizza
seinfeld

25. Sims pizza dance
sims

26. Stanley wins
stanley

27. Tim and Eric heart pizza
timeric

28. Liz Lemon gets it done
tina

OTTO’s New South Portland Location Is OPEN!

IMG_0250We are pleased to announce that our second South Portland location, at 125 John Roberts Road, is now (finally) officially open!

The John Roberts Road location is OTTO’s 9th location overall (10, if you count our Portland delivery facility), and is one of our roomiest, with 5 picnic tables, and an indoor bocce court. Diners can enjoy pizza by the slice or whole pie, along with a full array of beverages, including beer and wine. (Yes, we’re serving Autohelm, our brand new collaboration with Rising Tide Brewing Company!)

Tucked away in the office park just a stone’s throw from The Maine Mall, Home Depot, and Clark’s Pond Cinemagic, we believe shoppers, moviegoers, and office employees in the area will find OTTO to be a welcome addition to their dining options.
125_map
Whether dine-in, takeout, delivery, or catering your office party, we’ve got you covered at 125 John Roberts Road.

Call in your order by dialing 207-772-0900, or by using our online ordering service (you can even order in advance).

125Hours:

Sunday–Thursday 11am-10pm
Friday-Saturday 11am-11pm

We look forward to serving you!

Five Years of OTTO: A Month-Long Celebration of Food, Music, and Community

5th-candleWhen OTTO first opened its doors at 576 Congress Street on June 18 of 2009, owners Anthony Allen and Mike Keon had no idea that their humble slice shop serving up their unique take on a culinary staple would evolve into a fast-growing business employing over 240 employees in 10 locations, in 7 cities, in 2 states.

To celebrate 5 great years of food, friends, family, and fun, we’ve got a month of shenanigans lined up, including, but not limited to the following:

Saturday, May 24: OTTO’s 5th Birthday Bash with Elliott BROOD at One Longfellow Square
Pizza, giveaways, beer, wine, and great music, at one of our favorite venues! Come join the party on Saturday. Providing the music will be the band that fueled many late nights at the original slice shop, Canada’s Elliott BROOD, the Juno Award-winning ‘death country’ band whose live shows are “known to be lively affairs” (Washington Post). Also performing: Sympathy & the Lion.
Tickets available at One Longfellow Square

Throughout the month of June: OTTO Throwback Specials
KR1_0768Over the past five years, we’ve changed our menu from time to time. Sometimes we had to make room for new pies by retiring others. This never came without the cries OTTO enthusiasts who bemoaned the loss of their favorite pie.

In June, we’re reviving several of these pies at all locations for a limited time. Keep your eye on our Facebook page or our Twitter account for dates and times.

Friday June 20 & Saturday June 21: The Harmed Brothers LIVE at OTTO (FREE!)
To cap off our birthday month, another OTTO fave from Oregon, The Harmed Brothers, will be doing a two-night residency at our 574 Congress Street dining room. Stay tuned for more info.

Slugger Walk Week: A Special Pizza, Wally The Green Monster & More!

09slugwally01smAs the official carb-loading sponsor of Slugger the Sea Dog’s walk from Fenway Park to Hadlock Field for Tourette’s Syndrome, we’re pleased to announce some special events taking place at OTTO’s locations in Boston, Portland, and beyond.

Fundraiser for Tourette’s Syndrome: Featuring Wally the Green Monster (OTTO 888 Comm Ave)
On Monday, May 5, from 5-9pm, while Slugger is busy trekking from Fenway Park towards Portland, we will be holding a fundraiser at our BU location (888 Commonwealth Avenue) to help Slugger reach his goal of raising $20,000 to benefit The National Tourette Syndrome Association and Camp Twitch and Shout, a camp for children and teens with Tourette Syndrome. Since Slugger can’t be there himself, he’s asked his good pal Wally the Green Monster to come by. Wally will be on hand, cheering on his pal, posing for photos, and certainly scarfing down some pizza.

IMG_20140418_181414_879The Slugger Special: A One-of-a-Kind Pizza To Benefit Two Great Organizations (All Locations)
In honor of Slugger’s heroic walk, we will also be serving a very special pizza creation, The Slugger Special, from Monday May 5 through Sunday May 11. We’re pretty sure you’re gonna love it. (We happen to know sea dogs and green monsters do!) This grand slam of a pie features house-made meatballs paired with herbed ricotta, bacon, and fresh herbs. Right?

A portion of every sale (slices and whole pies) will be donated to Slugger’s cause.

The Slugger Special will be available at all locations.

For more information on Slugger’s walk, or to donate today, click here.