Otto’s Pub and Brewery

We decided to take a trip to State College on Tuesday to see one of my friends give a polymer physics seminar. While there, we were able to meet up with some friends for dinner at Otto's Pub and Brewery (Otto's). They have moved to a larger location since we've lived in State College and we've been to the new location once before, shortly after it opened in 2010. We arrived at 6:30 pm and didn't have to wait to be seated (though it was a Tuesday). Otto's is newer on the beer scene having been around since 2002. Even though they are newer, they have become a State College staple.

Service

The service was very good and quick. The waitress was very patient with our group even though one of my friends is not the easiest (and by 'not the easiest' I mean kind of a pain in the ass) person to serve. The place was pretty busy though as said before not so packed that we didn't get seated immediately. We got an appetizer while we waited for our two friends to show up. The pretzel came before my friends got there so we had something tasty to eat while drinking our beer and waiting. As we've been here before, we can easily say that this is their normal level of good service.

Food

The food was pretty good, though they have a different chef now so the food is different. They are trying to source all their ingredients locally. We started with a giant pretzel and mustard. The mustard had a some kick to it; to me it was the perfect mixture of spicy and sweet, that made me thirsty. I got the bean burrito with chicken and Dave got a Reuben. They have changed their recipe for the burrito and I am not too fond of the new recipe because, it had a bunch of sweet bell peppers. They also don't offer steak anymore as one of their meat choices. It would have been perfect without all the peppers, it wasn't bad I just wasn't a fan of the sweet taste it had. Dave says the Reuben was a good. “You can’t go wrong with a good Reuben and this one certainly fell into that category.” They have a lot of different types of food including pizza.

Atmosphere

Otto's is pretty modern and spacious with both booths and tables. They do trivia on Tuesday nights. They have a good sized bar and multiple dinning rooms. The atmosphere is really pretty modern though dark. Not dark like Stewart's with dark walls and low light, but just low lighting. The walls were a pale pistachio color, but looked darker due to the lighting. They have beer based artwork hanging up around the dinning room. The atmosphere is definitely a lot more modern than the "traditional" pub feel. They have a nice outside glass area where they have the brewing equipment. We didn't feel packed in too tight like the tables were too close together. They have a “Pub Club” which is your basic mug club with discounts on kegs, cases and food. They also tap a firkin every Friday at 5:00 pm, so a nice treat for the end of the week.

Beer

We decided to get a one of Otto's specialty Cork and Cage series beers. These are only available in 750ml bottles and must be consumed on premises, they aren't available to take home. They have 3 beers being served in this line currently. We got the Root Red, a beer infused with 7 different root plants. We'll skip the beer rating for now and just tell you to look for a full review of it coming soon. Otto's distributes beer in cases and kegs throughout the central part of PA. Their distribution area doesn't go as far as Pittsburgh and reaches on as far east as Lancaster. Also several other bars in the State College area serve the beer on tap.

Overall

We've enjoyed Otto's every time we've been there. They produce a lot of great basic beers and a few really interesting standouts that you need to try. I suggest trying out Otto's if you’re in the area and I know it gets packed on football weekends so get there early if you are making a trip.