Opto
Opto has been on my list for quite a bit, and we just never really had an opportunity to try it out until now. The Flatiron area continues to experience turnover and restaurant transitions, and this Mediterranean place was the latest. When it first opened, reservations were definitely needed, but over time, it seemed the need thinned out. We were able to walk in for 2 at around 6:00 PM on a Sunday evening.
Ambiance & Service
The interior felt crowd-pleasing with a lot of groups celebrating some event. The noise level is medium, and it felt very bustling. During the summer months, they receive some adequate natural light into the restaurant towards the back, so many request to be seated there.
The service was very good. They cleaned up our plates and filled our waters timely.
Food
The glass of Carricante ($29) came from I Custodi, Aedes, Etna, Sicily, Italy 2024. This had citrus and white floral notes with some volcanic minerality. It was bright, dry, and had some nice salinity to it.
The Gem Lettuce Salad ($26) came with dill, scallion, cucumber, and sesame-anchovy vinaigrette. We normally don’t order salads, but it was a hot day today. This helped with cooling off because all the ingredients provided a cooling effect. The vinaigrette was subtly acidic with nice sesame nutty notes. My partner mentioned they preferred more dressing, but I thought it was fine. For some palettes, the dressing might be too light.
The Arahova Feta Butter ($18) came with Turkish simit bread and green za’atar. This bread was similar to a Jerusalem bagel. It was very doughy with a lot of sesame notes. It came out warm, and it was delicious with the dip and feta butter.
The Canary Islands Branzino ($135) came with one side of the fish and supposedly serves 2-3 people. We ordered this because we thought this would be the whole branzino. Low and behold, it was mostly one side of a branzino. They do filet it properly, so there weren’t any bones, but I couldn’t help but feel disappointed it was just one side of the branzino for the price. The meat, price aside, was very delicate, moist, and delicious. The skin was perfectly crispy, and the meat was simply divine. However, the value for this was simply sad.
The Moroccan Fried Rice ($16) had some interesting textures to it. It was a bit crispy and reminded me of rice that cooked a lot in a stone pot. There were some dried fruits and seasoning to it, that actually complemented the fish well. My partner felt the rice was too crispy for them, but I liked the crispy texture to the wet, soft branzino flesh.
Overall Impression
Opto turned out to be a decent restaurant, serving some slight derivative of Mediterranean food. I think price wise, it’s on the pricer side. The food quality was superb, but I felt disappointed by the pricing on the branzino. I think unless you really want to spend, just aim for things that seem more reasonable. This restaurant would be great for a low key dinner as a date or as a small group.
Yelp & Google Jabs
When was the last time you could “taste the love” in each dish? Outside of my mother’s kitchen- Opto.
For this Yelper, they probably don’t dine out a whole lot. There are many restaurants in the city that you can taste the love in each dish.
Calamari was bad. Pasta was okay. Drinks were strong. Little tight and loud, but it’s a New York restaurant. Not a date place. Server was nice.
Generally, I have read the reviews for the calamari and pasta were pretty good. However, the one thing that stood out was that this person said it was a little tight and loud and not a date place. In the NYC dining culture, this type of environment screams it can be a date place. Perhaps this Yelper prefers quiet, but there are many who enjoy the energy of the restaurant.
Revisions
- Jun 21, 2026 - Initial revision.