TRAEGER ON THE MENU

OTIUM

With help from Traeger grills, chefs around the world are forging new ways to create culinary experiences and delicious food. “Traeger on the Menu” highlights restaurants where wood-fired flavor is always on the menu.

OTIUM: THE PLACE TO GATHER, WIND DOWN, AND DINE IN LOS ANGELES

If you’re looking for a bite in Los Angeles, head to Hope Street. There, Chef Tim Hollingsworth’s restaurant, Otium, offers a mix of exceptional foods that bridge the gap between upscale dining and contemporary, flavorful meals. And, the Traeger in the kitchen ups the ante on savory dishes, sweet treats, meats, fish, and cocktails.

Otium offers breakfast, lunch, and dinner menus that feature seasonal recipes. No matter when you’re dining, you can expect something different almost every visit.

TIM HOLLINGSWORTH'S OTIUM

See what’s on the menu at this Los Angeles restaurant.

While menu items come and go, there are a few classics that have been around since day one. The Otium potatoes are a must-have with crème fraiche and Aleppo pepper, which has a milder kick than your average chili flakes. For Tim, it’s all about the dry-aged, slightly charred, low-smoked, and sauced-up tomahawk steak.

“I think that we do it in a pretty unique way that I haven’t seen a lot of people do,” Tim said. “We’re developing the flavor, and then we’re also blasting it with a sauce… that really creates this kind of charred finish and a depth of flavour.”

Tim and the team at Otium encourage each other to bring new ideas to the table, creating a menu that’s constantly changing. He says it’s a fun process, and the ways they cook vary depending on the meal. The naan bread with butter and the street corn Agnolotti (a pasta similar to ravioli) both give a nod to the diverse cultures that make up Los Angeles.

The staff at Otium work with the highest-quality ingredients, including some herbs and more from the restaurant’s rooftop garden. The variety of dishes means the staff are also using different tools for cooking, including the restaurant’s Traeger, which infuses everything from meat and seafood to desserts and cocktails with wood-fired flavour.

"I WANTED TO MAKE AN AUTHENTIC AMERICAN RESTAURANT, AS I WOULD SEE IT, SORT OF WITHOUT LIMITATIONS."

— Otium Founder and Chef Tim Hollingsworth

“I love to cook with a lot of different pieces of equipment, tools, and styles. We’ve been using Traeger since the beginning here,” Tim said, “adding flavor to different dishes… whether it be in the sweets and pastries, savory with vegetables, meat, and fish, or even in the cocktails.”

When he opened Otium, Tim named the restaurant to reflect his goal for the diners he wanted to attract. Translated from Latin, Otium is an abstract term that describes leisure time for eating, playing, and relaxing.

“I wanted to make an authentic American restaurant, as I would see it, sort of without limitations,” Tim said, “celebrating all the different cultures and all different types of cuisine.”

Otium is a restaurant “that aspires to please everyone,” according to the Los Angeles Times. Tim’s vision was to create an inviting space that draws in different crowds. He achieves that with the open-concept kitchen and dining area, the art and décor, and the side patio outside.

“Maybe there’s somebody dressed up and celebrating an anniversary or birthday. Maybe there’s somebody going to the symphony… and maybe there’s somebody in the neighborhood that’s just really into food,” Tim said. “I wanted those people to be sitting next to each other, and I wanted everybody to feel this dynamic of what the city is really based on.”

The future of Otium is ever-expanding. While Tim plans to keep the welcoming, leisurely atmosphere, he is always looking for ways to evolve with new menu items. With the highest-quality ingredients, traditional cooking, and modern twists on flavorful dishes, Otium will be the place to gather no matter where you’re from or who you’re sitting down to eat with.

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