Argentine chef adds artistic touch to gourmet pizzas

Opened late last year, Artistic Cuisine brings gourmet pizzas to downtown Palatine.

Manning the pizza oven, chef and owner Ezequiel "Zee" Otoro brings baking skill learned at Kendall College in Chicago (formerly in Evanston) and in his native Argentina and informed by 10 years as a local caterer.

While the pizzas come in a variety of formats, Artistic Cuisine specializes in thin-crust gourmet pizzas. Their unique, crackerlike crust - made from imported Italian flour, perhaps an eighth of an inch thick, crisp and sturdy - holds up well to the toppings. You can choose your favorite toppings, as in most pizzerias, or select one of Otoro's combinations, such as a classic Margherita with buffalo mozzarella, fresh tomatoes and basil; the white Venetian with bechamel in lieu of tomato sauce and a topping of onions, spinach, ham and two cheeses; and the "meat lovers obsession" with ground beef, bacon, sausage, pepperoni and Italian beef.

Don't look for offbeat California-style pizzas. Available toppings tend pretty much to the traditional, with items such as chicken, arugula and jalapeȯˆ¿Ã‚ˆ½os about as exotic as they get.

I tried the pancetta, which features a pleasant tomato sauce, not too sweet or spicy, parmesan and mozzarella cheeses, a generous helping of Italian bacon, sliced onions and a sprinkling of oregano.

If you prefer, you can get a more breadlike, medium-thick crust or a double-thick one. Stuffed pizzas are also available. All the pizzas start with the same dough, Otoro says, but he uses different techniques for each.

Otoro's heritage comes into play in a selection of empanadas, which you can have either baked or fried. The crisp pastry half moons offer a choice of half a dozen fillings, including two kinds of beef, chicken and several vegetarian options. I give the baked version a slight edge, but they're both very good.

Another Argentine choice, a 4-ounce skirt steak with chimichurri sauce, was less successful; the garlicky green sauce is everything it should be, but it fails to compensate for the rather inferior beef. The steak is one of several grill combo dinners available, which come with soup and a choice of fries, salad or vegetable. Soups change daily; a creamy, well-flavored tomato-basil figured during my visit.

Shrimp and chicken brochettes, grilled salmon and baby back ribs also feature, as well as a number of pastas. Pasta choices include tagliatelle carbonara, four-cheese ravioli, spaghetti and meatballs and house-made gnocchi, a trifle heavy and drowned in soupy tomato-cream sauce.

The menu also offers starters such as chicken wings and calamari and a selection of side and main-dish salads and sandwiches, including burgers, sausage and peppers, Italian beef, meatball, and signature breaded steak.

Otoro's baking skills show up in excellent house-baked breads and desserts. The dense chocolate cake (a tall square of sheet cake) struck me as needing a central layer of frosting. I preferred the very creamy tiramisu that is served on weekends.

The attractive, window-wrapped dining room, with dark wainscoting, oak floors and wooden chairs, makes for very pleasant dining-in, but nearby residents can get free delivery. The dining-room servers are very friendly and informative.